00:00Some of my tics, they're quite violent.
00:02Oh, that was right on the bone.
00:05Sorry.
00:06WHISTLES
00:07We're identical twins with Tourette's.
00:10There's a lot of things happening
00:11and people don't always have the best response to it.
00:14A woman said that I was possessed in public.
00:18Most of the reactions we get are positive.
00:21We also get a handful of really nasty ones.
00:24Without faking it, it's not cool or funny.
00:27Do you like having Tourette's or is it a barrier?
00:31Um...
00:33Hm, hm, hm.
00:35F*** off!
00:37Blah.
00:38WHISTLES
00:39Hello, I'm Kate. I'm Sarah.
00:41We're identical twins with Tourette's.
00:44LAUGHTER
00:46Even ourselves, we don't expect what each other's tics are going to be.
00:50Oh, I thought that was open. I was going to cry.
00:52People always question how identical twins are,
00:56but really it's just like having another sister,
00:58but, um, they're just a lot closer.
01:02When we're together, it's interesting.
01:04LAUGHTER
01:05We...
01:07Hm, hm.
01:08We bounce off of each other, hey?
01:10Our tics are a lot more active when we're together than when we're apart.
01:13We make ourselves laugh a lot.
01:15With both of us having Tourette's,
01:17it made it a lot easier for us to understand ourselves and each other.
01:22Having tics every day, it gets difficult to do stuff
01:25I want to do, but I love doing my make-up.
01:28Sometimes I can't even do make-up when it gets really bad.
01:32Tourette's affects my everyday life up and down,
01:35so it really depends on the type of day my tics are having.
01:42This one smells like chocolate.
01:44Oh, no!
01:46I first got tics when I was around seven years old.
01:51I first started getting tics when I was 15.
01:54I was diagnosed when I was 16.
01:58You have to wait a year to get diagnosed with Tourette's.
02:02Yeah, so they can get rid of any other things that might be causing the tics.
02:07Initially, when your tics got worse, I was very resentful about it
02:13because, for me, like, didn't feel like anyone was helping me out with my tics.
02:21We just communicated, and that's basically how I got to understand.
02:25And then my tics got worse, and, like, you had every right to be resentful towards me about it,
02:32but you were just very opening about it, and I was like, OK, we're all chill now.
02:36Some of my tics, I guess you can say that they're quite violent.
02:41Shut the f*** up!
02:42I get sore throats because I clear my throat all the time.
02:47Um, and I get a lot of allergies because I'm constantly sniffing.
02:51Oh, that was right on the bone. Sorry.
02:55Our tics increase a lot when we're together because we bounce off.
02:59And when I'm around her, she's, like, a big trigger for me anyway,
03:03so I start going to punch and hit her all the time.
03:07As you can tell.
03:10I did have a period where my tics were really out there.
03:15Um, like hers.
03:18But at the moment, they're a lot more on the chill side.
03:21Like, it's mostly just some vocalisations, um, very few motor movements.
03:30Oh, jeez, I thought you were going to hit me then. Sorry.
03:32Ow! Shouldn't have said anything.
03:35Mm-hm.
03:40Why did you want to share your experience, your story online?
03:43So, we create educational and, um...
03:47Ha!
03:48..educational and awareness videos about our Tourette's,
03:52and we put them online to spread the awareness.
03:58I'm sorry. I'm sorry.
03:59Hello, my name's Tiki Kate.
04:01I'm Sarah. This is Sarah.
04:03Um, we are going to discuss how Tourette's has affected us in our workplace.
04:09Yeah.
04:10Yeah, we've, um, worked in the same area, and we've both got Tourette's,
04:13and when we're together, they bounce off of each other a lot.
04:17So, we had to be very careful with, um, saying stuff to people
04:21and how we did different things.
04:25It confused the heck out of our co-workers initially,
04:30but they all got used to it.
04:32They're like, yeah, no, this is fine, this is normal.
04:35Yeah, they thought it was really funny.
04:38Kate's a whore and I'm not. The end.
04:41What sort of responses have you been getting to what you've shared online?
04:46Most of the reactions we get are positive,
04:49um, and a lot of people who are in the Tourette's community
04:52or have people that they know who have Tourette's
04:55respond saying, I never thought about it this way before.
04:59We also get a handful of really nasty ones.
05:02Stop faking it. It's not cool or funny.
05:05It kind of hurts that they clearly don't understand it
05:10or want to respect it enough to call it fake.
05:14Good act, girls. Fun. Love that.
05:18Jeez, people really that desperate for attention?
05:22If I was that desperate for attention, I would not be doing this.
05:25I've been approached by a woman, um, in public,
05:30and she was like, you're possessed,
05:33and she was talking to a friend about me having demons and stuff.
05:37We try to hide in the house so we're not, um...
05:42Offending. Offending people,
05:44because it's hard to explain to every single person we see,
05:47and you can't explain it to every single person.
05:50A lot of people don't want to listen to it.
05:51They just think we're being rude teenagers.
05:54It must be so exhausting.
05:56Yeah, like, right now, my neck's been moving this whole time
05:59and it's really tense.
06:02My throat's, like, gone. Mine too.
06:04A lot of people will be like,
06:06oh, but you can suppress it, so why don't you just suppress it?
06:09But it's like, suppressing it hurts after a while.
06:13Like, I can only suppress for so long,
06:15and then I need to find a way to let it out.
06:17People asking her questions as well, which is good.
06:20What was your question?
06:21Ah, one of them was just asking how did both of y'all's tics start?
06:25Was it at the same time?
06:27No.
06:29Difficult. It probably would have been better if it was.
06:31I like these questions, though, don't I?
06:32It's true.
06:33Do you like having Tourette's, or is it a barrier?
06:37Um, I personally find it a barrier,
06:40but I am working on...
06:44Making it work.
06:46That makes sense.
06:47If I had a magic pill to get rid of my Tourette's today,
06:50I don't think I would take it.
06:52I think that I have gained so much insight from having it
06:55and that I'm able to help other people gain insight into my life with it.
07:00I feel that, too.
07:01As much as I struggle with tics,
07:04I wouldn't want to get rid of them either.
07:08We'll go see if Blair's room will take the dogs on a walk, eh?
07:11Sure.
07:12LAUGHTER
07:16I live with my partner, Blair.
07:20We met at Tourette's camp.
07:22Serious TikTok, I think it's just a great way to share
07:25what she suffers with every single day.
07:27You get some judgmental.
07:28Sometimes it's hard to explain.
07:30And it's just great to have something to fall back on
07:32and say, hey, have a look at this, or watch this, or listen to this.
07:36This is a good trick to have in your back pocket.
07:39What do you hope for yourselves in the future?
07:43My main goal is to just become more accepting of myself.
07:47Um, and usually that helps when other people
07:52are generally decently accepting of my condition as well.
07:57I want to be a florist,
07:59which is really surprising considering how violent I can be.
08:03But when I'm focused, like, I can...
08:06I make really nice flower arrangements.
08:08You do. They're very pretty.
08:10Pinch!
08:11Oh, sorry. I pinched you. Are you OK?
08:14Yeah, I'm fine.
08:15Aw.
08:16Love you.
08:17LAUGHTER
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