Madden was born healthy and no major issues other than a cow’s milk allergy. At a few months old he got RSV which required breathing treatments, multiple medications and eventually he got over that and was back a healthy growing boy. At 8 months old, he got an ear infection that was not curable, for 8 consistent months he was on oral antibiotics, injection antibiotics and nothing was getting rid of the bacteria. Finally at 16 months old he got ear tubes and the ear infections cleared up. He was happy, healthy, growing and “all boy”!

Between age 3 and 4 he got Upper respiratory infections, common cold and 1 case of strep.

He started Stuttering. Which was a new symptom and had never had before and he had an extensive vocabulary. We went for a speech evaluation and they diagnosed him with stuttering disorder as it runs in the family.

At age 3 took him for an eye exam and all was perfect. No vision issue, no eye or muscle issues. Healthy!

At 4 he got strep again with an upper respiratory infection. Then it all changed.

He started one a time with all these symptoms; each symptom would rear his ugly head weekly for about 6 months. I spoke with his pediatrician and they stated that it was just growing pains and him being a boy. I knew better.

His symptoms were, OCD with the weather. He panicked about what the weather was going, constantly checking it on my phone app and running to the window looking out wanting to know what was happening. This was every morning as soon as his feet hit the floor and all throughout the day.

TICS- his eyes were blinking together fast and they were being pulled tight by the eye lids.

His eyes started crossing- both eyes and all the way to the tear duct they would cross. I took him to the eye doctor and at that time, his vision was so bad that he needed +3.50 lenses and his muscles had become so lazy that they were not strong enough to keep his eyes straight.

Bed wetting- he had always wet the pull up to some extent, but he was soaking through 2 pulls up at night. He had been completely potty trained since he was 2.5 years old!

Anger and Aggression- was unexplainable. My sweet boy that has been that way all his life and such an “old soul” had turned into something that acted possessed. He was screaming all the time, talking about death/dying, hitting people, kicking people and hitting and kicking furniture, walls and anything he came in contact with. He was on edge all the time, like a short fuse ready to explode. (Until you live this life, you do not understand the severity of their actions) His mood would go from such a sweet, caring boy to someone that had rage in his eyes, body language and fear that you could see.

Separation Anxiety- He would become so emotionally upset when I would leave him in daycare. (Which he had been in since he was 7 months old) and He loved , until these symptoms started. He also wouldn’t let me walk out of the room or go into another room without him right beside me.

All along he was been hyper, can’t sit still, Fidgety, and on edge all the time when all the symptoms started.

Short term memory- He lost most of the short term memory. You would tell him to do something; he would walk 5 steps and forget what you had just ask/told him. It became worse as symptoms progressed.

Sensory- He had never been a child with those issues. He didn’t mind textures and the way things felt, or smell or taste. Now he smells everything. Doesn’t matter what it is, he smells it. He refuses to taste a lot of foods when they smell bad. He can stand tags in his shirts or the way certain cloth feels to his skin. He is super picky about smell and textures. Also started not being able to deal with loud noises and big crowds of people. He states often that people are too loud and get on his nerves.

He has always been small. But there was a time that he stopped growing for about 2 years he didn’t gain any weight. Now at 7 he is only 47 lbs and 47.5 inches.

Pain he complains regularly of pain in his legs, feet and arms.

So after these symptoms began, we went and seen a general medical doctor and I was told that it was just him being a boy and a phase and that was just growing pains as to why his legs were hurting and that we would wait on doing X-rays until the legs started bowing or we noticed something further.

After we didn’t get any answers I turned to Dr. Taz. I needed help and for someone to look outside the box. We needed answers and needed them quick.

I brought Madden in with Dr. Taz and we did blood work and Nutreval and started on a plan of diet restrictions, supplements and therapies. We didn’t test for PANDAS at that time as that was never thought of as a diagnosis as it was not sudden onset.

We followed the plan and things got about 80% better for about 6 months and then the symptoms came back. When things started back up, I spoke with a Pediatric FNP that I work with and she said let’s do some labs and test some blood markers as she had read an article about PANDAS.

We did the blood labs and when we got the results, we were shocked at how high his markers were. Past infection and current infection. He had Strep, Mycoplasma bacteria and Epstein Barr Virus.

No wonder my son was acting that way, his body was a walking bacteria and it was affecting every bodily system of his.

We immediately started on antibiotics, and a new supplement regimen and he has improving day by day and was doing amazing! For the first time in 2 years!

He was stable on that plan for 6 months and then he became re-exposed to Peri Anal Strep and he flared again. All the symptoms returned like a vengeance. We were back to square one. At that time we saw Dr. Jamilet and she changed antibiotics and his regimen and things became a little better but not back to before the sickness. After repeat lab draws and plan changes for months, we have completed 2 months of IVIG infusions, which with the 1st infusion he got Aseptic meningitis and had to be on emergency Lasix’s and prednisone for a month, at times 20 medications per day, CBT therapy, and OT therapy. As well as Essential oils we apply daily.

He is finally back to being pretty stable. He is about 75% better now and we are so grateful for diagnosis and treatment. He is back to being a pretty happy boy, still very busy but stable and we are living life day to day, each day is a new journey as he still has a lot of OCD tendencies, Sensory issues as well as emotional outburst.

At this time we are also working with a Naturopath to help his body detox from mycotoxins as well as high mercury levels. The mercury came from vaccines and fish that he was eating. No other sources have been noted. He also shows high levels of other metals that we are not clear as to where he was exposed.

At this time we are continuing treatment and have another IVIG ready if we need it for the next BIG flare. We take things one day at a time. We are praying for complete healing, but we are prepared if needed for more extensive treatment.