Surfmom

Ha, well...we have four dogs...and they go slinking off, ears dow and tails tucked whn when DD17 goes into a rage. I really feel sorry for them because it doesn't fit into their scope of understanding. The one thing I have to suggest..and it's the first thing we always do...is to put our dogs in a room with the door closed as soon as things start to ramp up. My fear is that DD might hit, kick or knock one aside in a rage (180 degrees from her healthy state of wanting to be a vet) ...or in a really bad situation the dogs might try come to my defense since they consider me to be alpha or mom. We never thought our children could rage like this....and I am sure we could never imagine our sweet dogs biting a child.... But this is some kind of strange parallel universe.

Following up... While she is infinitely better, we still have a long way to go! Thanks for all the remarks. Lauren'sMom, relationships were a tough one for me too. Like many females, I was a "pleaser", an obedient daughter and not very confrontational. This disease made me take a stand with my parents and grown siblings. I know they all want the best for my daughter and want to support me but I had to draw the line in the sand on a few things. When I chose not to come home for Christmas when my daughter had major tics and chorea (large limb and total body type tic-movements) and irritability - more than one person in the family became upset. I sucked in a deep breath and explained that my first and only reason for existence at this point in life is to be the best mom that I can, and make decisions for my daughter in a manner that I think she would want them made. There are times I have had to repeat this, and I know I have faced criticism behind the scenes but when they really thought about it, everyone has gone along or at the very least, respected my intentions. This disease will change you. It will change your relationships too. I have let friendships slide, and in time, other friends got support fatigue and faded away. That is ok. (After all how many cards out there read, "I hope your daughter eats today, or I hope your daughter doesn't break anything major in the living room today!") In some ways, some of my relationships have become closer. Overall, my family and friends have closed the ranks and been great. And while I have at times thought I couldn't make it through another day, another step, another meltdown, another problem..., I just press on. As a result, while I have felt completely beaten at times, I also feel almost invincible too. If I can get through this...well..... LOL....I will stop here before I tempt fate too much. To keep it in the proper perspective, we are still going for infusions once a month for IVIG and every other month we add a round of Cytoxan. While the physical symptoms are mostly gone, we do have some psychiatric symptoms to manage...like mood swings and too much sleep. She is still on a homebound school program, but it looks like she will be returning to school in the fall....and that may be the hardest part yet since she is 17 .

I have PM'd michelleb, but wanted to let anyone else in this situation that the only thing that broke our daughter out extreme rages ended up being a low dose of Risperidone. The pills come in a dissolvable form which means it can be administered in the middle of an episode without water. It takes about 15-20 minutes to take effect.

Michelle, I am PMing you now.

