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Grad Student Investigates his own Syndrome

Duncan McKinlay believes he has a special gift - high energy, originality, spontaneity, openness, and intensity, a kind of "magnification of self".

That gift is Tourette's Syndrome.

Now working towards an applied master's degree in educational psychology at UW, McKinlay knew there was something different about him when he was growing up, but it wasn't until his first year at university that he received the diagnosis.

"It was less a surprise than a relief", he recalls. A neurological disorder which may be related to abnormal metabolism of the neurotransmitters dopamine and serotonin, Tourette's Syndrome is characterized by motor or vocal tics, and is associated with difficulties with impulse control and obsessive-compulsive or attention deficit/hyperactivity disorders.

"I've focused my compulsivity on academics," McKinlay laughed.  He is especially interested in how people with TS perceive the disorder - when they are diagnosed, how they respond.

"I am interested in studying how the interpretations of the disorder by the afflicted individual and his/her family lead to helpless patterns versus constructive patterns of living, and how these patterns can affect one's intrinsic motivation, self-esteem, expectations for the future, and sense of control."

Although McKinlay was initially wary of pursuing this line of research for fear that he might be seen as too close to the subject to be sufficiently objective, his professors encouraged him because of his empathy toward people with the disorder.  McKinlay plans to pursue a Ph.D. and eventually practice in a clinical setting.

"If I can help a kid circumnavigate some of those difficulties," he says, referring to his own painful years as a teenager with undiagnosed Tourette Syndrome, "it will be the most tangible legacy I can leave in this world."

McKinlay was recently nominated to serve as a member of the board of directors of the Tourette Syndrome Foundation of Canada.

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