In our fifth PANS/PANDAS Stories, Lucy McDonald chats with Helen Huitson, a PANS/PANDAS mother and campaigner from the NE of England. She is the mother of the wonderful Jessica, Lucy spoke to in Episode 2. In the podcast, we discuss the terrifying progression of Jessica's illness, what has helped Helen survive it and fight for others to get support. Helen can rarely leave Jessica's side, except when she is at school, as her fits and tics are so frequent. Hers is a story of courage and hope. Hope it helps. 

Lucy x

If your child has developed sudden anxiety OCD or tics, this is the podcast for you. If you are worried you or your child may have PANS/PANDAS, please visit the PANS/PANDAS charity page https://panspandasstories.com

Next week - Dr Tim Ubhi talks about why he now believes strep is the root cause of all PANS infections, the development of his clinic and what to do if you suspect someone you know has PANS/PANDAS.

Jo Joyner talks to naturopath Lucinda Miller about the healing power of food. Lucinda has helped hundreds of families, including Jo's, and focuses on feeding the brain, the immune system and the gut microbiome.

Find out how she helps children in this week's episode of the PANS/PANDAS Stories.

Lucinda also talks about her own journey back to wellness after burnout and how her recovery inspired her new career.

**FANFARE** We celebrated 1000 listens on Friday, so a huge thank you to everyone. If you like the podcast and want friends and families to understand PANS/PANDAS a little better, please share! Thanks

Lucy and Jo xx

** Lucinda's Clinic - NatureDoc - https://naturedoc.com**

** She has written two excellent cookbooks - The Good Stuff and I Can't Believe It's Baby Food - both available here - https://naturedoc.shop/product/the-good-stuff/ **

**Next week we talk to the inspirational Helen Hutson, Jessica's mother, before ending the series with the wonderful Dr Tim Ubhi**

This week, Jo Joyner talks to Gareth Costello about his daughter Rose who went from a confident, popular girl, who loved school, to a shadow of her former self almost overnight. Gareth describes this change, as a "light switch" moment.

The trigger? A sore throat. He talks about rushing home from work to a changed child, the relief of being listened to by a GP, and how he is giving something back to the PANS/PANDAS community by fundraising.

Listen to how 12-year-old Rose is doing now, in Episode 3 of PANS/PANDAS Stories....

*****Coming up over the next few weeks - interviews with paediatrician, Dr Tim Ubhi, nutritionist and naturopath Lucinda Miller and Jessica's mother, Helen Huitson.*****

******We are planning Series Two of PANS/PANDAS Stories. Thanks to everyone who has responded to the poll. From your feedback, we know you want more chats with sufferers of PANS/PANDAS themselves as well as with experts. Please contact us, if you would like to share your story (DM on our Insta page please!)

*****We've also been asked for a Q&A session with experts and are working out the best way to do this. So again watch this space. ******

*****There is so much we want to do - including interviews with adults, as we know this isn't just a paediatric illness. Interviewees so far have had PANDAS, but IVs with PANS sufferers are also in the pipeline.

***** Thanks so much for your support. We can't do this without you, so please rate and follow us, to help spread the word, provide support to parents and sufferers, and raise awareness.*****

Lucy and Jo xxxx

In Episode Two Lucy meets Jessica, a warm and courageous 14 year old with PANDAS. Her initial symptoms were tics and anxiety, but progressed to multiple non-epileptic seizures every day. She talks about having a "pet panda in her brain that causes havoc" and how her PANDAS diagnosis was the worst day of her life.

IVIg - Intravenous immunoglobulin - an immunotherapy that can help some people with PANS/PANDAS

EDS - Ehlers-Danlos syndrome is a disease that weakens the connective tissues of your body

Who better to start the series than Vicky Burford, who runs the PANS/PANDAS UK charity? She talks to Jo about how her son Gregory had a flu-type bug on holiday in Tenerife aged 12, and developed serious neuropsychiatric symptoms shortly after.

Hello and welcome to Jo Joyner and Lucy McDonald's podcast on PANS/PANDAS.

In this introduction to the first series of the PANS/PANDAS Stories, Jo and Lucy discuss how they met and how a shared interest in brain health led to a podcast about this devastating illness.

Over six episodes, they meet children and families affected and the doctors and experts who treat them.

PANS/PANDAS stands for Paediatric Autoimmune Neuropsychiatric Dysfunction/(associated with Strep). It is a neuropsychiatric disorder caused by a virus, bacteria or pathogen attacking the brain, whose symptoms include OCD, anxiety, tics and seizures.

Episodes air on a Monday, and our first chat coincides with World PANS/PANDAS Awareness Day and is with the UK PANS/PANDAS Charity founder - Vicky Burford, who talks about her son's illness and incredible recovery.

See you there,

Lucy and Jo