My daughter has one of the most severe and drug-resistant cases of what falls under the big umbrella of a strep-induced autoimmune disorder that left her with severe neurological and significant joint involvement. For those who don't remember us, my daughter was an exceptional student and athlete, and world's happiest and easy child to raise - until the bottom fell out two years ago. In a matter of a days she suddenly and frighteningly developed Sydenham's chorea, tics, mutism, mood swings, joint pain and swelling. aversions, delusions, rage and host of other heart-breaking symptoms. It has been a tremendously challenging road and so as an unwilling seasoned veteran here is the advice I am giving to anyone who thinks their child has PANDAS, PANS, LYME or any other unusual/frustrating unnamed condition. 1. Do NOT waste time. The first time you see symptoms that do not clear up permanently after a round of antibiotics, get real help. Any of the symptoms I have described indicate your child has neurological inflammation. For the majority of kids, this could mean your child has cross-reacting antibodies, that are attacking your child's healthy tissues. For many kids this could involve brain, heart or joint problems so you absolutely need to rule out any potential damage, especially heart involvement (this was the one potential result our daughter had). The longer you go, the more damage that can result and the harder it will be to treat. This means: 2. Your child has a PHYSICAL disease with psychiatric symptoms resulting from inflammation so you need the right specialists. If your child has recurrent or ongoing flares after antibiotic treatment, and you are only seeing a psychiatrist or PANDAS doctor who has not done a full spectrum of physical diagnostics (MRI, heart ultrasound, tests for Lyme, allergies, inflammatory markers, titers, etc.) then ask your pediatrician for a pediatric neurologist referral. Remember this is PHYSICAL. I can't emphasize this enough: If you can, go see a neurologist and an immunologist. 3. It's not in a name, so don't get stuck with a label. I know we all want that relief/satisfaction of saying my child has "PANDAS" or some other condition, but that can predispose physicians to start treating before a real diagnosis and plan is put forth. For example, we ran off immediately to USF for PANDAS evaluation, at which they gave us some surveys, talked to us and then tossed us some antibiotics with a diagnosis of PANDAS. Not one physical diagnostic test was done and we were foolish to go along with that. In time, they would have ramped up to IVIG, etc....but I would never have known that my daughter could have had heart damage. For those wanting a name., honestly, ( For the math-minded I think we are talking about a spectrum of autoimmune diseases that could be plotted on a coordinate plane of X and symptoms on Y, to find that our kids are scattered all over the place) I think there are as many names for these diseases as there are kids. Just call it, "Insert your child's name here" disease. I am kidding - but also not. The many presentations of these diseases explain why they sound akin to others (like Lupus) and yet different when we talk to each other here. Also, never mention diagnosis to insurance providers. Many are looking for reasons to reject claims so let your doctors and insurance companies play the coding game. 4. Take meticulous notes regarding symptoms.Take pictures and video even at bad times. Trust me, you will forget. Look for subtle things like handwriting and appetite changes, sleeping changes, expression of unusual ideas, reduced speech. When first met our neurologist, I came in not with a disease name but a table of symptoms, date of onset, severity and frequency. I wanted them to diagnose without predisposition. 5. Don't worry about the bandaids - yet. I know a lot of us sweat everything from glutens, to certain amino acids to micronutrients. Until you rule out allergies, known genetic deficiencies....don't lie awake at night and wonder whether or not you are missing some esoteric piece of the puzzle. Feed your child well, make sure they are getting plenty of vitamin D (low is usually indicative of a chronic inflammatory process), and as many nutrients as they can from real food. You are a good parent, and while the little things will help along with a healthy lifestyle, there is no magic pill. Proper diagnostics will eliminate a lot of concern about allergies and root causes so you don't waste a fortune in time and money trying this and that. We are desperate and vulnerable so read everything with a critical eye. 6. Trust your gut and assert yourself. I went to FOUR doctors and had three ER visits with my daughter, shaking my head and respectfully telling them we were moving on when they told me she was probably just depressed. WRONG. (Tangents: I think our world, present and past is full of kids who are under-diagnosed for physical problems, and there is NO difference between mental health and health. It's just health). 7. Your child is not your child. There is no way that sweet baby of yours would ever do the things he/she is doing if he/she was healthy. Easier said than done - but do not take it personally. That said, reasonable consequences apply. If your child is having severe outbursts, you have to remind yourself: THIS IS THE DISEASE. Say it like a mantra if you have to. 8. Get healthy and fit. I have had to care for my daughter for two years 24/7. Most of you will not be like that. It's going to try your body, mind and spirit. It's going to be hard so you need to be battle prepared. At times, you are going to be scared, angry, tired, frustrated and lonely so you are going to need to be at your best like no other time in your life. Get sleep and don't worry if there are fingerprints on the appliances and the car needs vacuuming. My family has learned that no matter what, I am taking an hour a day to run or surf. 9. Get brave and tough.. People closest to you are going to hurt your feelings, and give you unwanted advice. Head them off at the pass and tell them that you are on top of all the research and protocols (you need to be), that this is going to be stressful, that you are so grateful for their support, but that the things you can't have them do include _______. For me, it was advice on how to parent...like when my daughter would be defiant, or when I chose to keep her out of the public eye when her tics and chorea were severe. Doing that up front will save all of you a lot of misunderstandings down the road. The "Loving but Uninformed" in your life will give you some bizarre advice at times; take it in the spirit in which they meant it. At the same time, get soft. For me, this meant learning to accept help from other people. I have always prided myself in being able to be self-reliant, being able to do it all, but with this spectrum of disease - forget it. I have learned that letting people help is not a sign of weakness, but an acceptance of kindness that can really make a difference. The people around you who really care want to help. Let them. 10. Slow down the clock. You aren't going to get it all done. At times you are going to be late to school. Sometimes you won't get to a place at all. You might even miss a major life event like a close friend's wedding, or as it is in my case...your chid might even miss a year of school. It will work out. 11. Read it all, get informed, stay on top of it...and then walk away at times. You cannot live and breathe this everyday without becoming obsessed in an unhealthy way. My daughter loathes it that I pick up on every tic, and my husband got tired of my talking through the study results in the third standard deviation for the sample size of 12 for the methylation of a certain gene expression (whoa, sexy AND romantic) when we crawled into bed at night. (The main reason I come and go from this website .) 12. Go out at a minimum of twice a month for the evening. The only rule: Thou shall not talk about thy child or thy child's disease. Also keep something out there a month or two away to look forward to...beach, trip to parents, buying a new sofa, camping trip. Finally, don't forget the healthy siblings and your SO. As much of a nut as I am about healthy eating, sometimes a little love and acknowledgement is as easy as a box of walnut brownies that can be mixed and tossed in the oven in two minutes...with a PostIt note alongside. After two years of IVIG, Cellcept, Rixtuximab and Cytoxan, we are finally knocking down the world's most persistent immune system and our daughter is slowly getting better. Chorea is gone, tics gone, OCD gone, moods better, tremors gone, ataxia gone, mutism gone, catatonia gone, sleep patterns good, aversions gone, eating well, engaging with the family, smiling, laughing and has some quality of life. Long story short: Treat physically and if a child like ours (who is probably one of a handful of the most profound expressions ever on this disease spectrum) can get fully back on the happy and healthy track - yours will too. I am not editing. I used to. I don't anymore. See? LOL (Ok, confession... I came back and read this AM, and gently tweaked the typos). A thousand blessings your way!

It could also be a foot condition like planters fascitis. I would get her checked out.

Dr. Van Mater and her colleague Dr. William Gallentine (D.O in neurology) have been our daughter's physicians for almost two years. These two work so closely together that when you see one, you typically see the other in clinic. I can't say enough about Dr. Van Mater's professionalism and dedication. Our daughter has one of the most profound and treatment-resistant cases known, so If you have questions about Dr. Van Mater or diagnostics/treatment at Duke, fire away.