For CBIT to be successful, the child or adult has to be willing to: 

• Work with a therapist
• Do homework
• Attend therapy training sessions

CBIT is based on these simple actions, which teach people to tic less: 

Action	What To Do
Change the situation	Try to be aware of the situations where tics are better / worse. Homework: Change the situation to reduce tics.
Watch the tic	Break the tic down into each step. You may have an urge inside before the tic starts, so watch for that. Homework: Watch each step of your tic and know the steps of the urge / tic.
Refuse to give in to the urge / tic	Talk about the steps to fight back against the urge / tic and to put off doing the urge / tic. Homework: Try to relax and fight back the urge and put off doing the tic.
Change the bad tics	Make up and practice “Competing Responses” (a movement that is the reverse of the tic). For example, in place of your hand coming up, you would push it down. Homework: When the tics occur, try to remember to do the competing responses that you made up in therapy.

Any person who has had CBIT training can perform this treatment. This may be a doctor, nurse, social worker or psychologist / counselor. The number of visits may be different with each person.

The Tourette syndrome program at Cincinnati Children’s offers CBIT. The doctor or nurse seeing your child will be able to help decide if this treatment is right for your child.  It may also be available in your area by other providers.

• If you have never been seen at Cincinnati Children’s for tics, call 513-636-4222, option No. 1 and ask for a new patient appointment in the Movement Disorder Clinic. You will need to be seen in clinic first for an exam so that we can decide if CBIT would be helpful. 
• If you are a current patient at Cincinnati Children’s and have been seen in the Movement Disorder Clinic for tics, call 513-636-4222 and ask for the movement disorder nurse or email us at tics@cchmc.org. The nurse will then be able to help you get a CBIT appointment scheduled.

• Visit the National Tourette Syndrome Association website
• Managing Tourette Syndrome: A Behavioral Intervention Workbook, Parent Workbook. Douglas W. Woods, John Piacentini, Susanna Chang, Thilo Deckersbach, Golda Ginsburg, Alan Peterson, Lawrence D. Scahill, John T. Walkup and Sabine Wilhelm. Oxford University Press.

  Available on Amazon.

• Nix Your Tics! Eliminate Unwanted Tic Symptoms: A How-To Guide For Young People. B. Duncan McKinley, PhD. Life’s A Twitch! Publishing.

  Available on the TSA website.