​Do you have a “mantra,” whether in relation to its use in a spiritual sense or as something that provides you with motivational self-talk in certain circumstances? Some good news to know - adopting a regular mantra can actually have a positive, calming effect on your brain too!
​

Our uncertain times mean most of us are challenged like never before. It’s impossible to turn on the television, read a newspaper or look at social media without being bombarded by so many different things and so much information that it’s just truly overwhelming. ​

We know that food often plays a significant role in PANS and PANDAS – whether patients experience allergies or difficulties with digestion or develop anorexia and refusal to eat, it’s extremely challenging to maintain proper nutrition for optimal health support. 

Diagnoses that even the most knowledgeable professional might miss, PANS and PANDAS have only recently come into the spotlight thanks to the combined advocacy of so many patients, parents and community support organizations alike.  

Have you ever thought about how all the people in your family tree, even if you never had the opportunity to meet them, have influenced your own life? Well, research has shown a variety of biological factors affect just how genes are expressed and can indeed be passed down through multiple generations. 

Along with my daughters, Katie and Sarah, and through our work with Hope for HumaNS from 2012 to 2017, we came to personally know the very poorest of the poor in Uganda and learn firsthand about their struggles on so many levels. In addition to enduring the impacts of extreme poverty and lack of resources, so many of the villagers suffered as well with Nodding Syndrome (NS), a debilitating and still-mysterious neurological illness.

I recently received a letter from Jovia, whom we met when she was just five years old and have continued to support her from afar as much as we can, both financially and with boundless love and admiration for her spirit and her courage. ​

With much discussion about the COVID pandemic, vitamin D has found its way into the conversation. And rightly so, given the recent research pointing to its value in numerous instances including rates of intensive care unit admissions.1But it shouldn’t require this type of global event to make us take note of all the existing information we had about just how important this vitamin is to our health - and the fact most of us are extremely lacking in it. 

 
While we’ve written before about the need to ensure optimal levels of vitamin D for both immune and brain health, recent news regarding its potential use in viral protection prompts revisiting this important information.

It wasn’t all that long ago that at least in popular media, and likely not in everyday conversation, that the term “microbiome” came up all that often. Now, in the wake of extensive research, we know far more about just how important the gut microbiome in particular is to our general wellbeing AND to brain health as well.

CADASIL or “cerebral autosomal dominant arteriopathy and subcortical infarct leukoencephalopathy” is likely not something you hear about every day. It is indeed a rare diagnosis and in the course of my career I have seen only two cases of this condition. BUT…a recent article regarding the possibility that some cases of CADSASIL may be mistaken for multiple sclerosis (MS) gives us reason enough to discuss the differences and the importance of obtaining a proper diagnosis in any illness. 

The means to making an earlier diagnosis in cases of Parkinson’s disease (PD) may be as accessible as our skin. According to a recent publication, research has shown that a skin biopsy has the potential for use in identifying Parkinson’s, as well as Alzheimer’s and other neurodegenerative diseases (also known as synucleinopathies) perhaps well before irreparable damage to the brain tissue has occurred. 

Inflammation – it’s at the root of every disease. So it stands to reason that in the case of neuropsychiatric disorders we also must look first for autoimmune-driven mechanisms in in every patient we see. I believe this should be part of the differential diagnosis just as it is when we do a workup for any other stated or suspected health issues.

By far the most widely used insecticides today in the home, businesses, agriculture and other settings, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), organophosphates have long been known to cause detrimental health effects. Despite the risks, these poisonous substances continue to be used and a recent publication in JAMA Neurology spotlights an especially disturbing case of neurotoxicity post-exposure to organophosphates that shows the lingering and potentially irreversible effects.1

The last few months have seen numerous investigations regarding the pandemic-level development of COVID and its wide-ranging array of symptoms that can vary significantly from one individual to the next. Now, findings from a recent study that explore the erratic mechanisms this virus possesses that can overtake our body, and in some cases our brain, point to what’s known as a bradykinin storm.*

Recently I experienced firsthand the effects of forest fires burning in Colorado.  I had never seen or felt anything quite like this. The smoky haze is almost palpable, skies are tinged with a drab color that is far removed from the blue we expect. Wildfires in California are especially bad now, in a year that was already marked by unprecedented events. David Salesin captured this shot in Sausalito the other morning around 10 am, looking out towards San Francisco. What is typically a vantage point of picture-postcard beauty is now sadly a reminder of not only the current terrible situation, but also that our planet is becoming more and more toxic every single day.

I’ve just spent the last week seeing our clinic filled with our PANS and PANDAS patients. As grateful as we are to be here for them, it is so troubling that we are seeing more and more of these children - and equally disturbing how long it took for many of them to get to us. While estimates indicate that 1 in 150 children have one of these disorders, I believe the numbers are in fact much higher. So often these diagnoses are missed because of the complexity of symptoms that can overlap with other conditions as well as the lack of familiarity with the disorders by parents and practitioners alike.