Daily effort reaps rewards

By Denise-Marie Balona | Sentinel Staff Writer
Posted May 23, 2003
http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/local/volusia/orl-
vlvgrad23052303may23,0,7859791.story?coll=orl-news-print-asec

DELTONA -- Sprawled across a white, embroidered comforter in the
solace of her bedroom, Nikki Patton writes.

Here, the teenager pens essays and poems that hint at her battle
with a perplexing disorder. Through words on reams of notebook
paper, Nikki doesn't have to hold back her emotions or actions.

It's a freedom she hasn't had at Deltona High School, where just
sitting through a class is a daily struggle, she said. Nikki, 18,
must constantly monitor her movements and thoughts outside her
Deltona home because she has Tourette's syndrome. Without
extraordinary control, her body moves without her wanting it to.

She might yell out or make noises, for example, and disrupt other
students. Her legs might kick out from beneath her desk or her arms
may flail, potentially hitting herself or a peer nearby.

Aside from being embarrassing, the disorder she has had since at
least age 6 makes concentrating tough and writing and taking notes
sometimes impossible. Just being at school can be physically
painful. Stress encourages repeated, muscle-straining episodes.

That's why this week is particularly noteworthy. After four years of
struggling, Nikki will graduate Saturday alongside approximately 560
classmates, some of whom she has known since toddler-hood. Her 3.3
grade-point average ranks her in the top third of her class.

It is an accomplishment Carol Patton, Nikki's mom, sometimes doubted
her only child would achieve. Nikki, a petite young woman with wide
eyes and big dimples, has been in and out of school since the eighth
grade.

Friends and family members say it is Nikki's upbeat attitude that
got her through the tough times. She makes those around her at ease
by joking about her disorder and helping them understand it.

"I'm in awe of her sometimes," Carol Patton said. "I don't think I
would have done as well as she did."

Nikki said she stuck it out because she didn't want to miss a chance
to go to school.

"Pretty much, you don't know what you've got until it was taken
away," she chirped. "Once I realized I could get that back, I jumped
at it."

Nikki was diagnosed with Tourette's syndrome in kindergarten. She
was on stage reciting the months of the year in Spanish when Patton
noticed the youngster's head jerking. In fact, Patton used a video
of the production to help a doctor determine that the girl had a
disorder that, according to the National Institute of Neurological
Disorders and Stroke, affects an estimated 100,000 Americans.

In the early years, it wasn't so hard to work around the involuntary
movements, or tics, which were mostly head jerking and rolling eyes
at the time. Nikki became a skilled gymnast and dancer. She won
awards for her science projects.

But in her last year at Galaxy Middle School, the episodes became
more frequent and more severe. Nikki's mother started teaching her
at home.

Missing friends and being in class, Nikki tried to go back to school
her freshman year at Deltona High. That lasted three days. It was
too hard for her to control the outbursts. She also had panic
attacks that made her late for school, said her guidance counselor,
Shirley Robinson.

The teen came back as a sophomore and took one class. Gradually, she
added others.

"For the average high school student who doesn't want anyone to look
at them negatively, it took a lot of guts to come back," Robinson
said.

Eventually, Nikki learned to better deal with her tics. She learned
how to delay them for hours, although that was hard -- like putting
off a sneeze or trying not to scratch an intense itch.

Soon she also learned that people didn't pay much attention when she
left the room. Students listened when she explained her disorder.

Learning was difficult. Nikki had to make up work she missed in
class while she was out of the room or focused on holding back a
tic. She spent extra hours at night studying and went to teachers
for more help.

Nikki's boyfriend, Dane Cass, a junior at Deltona High, calls her an
inspiration.

"Just to see her so determined and get through things, it makes me
try harder," he said. "I've learned a lot from her."

Her work paid off. Nikki recently earned a $500 scholarship to help
pay for college.

She plans to attend Daytona Beach Community College this year and
eventually study pharmacology or mental health issues.

She will also keep writing, and hoping her disorder gets easier to
live with.

Most people with Tourette's get better as they mature, according to
the Tourette Syndrome Association.

"There are some days you definitely look at it as a curse," Nikki
said. "But, most days I look at it like a school assignment. You've
got to get it done. You learn from it."

Denise-Marie Balona can be reached at dbalona@... or
386-851-7923.