73 pages • 2 hours read
Forget Me Not
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Background
Authorial Context: Ellie Terry
Author Ellie Terry is diagnosed with Tourette syndrome, and Forget Me Not has been marketed as a semiautobiographical account of Terry’s experience living with Tourette’s and moving between several small towns in the American West as a child. Terry has referenced both her and her daughter’s experiences with Tourette syndrome as inspiration for the novel. In her Author’s Note, Terry explains that she exhibited tics at a young age but was not diagnosed until later in life, and because of this, she spent many years embarrassed of her condition. Her doctor advised her not to tell anyone about her diagnosis because of the likelihood that it would be misunderstood (an event that Terry includes in the novel). Instead, Terry shared her diagnosis with friends and family and wrote Forget Me Not to encourage others to do the same.
Social Context: Tourette Syndrome
Tourette syndrome is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by involuntary motor (physical) and vocal movements called tics. Motor tics can include blinking, twitching, eye-rolling, jerking, and shoulder shrugging. Vocal tics can include throat clearing, hissing, repeating words, and swallowing. Tourette syndrome often presents in childhood, but the condition is underdiagnosed, so it is common for people to receive their diagnosis in adulthood. The exact cause of Tourette’s is unknown, but it is hereditary, and those who have a relative with Tourette’s are more likely to also be diagnosed.
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