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Dear All, I'm desperate for some guidance on my situation. I feel utterly lost and feel that I'm beginning to dwindle away as a solitary eccentric. However, I may finally have an answer nearly 4000 miles away. To give you some background: I am, or was, a 24 year old mathematics student from the UK, with a working diagnosis of ASD, OCD and ADHD. I have a very much up and down history of academic attainment ranging from A's to U's during troubling periods. Anyhow, this cycle has been most pronounced for the last 6-7 years but may originate in childhood. It all began in November of 09' at age 16, I was studying for A-Levels when all of a sudden and overnight I began experiencing extreme anxiety and unrelenting sexual intrusive thoughts (Pure-O), so severe it was impossible to channel my attention in any productive way. At about the same time I become housebound, started showing signs of behavioural regression and went off my food - I lost a lot of weight. At the time I was reluctant to talk about the thoughts, as I didn't believe they would be seen in the right context. Anyhow, fast forward a few years and with every "relapse" I become isolated, show marked personality changes and as result attract a lot of ridicule/bullying and ostracisation. I've never been able to find a relationship because of unrelenting untrue rumours and gossip surrounding my sexuality - unfortunately, I've been dumped a couple of times because of it. But more to the point I've never been able to explain the extreme shifts in my behaviour until perhaps now. The symptoms range from mood swings, regression, brain fog, short term memory loss, insomnia and all I can conclude is severe cognitive dysfunction - whether this is connected to ensuing depression, I don't know. Anyway, out of desperation and with my current diagnoses, I searched for answer to tie all the pieces together. I had a consultation with Dr Kovacevic, who said that he believes my case to be certain for pans/pandas. Hence, he's provided me with diagnostic and treatment recommendations. Here's the thing, can pans/pandas explain such severe cognitive impairment? - because guys with everything I've been thorough I feel like I've lost my mind. And number 2 is there anyway around getting the blood tests done and receiving treatment here on the NHS, and at the grand old age of 24 is there any hope of recovery? I'm sorry, I must sound personality disordered by now but I've gone a long way in the face of ignorance. I can hardly recognise the person I once was. I just want my brain back, I feel like an invalid. If anyone has some guidance, consolation or can enlighten me on the ins and outs of PANS, I'd be much obliged. What a life :/ Thanks for reading.

Does anyone know any psychiatrists in New Jersey who is specialized in ASD with OCD/anxiety? You can send me the information to my personal email account: louisalaw@gmail.com. My son is 18 years old with ASD. His current challenge is severe OCD. Thanks so much. Louisa

Glyphosate, pathways to modern diseases III: Manganese, neurological diseases, and associated pathologies Anthony Samsel1, Stephanie Seneff2 http://www.surgicalneurologyint.com/article.asp?issn=2152-7806;year=2015;volume=6;issue=1;spage=45;epage=45;aulast=Samsel Manganese (Mn) is an often overlooked but important nutrient, required in small amounts for multiple essential functions in the body. A recent study on cows fed genetically modified Roundup ® -Ready feed revealed a severe depletion of serum Mn. Glyphosate, the active ingredient in Roundup ® , has also been shown to severely deplete Mn levels in plants. Here, we investigate the impact of Mn on physiology, and its association with gut dysbiosis as well as neuropathologies such as autism, Alzheimer's disease (AD), depression, anxiety syndrome, Parkinson's disease (PD), and prion diseases. Glutamate overexpression in the brain in association with autism, AD, and other neurological diseases can be explained by Mn deficiency. Mn superoxide dismutase protects mitochondria from oxidative damage, and mitochondrial dysfunction is a key feature of autism and Alzheimer's. Chondroitin sulfate synthesis depends on Mn, and its deficiency leads to osteoporosis and osteomalacia. Lactobacillus, depleted in autism, depend critically on Mn for antioxidant protection. Lactobacillus probiotics can treat anxiety, which is a comorbidity of autism and chronic fatigue syndrome. Reduced gut Lactobacillus leads to overgrowth of the pathogen, Salmonella, which is resistant to glyphosate toxicity, and Mn plays a role here as well. Sperm motility depends on Mn, and this may partially explain increased rates of infertility and birth defects. We further reason that, under conditions of adequate Mn in the diet, glyphosate, through its disruption of bile acid homeostasis, ironically promotes toxic accumulation of Mn in the brainstem, leading to conditions such as PD and prion diseases. Keywords: Autism, cholestasis, glyphosate, manganese, Parkinson′s disease From: Troubling Revelations: Roundup Herbicide Worsens Antibiotic-Resistance Already Fueled by Factory Farming http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2015/04/07/cafos-gmos-antibiotics.aspx “The way Roundup causes this effect is likely by causing the bacteria to turn on a set of genes that are normally off, [study author] Heinemann says. ‘These genes are for 'pumps' or 'porins,' proteins that pump out toxic compounds or reduce the rate at which they get inside of the bacteria... Once these genes are turned on by the herbicide, then the bacteria can also resist antibiotics. If bacteria were to encounter only the antibiotic, they would instead have been killed. In a sense, the herbicide is 'immunizing' the bacteria to the antibiotic:...This change occurs at levels commonly used on farm field crops, lawns, gardens, and parks.’” [Emphasis mine] Other herbicides scrutinized in the study include dicamba and 2,4-D, which is particularly relevant in light of the recent approval of a new generation of GE crops resistant not only to glyphosate, but also to dicamba and/or 2,4-D (an ingredient in the devastating defoliant Agent Orange). This important research implies that combating the weed and pest resistance caused by Roundup Ready GE crops by introducing dicamba- and 2,4-D-resistant varieties is probably only going to speed up the process of creating multi-drug resistant pathogens.