Art by Tim - My XYY Syndrome Son

Sometimes chromosomes are a little different, and when this happens things don't always come out the way you think they ought to. The most well known chromosomal difference is called Down Syndrome.

XYY Syndrome is an extra Y in the 47th chromosome. There is also a Syndrome called Kleinfelter's, where there are more X chromosomes than there should be, but that affects only females, where XYY affects only males.

That pesky little extra Y has created quite a few, but not all, of the differences in Tim's body. His rapid and excessive growth as a child caused the tendons to pull away from his joints, a condition called Osgood Schlatter's Disease. He also has a "caved in" breast bone and a mild scoliosis (bent spine). His developmental delays were in small motor muscle development, language use, and impulse control.

In 1996, we found out that Tim's brain is also a bit different (although we don't know if the differences are attributable to XYY) by way of a BEAM test. BEAM stands for Brain Electrical Activity Measurement. That was a turning point in Tim's treatment, and the beginning of things getting better.

Tim enjoys playing Magic, D&D, video games, and drawing.