Kid Teaches Tourette's Tolerance

Jaylen Arnold of Lakeland, Fla., has declared war on bullying.

At age 3, Jaylen was diagnosed with Tourette’s syndrome, which is a poorly understood neurological disorder that causes involuntary movements or speech – or both, according to an article by Gary White in The Ledger newspaper of Lakeland, Fla.

"You control your body, but I don’t control mine,” 8-year-old Jaylen told White. White writes that "Jaylen has names for each of his 30 or so tics –- for example, the bunny, a hopping motion, the puppy dog squeal, the air punch and the shoulder roll."

While he may not have full control of his body, Jaylen refuses to let Tourette’s control his life, and he wants other kids to take control of their cruel impulses.

Jaylen's Web site raises awareness about Tourette’s and the effects of bullying, and he gives out blue-and-yellow rubber wristbands imprinted with his Web site’s address and the phrase “Bullying No Way!” Schoolmates at Victory Christian Academy, where he attends school, wear the bracelets, but Jaylen has his sights set on more prominent wrists.

As he declares on his Web site: “… one day, Barack Obama, Oprah Winfrey and the Jonas Brothers will be wearing my armband to help stop bullying!”

The site has already attracted 75,000 visitors. The site features Jaylen’s story, along with a blog and a request for donations for a planned nonprofit foundation that will provide educational DVDs about Tourette's to public schools in Polk County, where he lives.

Photo courtesy of Image Editor, via Flickr