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DS was miserable again this morning. Poor guy. Complaining of a belly ache and "spider web" in his throat. He was just on Zithromax for high strep titers last week so the meds are still active in his body. I don't know what else we can do. I am trying to determine if the belly aches are due to Strep or yeast overgrowth. I am still so new at all this and it all seems so overwhelming right now. Wondering if any of you have dealt with constant stomach aches? I hate sending him off to school feeling terrible but I know when he is home and busy he deals with it so I am hoping he will deal with it ok at school. I will call the nurse and let her know what is up. He was out for 3 1/2 days before Easter break so she knows he was being treated for the Strep... Our pediatrician doesn't do anything but treat the surface ailments. Wish I could call and ask for help but I know I won't get anything but bring him in and then they will say that he looks fine and just keep an eye on him. Can't afford to pay for that. Environmental doc wants to start Nystatin like I mentioned in another thread but not sure if that will help or make things worse? Suggestions? Thanks for letting me vent. I am so frustrated right now. I just want to help my little guy feel better!

Environmental Medicine Doc prescribed Nystatin. She thinks he might have yeast overgrowth. I agree from all I have read here that might be the case. I haven't filled the prescription yet. She said to take things slowly and we have started with Probiotics and Enzymes so far. Seems like some have success with Nystatin and others don't, as with everything each child is different, I know. Are there many of you who have seen significant benefits from the Nystatin? Any of you who have seen negative effects? Trying to weigh the pros and cons... Also, I looked up the ingredients in the oral Nystatin (ds doesn't swallow pills yet). There's artificial wild cherry flavor, banana flavor, D&C yellow #10, FD&C red #40 and sucrose in it. Argh! So hard to give medicine with all the JUNK in it when we try to avoid it in our foods. DS just had a round of Zithromax and I had it compounded without all the additives. Insurance wouldn't pay for it. Not sure if I am going overboard by worrying about the additives or not. Any opinions? What form of this medicine are your kids taking/have taken? Thanks. I feel so overwhelmed and lost lately. Just trying to do what is best for my little guy! I know you can all relate!

WOW! That is wonderful news! So glad you have found the treatment to help your son! My ds has had two cases of Strep this winter but his tics haven't increased due to the strep or decreased due to the antibiotics. I take that to show that he is not Pandas even though I thought he might be at first since he gets strep easily. Thanks for sharing what worked with your son. I know it will be of benefit to others! Happy Easter and God bless!

My son (almost 9) is also hyper sensitive. Cries easily and complains about the littlest things. I know how overwhelming this journey is right now. We are in the middle of it ourselves. I am still learning everything and taking baby steps toward healing. Hang in there! (((HUGS)))

My son's experience is different from your daughters but I wanted to send you some ((((HUGS)))). This journey is so hard. So glad to have this board to turn to! Hang in there!

This would be great! The kids and I get Strep way too often around here! I would love a way to prevent it!

I would love to hear your recommendations for specific types/brands of HEPA filters that you use in your homes! Thanks!

Thanks, Colleen, We are headed to the doctor this afternoon. I will be sure to ask about this alternative for the next time, if we need it again in the future! I appreciate your help!

((((HUGS)))) I wish I had answers for you! We are going through similar concerns at our house, too! This sure is a bumpy road we are all on. Try giving it over to God and pray for guidance. I know how difficult it is and how overwhelming it seems. Today has been a particulary rough one for us... You will be in my prayers!

My almost 9 yo has strep. It did not show up on the rapid culture at the pediatrician's this morning but it did show up in his blood test results from the environmental doctor. I am really thinking that he constantly has a low Strep infection. We will be checking on that for sure! My question is: What do you do about antibiotics? Do you have special antibiotics made up that are free of all the JUNK they put in them? I hate that they have all the garbage in them that we try to avoid! I asked to have his prescription filled through a compounding pharmacy. They are doing Zithromax using only Stevia to sweeten it a bit and take off the bitter edge. Hoping my guy will take it! Unfortunately, the pharmacy just called and said it will not be covered under my insurance! ARGH! $45 for what we could get for $8 if we didn't care about the junk. So frustrating. What do you about this? Do you just give the regular antibiotics or go a different route?

