Melanie Skyes reveals Tourette’s syndrome diagnosis: ‘Wired a completely different way’
The TV star was also diagnosed with autism two years ago
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Your support makes all the difference.Melanie Sykes has revealed she’s been diagnosed with Tourette’s syndrome.
The 52-year-old I’m A Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here! star revealed the news of her diagnosis on her close friend Alan Carr’s podcast.
Speaking of her diagnosis, Sykes said she’s “wired completely differently” and is “only now” understanding the impact of the neurological disorder on her life.
Tourette’s syndrome may cause sudden unwanted and uncontrolled rapid and repeated movements or vocal sounds called tics.
During the interview, when Carr assured Sykes that it was fine to swear during the conversation, she said: “Oh good, but I’ll try not to, because I’ve just discovered I have Tourette’s.
“I describe in the book (Illuminated: Autism and all the Things I’ve Left Unsaid) how I laugh at really inappropriate things. I am wired a completely different way and I’m only just understanding it.
“I used to think, ‘What’s wrong with me?’ Now I know it’s everything that’s right with me,” Sykes added.
The new diagnosis comes two years after Sykes was diagnosed with autism.
The presenter, who is known for shows like Let’s Do Lunch with Gino D’Acampo, said after the diagnosis that “finally, so many things made sense”.
Sykes first revealed her diagnosis in an email to readers of her magazine, The Frank.
She wrote that finding out she was on the autism spectrum, which can affect the way people with autism communicate and interact with others, was “life-affirming”.
She has since been welcomed into the autistic community with messages from mothers of children on the spectrum and adults diagnosed late in life.
“They’re so happy I’m talking about it, normalising it,” Sykes told the magazine. “Some people who were too embarrassed to tell anyone now feel they can.
“It makes me extremely happy to know I’ve helped.”
Sykes’ diagnosis comes after singer Lewis Capaldi recently announced he was taking a break from touring for the “foreseeable future” due to his Tourette’s.
The “Someone You Loved” singer struggled with his performance on the Pyramid Stage at Glastonbury this year because of his tics, and appeared visibly moved by the huge audience who helped him sing his song.
Following the show, Capaldi said he is “still learning to adjust to the impact of my Tourette’s” and needed to spend time taking care of his physical and mental health before he could return to touring.
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