Tic or habit disorder ?
 

Hello,

I'm French and I'm 21. For 5-6 years, I've had some tics or habits that I do everyday :

- I have to crack my knuckles over my chin, it's very ugly to see.

- I also crack my wrists, my elbows, my neck, sometimes my shoulders

- I bite my lips

I'm very aware of it when i'm doing these movements but I can't stop it.

I would like to know if these are signs of a tic disorder. Thank you very much

Hello and welcome to NeuroTalk.

Tics are not habits. Often they are erroneously called nervous habits but that is not correct. Tics are involuntary or "unvoluntary" but there is usually a sensory component involved, especially in adults, and that's called a premonitory urge.

There can be an overlap between compulsive behaviours and tics. Lots of people have compulsive behaviours but they don't have tics. It's quite complicated.

Do you have any other behaviours such as on this list?
Brief list of common tics (pdf)

Do you have OCD?

You typed "I have to crack my knuckles". Do you mean you feel an urge to crack your knuckles and it builds up until you must do that? What will happen if you don't crack your knuckles?

There are also stereotypies which are more ritualistic or repetitive but they usually begin in early childhood.

Basically it could be many things. You should talk with your doctor if these behaviours are interfering with your daily life. The problem with continuous joint cracking is that it can really damage the joints.

take care there

I've just read the list of tics : when I'm cracking my elbow, I'm extending my arm. I'm also clearing my throat sometimes.

I don't have OCD.

When I'm not cracking my knuckles, it feels like an urge to do it (tension in my fingers...).

Fortunately, it doesn't affect my daily life but I was just wondering about it.