Leftwing Idiot has gone away again, this time to make a film with some friends. He’ll be away for about three weeks. Poppy isn’t going so it’ll be just the two of us staying at his flat.

Before he went off this afternoon he asked me to be sure to talk to Poppy about who to call in an emergency or if she needs a hand. He’s understandably worried that if it’s just the two of us here, providing all the help I need could put too much of a strain on her.

There was a time when simply talking about the help I needed or even just thinking about the impact of my tics on other people would’ve made me very upset. Tonight, though, I just made a colour-coded emergency contact list.

Of course I do still worry about how my tics affect my friends and family, but it tends to be about very practical things now, like injuring or exhausting them. I don’t any longer feel guilty just because I need their help.

Poppy and I have now made a plan and we both know there are lots of people around if we need them.