Billie Eilish Said Living With Tourette's Syndrome Is "Very Exhausting"

Billie Eilish opened up about having Tourette’s syndrome in a new interview with David Letterman from Season 4 of his Netflix series, My Next Guest Needs No Introduction. Eilish addressed her diagnosis when she began exhibiting a tic, which prompted Letterman to ask, “What’s going on? A fly?” The singer then explained she was “ticcing” because of the lights. “If you film me for long enough, you’re going to see lots of tics,” she said.

According to Mayo Clinic, Tourette’s syndrome is “a disorder that involves repetitive movements or unwanted sounds” called “tics” that “can't be easily controlled.” They can involve movement (motor tics) or sounds (vocal tics), and the symptoms can range from mild to severe.

Letterman asked Eilish if she was comfortable talking about her experience with Tourette’s syndrome, and she said, “Yeah, absolutely.”

“It’s really weird, I haven’t talked about it at all,” she said. “The most common way that people react is they laugh because they think I’m trying to be funny... and I’m always left incredibly offended by that.” Eilish said another common response to her tics is that people will look around and say “What?” in confusion, which prompts her to have to address it.

“I was guilty of that,” Letterman said. “We’re sitting here talking. Everything’s fine, and then because I’m me, I think I’ve said something that’s pissed you off.”

Eilish revealed she was diagnosed with Tourette’s at 11 years old, and said she’s “happy” to talk about her experience because she’s still “incredibly confused” by it.

“Do we know what causes that? Is that just the nature of things?” Letterman asked. “I have no idea. I mean, tics are so weird,” Eilish responded, adding that although sometimes they temporarily go away, “I never don’t tic at all.”

Because of her tics, Eilish frequently wiggles her ears back and forth, raises her eyebrows, clicks her jaw, and flexes her muscles. “These are things you would never notice if you’re just having a conversation with me, but for me, they’re very exhausting,” she said.

After experiencing Tourette’s for so long, Eilish said it’s become a “part” of her. “I have made friends with it, so now I’m pretty confident in it,” she said.

Season 4 of My Next Guest Needs No Introduction is now streaming on Netflix.