Tourette syndrome and the celebrities who live with it; Billie Eilish isn't the first

When 20-year-old singer Billie Eilish told David Letterman last month about how Tourette syndrome affects her life, she likely introduced the condition to a generation of her youngest fans.

But Eilish is hardly the first recognizable name to suffer from this neurological disorder, which can cause sudden uncontrollable movements and/or vocal tics. Since the disease was first identified more than a century ago, certain historians retroactively have decided that musical genius Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart suffered from Tourette syndrome. 

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The disorder was first named by French neurologist Jean-Martin Charcot for his intern, Georges Gilles de la Tourette, who published in 1885 an account of nine patients with a "convulsive tic disorder."

Since then, folks from all walks of life — including some of the most accomplished athletes and entertainers of our time — have been diagnosed with the disorder or a related one, such as obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) or attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and suffered varying degrees of symptoms.

Here are just a few celebrities you might recognize:

David Beckham

The retired British soccer star, current co-owner of the Major League Soccer franchise Inter Miami CF and husband of Spice Girl Victoria Beckham has spoken in TV interviews about being diagnosed with OCD and has tried to break his cycle of repetitive behavior but simply cannot.

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Seth Rogen

The actor spoke last year about how using marijuana has helped him deal with both his Tourette syndrome and ADHD. In a well-publicized tweet (that also included the f-bomb), he described his case as "mild" and said it manifests itself in "twitching."

Tim Howard

During the prime of his soccer career, Tim Howard was one of the best goal keepers in the world — and a mainstay on the U.S. Men's National Team. He was diagnosed with Tourette syndrome in the sixth grade.

Dan Akroyd

An original cast member of Saturday Night Live's "Not Ready for Primetime Players," Akroyd has said in interviews that he was diagnosed at age 12 and that at first his symptoms were "pretty bad" — causing him to be shy and withdrawn until they later came under control thanks to medication and therapy.

Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf

Abdul-Rauf was a star guard at Louisiana State University in the late 1980s (when he was known as Chris Jackson) and played for a decade in the NBA. His mild physical tics were noticeable at times when he was on the bench — but never impacted his on-court play.

Howie Mandel

The popular comedian and TV host has long been open about both his Tourette syndrome and OCD, saying that he hoped being vocal about his lifelong struggles might serve as comfort and/or inspiration for others who were suffering with these conditions.

Jim Eisenreich

In the 1980s-90s, Eisenreich was an excellent first baseman, outfielder and designated hitter for five Major League Baseball teams (two in the American League, three in the National). He was a career .290 hitter and won a World Series ring with the Florida Marlins in 1997. He also started the Jim Eisenreich Foundation for Children with Tourette syndrome.

Carrie Ann Inaba

The longtime "Dancing with the Stars" judge and former co-host of "The Talk" spoke in 2019 about how, when she was watching a documentary on YouTube about Tourette syndrome, she "learned about all these symptoms and I realized I might have had, or probably had…Tourette’s growing up."

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Billie Eilish Tourette syndrome: More celebrities with condition