Ed's Story

Tourette syndrome is a disorder affecting 200,000 Americans each year. It is estimated that only 15 percent of those diagnosed suffer the severest form, in which patients curse and utter obscenities. The rest often suffer quietly, with motor and vocal tics, or uncontrollable actions such as blinking, coughing, sniffling, or grimacing, among others. In fact, Tourette’s often goes undiagnosed, because many people don’t even know they have it. Our own Chief Meteorologist Ed Buckner reveals that he lives with Tourette syndrome. He first noticed symptoms at age 13. (Click the link below the pictures for Ed's blog and your opportunity to send him comments and questions.)“At that time, I was fidgeting a lot, I was making some facial expressions, my eyes would go like this (blinks repeatedly), so my parents took me to the doctor,” Ed recalls.Doctors at the time said it was all just part of a nervous tic. Ed lived with it, never knowing it was Tourette syndrome, until he was diagnosed in his 30s. After trying different medications, which caused him to gain weight and become lethargic, Ed decided to quit the meds and just be himself, living with the tics he has known all his life. For years, and despite being on camera every day, Ed has tried and tried to hide his tics. But now, he wants Arkansans to know that through faith, perseverance, and attitude, it is something he is able to endure successfully. “Maybe I’m here for a reason,” Ed says. “Maybe I’m in the public eye for a reason. Yes, to warn people of tornadoes, to help people be informed of severe weather. That’s all very important, a good public service. But my wife said, ‘You carry this with you, why not share it with others to help those.' And she’s absolutely right.”Ed’s greatest hope is that his own very personal story inspires others who also live with challenges. “You can embrace it and do something good with it, or you can try to hide it, and curse it. So, I want to do good with it. I want to let people know that I have this job, a successful career, a wonderful loving family, and a normal, happy existence, and I have a mild case of Tourette syndrome.”