seizure-like behavior in 5 year old

Our daughter was adopted from Russia at 10 mos.  Her birth mother reportedly drank heavily during pregnancy and had untreated syphilis.  Our daughter developed an involuntary shoulder shrugging behavior that lasted several weeks as a baby.  An MRI done at the time was normal.  Altho that behavior extinguished itself, she began having shaking/shivering spells at around 3 years of age.  At first, she did it only in response to positive stimuli - watching a favorite video, riding on a favorite riding toy, etc.  Over the past 2 years, the behavior has intensified,  with hand wringing, eyes crossing, occasional gutteral noises, and shaking.  She does it almost all the time now when she is not directly engaged in an activity.  She also complains of frequent headaches.  We brought her to a neurologist who suggested an EEG.  Her EEG was normal.  Does anyone have any thoughts on what this might be?

[Kevin Kennedy, Ph.D.]

Dear Lisa,

As you may know, children can have a normal EEG and nonetheless display neurological conditions. I would advise you to stick with your idea about working with a neurologist (particularly a pediatric neurologist) to determine what this likely neurological condition is.

Also, you might post a question to MedHelp's Neurology Forum - they are better qualified to address this question than I am.

Dr. KDK