The morning after that fateful night, Ava’s behavior changed dramatically. Categorical refusal to go to school, repeated anxiety attacks, irrational phobias… Yesterday’s happy and cheerful little girl has disappeared, reports The Mirror. “It was like a switch was flipped“, confides Claire Holden, his mother. Added to this are uncontrollable fits of rage, night terrors and a total inability to sleep alone. Car rides become an ordeal, with Ava trying to open the door at high speed.
Helpless in the face of this unprecedented situation, Claire and Simon Holden turn to the doctors. The diagnoses mentioned are as worrying as they are vague: psychological problems or learning disabilities. However, Ava’s parents are convinced, it is not a mental problem. “She told us her brain was on fire and she was sad all the time“, reports Claire, upset. Then begins a long wait on the waiting list for mental health services for children and adolescents.
“It’s terrifying to think that…”
It is ultimately Ava’s school nurse who will resolve the situation. Faced with the alarming clinical picture, she suggests a hitherto unexplored avenue: pediatric autoimmune streptococcal neuropsychiatric disorders (PANDAS). This rare disease manifests itself by obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) sudden and severe, as well as motor tics, following a streptococcal infection.
Bingo! Blood tests confirm the presence of streptococcal infection, gone completely unnoticed, because it was asymptomatic. The relief is immense for the Holden family, who finally understand the cause of Ava’s ordeal. “It’s terrifying to think that so many children are misdiagnosed and treated for mental disorders while their bodies fight infection“, denounces Claire.
“Many symptoms have disappeared”
Treatment with antibiotics is immediate. If the first effects are encouraging, complete healing will take time. “As soon as she started the antibiotics, many of his symptoms have disappeared and she returned to her normal state. His psychosis, anxiety and rage attacks stopped very quickly, but it takes time for the brain to return to normal“, explains Claire.
Despite the slowness of the process, the change is radical. Ava returns to sleep, rediscovers the pleasure of going to school and can sleep at friends’ houses again. “She’s our normal, healthy, happy Ava again“, concludes his mother, relieved.
