Luis Del Rosal: An Avid Children Lover and a Hallmark of Strength for People with Tourette syndrome – Taking a Deep Insight into the World of TS and How Society Can Contribute to Aid Alleviate Their Suffering

Special needs is an umbrella term covering a variety of diseases, syndromes, and atypical conditions ranging from those that resolve quickly to those that pose a lifelong burden and from those that are relatively moderate to those that are severe. Developmental delays, medical issues, psychiatric, neurological, or congenital conditions may be present in children with exceptional needs or developmental problems.. Children with these particular needs require accommodations in order to attain their full potential. This article provides a brief overview of Tourette syndrome and highlights the right ways society should adapt to deal with the kids suffering from TS.

Tourette Syndrome (TS) is a disorder of the neurological system that generates tics in affected individuals. Tics are abrupt, repetitive motions, noises, or vocalizations. People with tics are unable to stop their bodies from doing these movements. Having tics is comparable to having hiccups. Even if an individual does not want to hiccup, their body does it nonetheless. Occasionally, people are able to temporarily refrain from performing a tic for a while, although it’s difficult. Eventually, the individual must perform the tic.

Children with Tourette Syndrome are sometimes perceived as disruptive, disrespectful, or unpleasant due to their tics. A few children with TS experience the uncontrollable need to use curse words or utter improper things.. However, it is crucial to understand the fact that these tics can be distressing for children with Tourette Syndrome themselves..

Bullying is more likely to occur among children with tics than children without tics. Some children with TS may also engage in bullying, and the chances of danger levitate for those with more severe tics. Bullying has been connected with loneliness and distress among children with tics.. However, bullying is not inevitable. Many people in the vicinity of children with TS can assist in safeguarding them from bullying.

This is where Luis Del Rosal takes a stand for kids with Tourette Syndrome and helps reach them to the precipice of greatness through his thought-provoking writings. Rosal was born in Mexico on March 16, 1973, with a rare disease called Tourette syndrome – a condition that affects the central nervous system that causes tics. At the age of 8, he with his family moved to the States. Unfortunately, Rosal encountered a succession of bullying events throughout his student life. Despite several hurdles along the way, he graduated from high school in 1991 from Sweetwater Union High School in National City, California. Being a hardworking soul, Rosal began working at the age of 16 at a departmental store and later as a host at Red Lobster restaurant. Along the way, Rosal faced unwanted attention and, sometimes, bullying at work which, in several instances, saddened him and shattered his confidence.

Nevertheless, he fought like a warrior against his weaknesses and unnecessarily caused societal pressure and hatred. He challenged himself and continued working in the hotel industry as a PBX operator, reservations agent, and front office clerk at reception, which requires absolute exposure and customer dealing, but he rose above his peculiarities. He intertwined his studies with his work life and graduated from Southwestern College in Chula Vista, California. Rosal, in 1997, returned to his beloved homeland, Spain, where he took a new turn in his life and started composing meaningful and highly impactful books to implant awareness and increase emotional intelligence in children. Due to the relentless struggles and adversities he faced as a young boy growing up with Tourette syndrome. He decided to become a children’s book author to primarily bring awareness regarding this not well-known condition to society. He wanted to contribute to the people facing the same issue and help young children understand the fundamentals of life like friendship, acceptance, tolerance, rejection, generosity, and finally, invoking a sense of responsibility in them. 

Rosal, through his books, is committed to instilling a deep sense of empathy, sympathy, and compassion into the young minds and pure hearts of kids. He stood for them to preserve their fragile childhood and let no peculiarity ruin the beauty and delicacy of such tender age. Therefore, his unconditional love for children and the countless childhood hurdles he had to face due to his exceptional condition persuaded him to be the voice of the voiceless.. 

Rosal, in his books, portrays the idea that kids with Tourette syndrome want to be treated like everybody else. They can do regular stuff, just like other kids. They are smart as everybody else. One minor difference cannot justify treating them as ostracized outcasts by society. 

Many kids with Tourette syndrome get better as they get older. Some people will always live with Tourette syndrome, but they can enjoy themselves and pursue their dreams and goals just as their friends do. But all of this is more likely to be achieved seamlessly if society treats them how they deserve to be treated – with kindness, love, and empathy. Therefore, considering all such loopholes and the utter need for humanity and awareness in society, Rosal conveys compelling ways to prevent bullying and help raise these kids with the acute care they deserve. 

Having read enough of the challenges, unwanted attention, and sometimes hatred people with Tourette syndrome had to face, the most important question that arises here to heal their suffering is: What role can friend, family, and educational sectors play in this regard? Below is mentioned some primitive roles and responsibilities that society can play to give immense support and love to kids with TS in the healthiest way possible. 

  • The Supportive Role of Friends

It is significant to make peers and kids understand that tics are absolutely normal, something that is not under someone’s control. Therefore, instead of portraying it as an unusual characteristic, their family and friends can help them feel accepted and help stop bullying.. It is pivotal to be helpful and be more than merely a bystander to the bullying. When adults immediately respond to bullying, it signalizes that behavior as something not acceptable.. It teaches children to forbid doing such actions that might intentionally or unintentionally cause heartbreaks, inferiority complex, or lead to mental health deterioration. One might not understand how much merely simple words of kindness and standing up for Tourette syndrome can create a positive impact on the victim, elevate their perspective towards themselves, improve self-esteem and upgrade their quality of life. 

  • The Reassuring Role of the Family 

Families can advocate for their children. Children with Tourette syndrome often have to encounter disability harassment. Children and youth who are bullied are more likely to show symptoms like depression, social anxiety, PTSD, low self-esteem, inferiority complex, poor eating disorder, insomnia, headaches, fatigue, stomachaches, agitation, low focus and attention span, and poor learning ability. Such symptoms might also contribute to leading children with TS to suicidal thoughts.. However, parents can play their role and can help mellow down or prevent all of the aforementioned injurious effects by sheltering their kids, raising them right, stopping the bullying, being empathetic, spreading awareness regarding TS, treating them equally, speaking to them with kindness, being patient, teaching them the ways to tactfully handle any unwanted situation and elevating their confidence.

  • The Compassionate Role of an Education Professional 

Bullying can endanger pupils’ physical and emotional safety at school and hinder their capacity to learn. The most effective strategy to combat bullying is to stop it before it begins. Therefore, several steps can be taken, and school staff can set regulations to make the school environment safer for all and prevent bullying. Education workers can learn about tic disorders in order to respond with empathy and assist students in reaching their full potential..