When my 9 year old son developed tics in November 2012, everyone told us that this was fairly common and would likely go away in time - and after several months it did. Just over a year later, they came back stronger than ever. With the new tics my son also began to exhibit what we thought were signs of emotional stress, and that is what caused me to call our pediatrician. The doctor immediately suggested that the abrupt onset of tics could have been caused by strep and brought us in for blood work. My son is now on azithromycin and VSL#3 for 5 days, followed by an anti-fungal. We have a follow-up appointment with the pediatrician on February 4th.
After finding PANDAS information online, I now realize that what we thought was stress brought on by the tics might actually be separate symptoms. In the last week my son has developed extreme anxiety at bedtime and says if he isn't with me he is overwhelmed by "bad thought." He hasn't slept in his own bed for a week! He also had 2 very bad days just over a week ago where he was angry and defiant and had a huge meltdown over something very insignificant. It doesn't sound like much to go on, but this is NOT typical behavior for my child! I just don't know how to tell if it is caused by normal adolescent hormones or if this is a part of PANDAS?
If anyone can offer advice for things we can be doing to help him, I would really appreciate it! Are there dietary things we should be avoiding? Supplements? How do I protect him from further exposure to strep? I am feeling totally overwhelmed!