Just wanted to say hello and send some (((((HUGS)))) and prayers your way.

Hello. We have a great deal of painting to do in our home. We moved two years ago and there are still many rooms to be painted. I have avoided doing so due to my son's tics that started last spring. Unfortunately, I can't tell you for sure what will happen if you do decide to paint but have you considered LOW-VOC or NO-VOC paints? I found this link to be helpful. I know I will be looking into them more when we choose to paint. I am hoping to be able to paint in the spring with the windows open! LOW-VOC and NO-VOC paint info Hope this helps!

I haven't had him try swallowing pills yet. I definitely want to try it! I think it would be helpful in so many ways....With meds and when we add supplements that only come in pill form. He is 8 and I think he should be able to do it fine. He hardly chews his food so he should be able to swallow easily. Ha ha How did you get your son to try pills? Did you use actual pills or small m&ms or something? I have heard a couple of different ways....just wondering what worked for you! Oh, I called the doctor's office. I knew I wouldn't get much help but called anyway. They said it isn't unusual to still have a sore throat after 48 hours. They just suggested gargling with salt water. I am trying not to worry too much because he is acting fine. The tics don't seem to be any worse and he feels ok other than his throat at times. It was the worst at bedtime. Everything is always worse at night! He is running around and playing with his sisters. He doesn't have the typical lethargic, full-blown strep symptoms. Hoping the antibiotics kick in and don't do any damage to his system. I am giving him achidophilus along with it to help with the good bacteria. Thanks for your help, Kelly! It really helps to "talk" to someone else who is going thru this, too! Have a good day!

A beautiful prayer! Thanks for sharing! Really needed that today! This forum is a great place. So glad God lead me here. God bless you all!

I feel so overwhelmed and frustrated right now. I want to do what is best for my son and I am afraid of each and every decision that I make, fearing it will make things worse instead of better... DS has had tics since last May. They have been daily since August. They were pronounced during back to school time and Christmas. Pretty mild the rest of the time. He was tested for STrep on Monday and the rapid test came back negative. Got a call on Thursday that the lab results came back positive. So we started him on Cefvil on Thursday afternoon. He is allergic to penicillin based antibiotics. He had a head-to-toe rash at age 5 after having Amoxycillin. The Cefvil has red-dye in it which I think is a trigger for him! Argh! I went round and round with the pharmacy in hopes to find something else but there wasn't anything they could recommend that would be safe with his allergy to penicillin. I am looking into going to a compounding pharmacy next time to get meds without all the added junk! Why do they have to put all that crap in them anyway??? My question is this. His throat is bothering him more than ever. I can see that it is clearly red and has white spots in the back of his mouth. His tummy is bothering him also. Seems like the strep isn't going away. My experience is that the strep symptoms usually clear after 24 hours on meds. It has been almost 48. I don't want to take a chance and let the strep continue in his body. I am worried sick that it might bring on more tics. But I don't know what other meds they would be able to put him on. I don't know what to fear more...the strep or the meds. Both can cause problems if there is an allergy to the meds. Any suggestions? Our pediatrician didn't have a clue about Pandas. I mentioned it on Monday and they looked it up on the internet! They don't believe in dietary benefits or anything. I really need to find a new doctor in our area. I went to an Environmental Med. dr but her bedside manner wasn't the best. It was hard to communicate with her and I don't feel we could really discuss his needs well together. I was so hopeful that she would have some answers! I am in Western NY state. If anyone has recommendations of doctors please let me know. For now....what do I do about the strep? Change drugs? Wait out the weekend? I have two other kids and am worried they will get the strep. Me, too, for that matter. I always get strep when the kids have it and we get it at least twice a winter!

