dd spent 3 hours pulling hair out in clumps.

[MIAS_MOM]

my dd 11 had a "bipolar" type change after I got her after school and imediatly started screamming she was hot and kicking the dash in my car. This is very, very common, but the hot spells always indicates somethings brewing. It wasnt 10 min and she started pulling her hair out in clumps, with NO PAIN. It was killing me, she continued for about 3 hours, stating she couldnt stop, then as we went to parent teacher conference she made a turn around and was "just ok", but has not pulled her hair at all since then. She had gone to the zoo with her school the day before, had LOTS of sugary foods, then cake at church that night. I keep sugar away from her because it causes extreme hyperactivity and aggression. I'm thinking maybe the sugar triggered this hair pulling????? Nothing else has change. Just finised amoxicillian for strep, but seems strep free. Any thoughts? We have never had an ocd that lasted just a few hours and then gone.

[philamom]

My assumption is she may not be strep free. How long was she on the Amox- it may not have been long enough. If she cultured positive, you may want to take her back to have her swabbed again.

[SarahJane]

I would also check again for strep. Have you tested for mycoplasma pneumonia? My son went thru trichotillomania (about a month of it, so it was a longer OCD) with a myco p dx (high IgG) back in the spring. He was on daily zith when this happened, and we switched to Biaxin for 6 weeks to clear. It could have just been a one-time thing, but I wouldn't be surprised if it rears its ugly head again. My son would twist into knots and pull it out by breaking off hair. Is finally about back to normal. Was thin for a long while. And they can do lots of damage quickly. He was hiding his hair from me. I would find it in bunches behind his bed, under the couch, behind the TV cart. ::sigh:: Good luck!

 

P.S. Penicillin doesn't work on myco p, so you'd need a macrolide (zith, biaxin) or other class.

Edited October 17, 2011 by SarahJane

[Mom_me]

If you haven't already, check out this link, it's on the front page of this site.

It's about sugar and PANDAS, not everyone has a negative reaction with their childs PANDAS and sugar, but it's worth a listen.

http://www.latitudes.org/forums/index.php?showtopic=15236

[norcalmom]

Hot? as in fever? I'd try a couple advil for a day or two .

[MIAS_MOM]

dd was strep free, she is neg for mycoplasma pneumonia, "hot" as in severe hot flashes, and she takes advil. Mom-me, THANKYOU so much for that site. I believe every child responds diff to everything in life, and some may have flare ups with sugar, but most may not, just as diff meds, etc. work diff for each individual. I've talked to some of my close pandas mom's and they also see sugar as a threat. So in conclusion of my question, knowing about the sugar inflamation process, and hearing everyones thoughs, I believe that sugar was def why dd was pulling hair out for one day only. I always limit her intake seriously, but the day before she was not with me, and consumed way to much. However, our psych. added prozac at our visit bc thats what they do! They would rather thro more meds to them, then believe a parent who lives with this horrid dissorder 24/7 ! Thanks everyone.