I spilt some water on myself first thing this morning and soaked the kneepads I wear to protect myself when my legs tic and I drop to the floor. I took them off, popped them into the wash, and put on fresh pair.

I’d only gone a few steps before I dropped to the floor. The noise of me hitting the ground was more of a crack than the usual thud and my knees stung much more than normal. I decided not to try standing up again and crawled across the floor instead.

I could feel the skin of my knees prickling with pain as I did this and it was clear there was a problem. I took the kneepads off and examined them. They were a really old pair and the padding had become so compressed it was paper-thin. I took them off and showed Zoë. She laughed and said ‘They’re useless, you might as well wrap carrier bags round your legs.’

She was obviously right so I chucked them straight in the bin. But the problem wasn’t just with my kneepads. Yesterday I put on a glove that had a completely ripped up lining, and the day before that I’d struggled to find a matching pair of ankle splints. My Tourettes wardrobe clearly needs attention.

There’s no time like the present. I’m having another day of annual leave today and I’ve been planning to do a bit of general life admin. So, first things first, I’ll line up all my protective clothing and equipment for inspection.

I’m going to check everything and get rid off all the damaged or mismatched items.
It’s easy in busy times to neglect tasks like this, but I need to be sure that whenever I reach for a piece of tic-protection kit, it’s up to the job.

Who knows, I might even tackle my sock drawer later.