Courtney Stodden Shares Tourette Syndrome Diagnosis

Courtney Stodden has publicly announced their diagnosis of Tourette syndrome. The model made the disclosure on Sunday through an Instagram video that referenced a notable 2011 interview with ABC News where she appeared alongside journalist Lara Spencer after marrying Doug Hutchinson, who is 51 years old, at just 16.

The lengthy caption began with Stodden stating, “They made the moment a joke… but for a reason.” Identifying as non-binary and using they/them pronouns, Stodden reflected on their experiences.

The 31-year-old mentioned that a significant part of their story had gone misunderstood for years. “As an adult, I was diagnosed with Tourette syndrome… and I spent most of my childhood with uncontrollable tics,” they shared.

Stodden described various tics they experienced, which included stuttering, squinting, mouth movements, muscle tension, and even seizures in their early years. “I never talked about it before because I was embarrassed,” they admitted. “I thought it would make me seem, you know, weird, like there was something ‘wrong’ with me. So I hid it.”

Stodden recounted that when they had tics and muscle spasms, they often tried to make these moments look “sexy” to conceal their true struggles. However, during that major interview in 2011, their anxiety made the tics evident again.

“That moment turned into a meme… people assumed I was on something,” Stodden recalled. “It wasn’t that at all. There was no alcohol, no pills—nothing in my system.” They expressed that what viewers were witnessing was a young woman with Tourette’s Syndrome under pressure, trying to cope while being scrutinized. “Instead of understanding, I was laughed at,” they lamented.

Stodden revealed that since overcoming the shame surrounding their Tourette syndrome, they no longer feel embarrassed. “There’s nothing to be ashamed of regarding things you can’t control,” they explained. “If you’ve ever felt misunderstood about something that happened to your body… you’re not alone,” they reassured others.

Stodden’s public profile heightened in 2011 when they married Hutchinson, now 65, in a rushed Las Vegas ceremony at a young age. The couple frequently went through cycles of separation and reconciliation before ultimately divorcing in 2017, with the legal dissolution finalized three years later.

In a 2022 interview, Stodden described their marriage to the “Green Mile” actor as feeling like a “conservatorship.” “It was really hard to live in it. We couldn’t be free,” they reflected.