Holy crap, does Paul Gosar have Tourette's Syndrome ?? Serious question.

[eppur_se_muova]

Last edited Sat Oct 9, 2021, 05:27 PM - Edit history (2)

OK, maybe not Tourette's, but something related. He couldn't hold his head still the whole time he was on Zoom camera.

I know he has other medical issues, including arthritis, compressed neck vertebrae, and alcoholism, but DAMN he comes across as some weird horror-movie villain.

ETA: Probably not Tourette's, according to folks who know more on this topic than I. My suggestion was basically that he's got something serious, and AFAIK yet undiagnosed.

BTW, I did not mean to suggest that there is anything "bad" about people with Tourette's, and I wish I had been clearer about that in my OP. I am aware that the common image of Tourette's is misleading (uncontrolled coprolalia is actually rare, for example). Those with the condition are, for the most part, otherwise perfectly normal human beings who live useful, productive, and even happy lives. (I remember a TV interview with a doctor who got his pilot's license, despite severe Tourette's; he would often put his feet on other people's faces in conversation(!) but still managed to suppress his tics when he had a physical task to concentrate on.)

Gosar, on the other hand, comes across as someone with an unaddressed medical condition who ought to be in a position to recognize there is a problem and seek treatment. If he's a Big Lie promoter and anti-vaxer, that would just be one more bit of evidence that his judgement is tragically impaired even in his most lucid moments.

[elleng]

1. 'something'

[vanlassie]

2. He is not a well man.

[malaise]

16. Precisely what I wrote last night

Not a well man

[Eliot Rosewater]

24. And the more "unwell" and violent and vicious and ugly and disgusting he is the more

MAGA folks will ADORE him.

We are so badly broken as a society I am amazed they havent started shooting by the millions yet. They are that sick and twisted.

[applegrove]

3. Probably a tell that he is lying n/t

[Bernardo de La Paz]

25. You mean his lips are moving or his fingers are typing?

[Frasier Balzov]

4. Who are the Democratic candidates who want to run against Gosar?

Let's get to know each of them and all about them.

That seat can be gotten. It can be won away from him.

[jmbar2]

5. Looks like Parkinson's

But he sounds like he's bonkers.

[wackadoo wabbit]

14. That could be Lewy body dementia (I mentioned it downthread)

Lewy body dementia is often seen in Parkinson's patients.

I agree with you; I do think it's likely Parkinson's.

[blogslug]

6. According to him in 2015

https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/arizona/politics/2015/08/28/rep-paul-gosar-addresses-health-rumors/32366009/

...Gosar, 56, said arthritis and two compressed vertebrae in his neck and lower back have caused nerve issues in his hand. The condition will require back surgery, which he hasn’t scheduled. In addition, he is dealing with complications from a hip replacement last summer.

“I’m as healthy as a horse,” he told The Republic earlier this month. “Not gonna get rid of me that easily.”

A dentist for more than 25 years, Gosar said the spinal compression arose from hunching over for long periods as he treated patients. Genetics and a history of rugby playing, which contributed to his need for a hip replacement, have exacerbated his condition, he said.

Gosar has tried to hide the spasms when he appears in public. He declined since March to discuss his health with The Arizona Republic until a reporter witnessed his hand movements at a Phoenix event this month...

[LeftInTX]

8. Yeah..that cervical sounds nasty....

Those things aren't static either...He probably needs injections now and then etc...

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spasmodic_torticollis I don't see an association with compressed vertebrae, but I can certainly see how it causes it. Anytime you have something like that you are gonna have spasticity on one side of the neck. Sometimes, it's just more obvious than other times.

[eppur_se_muova]

19. I see the treatment is botulinum toxin ...

maybe he should self-medicate.

[BigmanPigman]

7. I KNOW!

When I saw him I said he looked like a bobble head doll. Does he have a spring where his backbone should be?

On edit...Oops, I didn't know that he really does have compressed neck vertabrae. Thanks, Blogslug.

[eShirl]

9. He doesn't move at all like the person I know w/ Tourette's.

[Celerity]

10. he is mental AF

his latest tweet, with with the 'Don't flirt with him' Paige Madison Evans TikTok meme

so fucking cringe

Link to tweet

[lastlib]

11. (in real life, he plays a weird horror-movie villain..)

"Cousin of Freddie"........

[Karma13612]

12. Extra pyramidal side-effects of

A medication?

I’ve seems ads on TV for a medication that helps with this.

Or more likely a dystonia.

[wackadoo wabbit]

13. I believe he has Parkinson's with, possibly, Lewy body dementia

Parkinson's and its attendant drugs explain the head bobbing. Lewy body dementia, which is often associated with Parkinson's, would explain his executive dysfunction, paranoia, and agitation.

As much as I think he's a terrible human being, I don't wish either of these diseases on him.

[Fiendish Thingy]

15. Sure looks like it, or tic disorder. Nt

[Naio]

17. My daughter has Tourette syndrome and is not like that ,

In Aug 28, 2015 — Rep. Gosar says arthritis and two compressed vertebrae in his neck and lower back have caused nerve issues in his hand. Or maybe he was lying about that too and he has something else more serious.

[LetMyPeopleVote]

18. There is something wrong physically with this asshole

[fishwax]

20. Parkinson's was my first thought

(I don't know anything about Lewy Body Dementia, which other people have mentioned.)

[sarcasmo]

21. Gosar is doing all the drugs with Don Junior.

[Trueblue1968]

22. i was astonished watching his Boogling around, shaking his head & Swinting his eyeballs

HE IS ONE SICK MOUSEKETEER !!!! And YUCK, he freaks me out. He belongs in a horror movie.

[Emvy64]

23. What is wrong with him

I've been watching him in interviews over the past year and have wondered the same thing. Is it Parkinsons, tourettes, some other tic associated disorder? Mainly because I'm from Arizona and his behaviors also strongly correlate with methamphetamine use - which is actually the first thing that came to mind. However in trying to not stereotype, I've been searching for another reason for his erratic behavior and movements but haven't found anything confirmed only a few rumors.

[Bernardo de La Paz]

26. Welcome to DU. Read this thread for more definitive answeres. . . . nt