Thanks for your responses. I think I will wait on totally eliminating milk until next week. I don't know why I didn't think about it effecting the tests until earlier today. Of course, that was after I had already told him we were all going to stay away from dairy this week. Good thing is that now I have more time to look up some dairy-free recipes and foods. Anyone have a good resource for these type of recipes? Thanks again!

Our son is 8 and developed tics last spring. They are pretty mild compared to what others have described. However, we are concerned and went to an Environmental Medicine Physician. She is also a Pediatrician so I thought that she would be a good person to consult. She wants to run blood work, which we are going to have drawn this coming Saturday. My question is concerning eliminating foods from his diet this week. I have planned to eliminate dairy this week to see if we notice any changes. However, I was also thinking that maybe this isn't a good week to eliminate foods. Will it effect this blood work? I don't want to adversely effect his results. What do you think? Should I wait until next week to do dairy elimination? I have tried to eliminate artificial dyes, additives, preservatives and all those kinds of things and replace with organic but up until now I haven't done a total elimination of any one food group.... I appreciate any advice you have! Thanks!

I know many of you have mentioned allergies to mold. My son is 8 and started having tics this past spring. He had a terrible reaction several years ago to a mold-based antibiotic. Another test also showed an allergy to mold. We had water damage in our basement a while back. We cleaned it ourselves and haven't used the basement playroom at all since. But we do go through the area to get to the laundry room but my kids never go down there. Anyway, we just had the house tested for mold and yes, they found some. Mostly, in the basement. We need to have it cleaned properly. I am concerned about the cleaning process. I don't want harsh chemicals used that could be equally bad or even worse for us to be breathing in. Anyone have this done? What is safe to do? I am ready to cry because all of our Christmas decorations are down in the basement. We can't get them out until it is all cleaned. Most of the kids Christmas presents are down there, too, since that is where we hide them. Ugh. I am so sad about this. But if it means my son and my daughters will be breathing better and their immune systems won't be compromised, I will do whatever it takes. I am scared of how much this will cost, too, but again...I don't care. I just want my kids to be healthy! Please let me know if you have ever had mold remediation done! Thanks!

My son's tics had become really mild and then Halloween came! He only had one piece Halloween night but at a Cub Scout party he had a few because I was busy with the girls and wasn't watching every moment. All the other kids were eating like crazy so he followed suit, of course. Since then, I have let each of my kids have one piece after dinner. That isn't much but I still see the tics more than before. I am thinking of buying off the remaining candy or exchanging it for a toy. Great ideas! The trick-or-treating is fun but the candy is not necessary! We were doing so well with healthy eating before Halloween!

Hello. I am new here. I have been reading this forum on and off for a few weeks. My 8 yr old son developed a vocal tic this spring. He sounds like he is repeatedly saying "huh, huh, huh or hmm, hmm, hmm". Closer to the start of school he began having motor tics, too. They have lessened quite a bit the past few weeks. His work in school and attention to tasks has greatly improved and his teacher is thrilled with his progress. I am not sure if the tics are better because school is better or school is better because tics are better. KWIM? Anyway, I have the opportunity to have the allergy testing done that Dr. Rapp recommends in her book. Has anyone done this before? I am wondering if this is a good route to take or should I start somewhere else like food elimination diets? I have found the name of an environmental physician in my area. I am also thinking of making an appt with him. I guess my questions are: Do you have experience with allergy testing like Dr. Rapp describes in her book? Where do I start after getting nowhere with regular pediatrician? My son's tics are mild at this point. Of course, we would like them to stay this way or completely disappear! At home we are trying to eliminate dyes, additives, preservatives, and I am adding flax seed to my baking. He is taking a multi-vitamin that seems to be free from all the junk. I appreciate any advice you may have! This forum is such a great resource! So glad I found it! God bless