Mental Health Resources
Stay current with the latest resources from MIND Global Council leaders to advance neuroimmune mental health care. This page features timely conversations on PANS/PANDAS, including insights from leading psychologists, physicians, and experts at the forefront of the field.
Guidance from the International OCD Foundation
1 / Signs & Symptoms of PANS/PANDAS
The International OCD Foundation (IOCDF) is the world's largest organization dedicated to treating OCD and related disorders. IOCDF recognizes PANS/PANDAS as a subset of OCD.
2 / Differential Diagnosis of PANS/PANDAS vs. non-PANS OCD
If you have a patient presenting with repetitive behaviors and chronic anxiety, it may be obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) or it may be a PANS/PANDAS. According to IOCDF, There are recognizable differences.
3 / PANS/PANDAS Mental Health Treatment
IOCDF outlines the current standard of care of mental health treatment of PANS/PANDAS.
Anxiety & Depression Association of America
1 / "Do You Suspect PANDAS/PANS?"
This dynamic roundtable discussion features three experienced mental health professionals (including MGC members Dr. Zoe Gillispie and Brynn Blanchard, LCSW) alongside Dr. Angela Tang from the Stanford Immune Behavioral Health Clinic & Research Program. Together, this interdisciplinary panel offers practical insights into the emotional, behavioral, and medical complexities of caring for children with suspected PANS/PANDAS. Viewers will learn to recognize hallmark clinical features of PANS, including sudden-onset OCD and other commonly associated symptoms supported in current research.
2 / PANS and PANDAS: A Brief Guide to Diagnosis, Treatment, and Hope
PANS and PANDAS are conditions in which a sudden, dramatic onset of OCD, severely restricted eating, and related neuropsychiatric symptoms may be triggered by infection (PANDAS specifically follows strep) or immune dysregulation, and are diagnosed clinically since no single test confirms them. Effective treatment combines medical care (antibiotics, anti-inflammatories, or immune therapies), psychiatric medication, and adapted psychotherapy, and with prompt, coordinated care, substantial recovery—even full healing—is possible.
PANS/PANDAS Stories
with Lucy McDonald
1 / OCD, PANS, & Dr. Zoe Gillispie
Dr. Zoe Gillispie is one of the world’s leading neuroimmune-psychiatric psychologists, working with children and families affected by PANS/PANDAS from her practice in California. Here, she shares her insights and expertise on the illness with Lucy McDonald, including why parents are blamed, why experts mistakenly focus on psychosocial factors rather than biology, and why early treatment is key.
2 / PANS Flares, Medication, & Recovery | Dr. Kiki Chang
Dr. Kiki Chang has a long pedigree in PANS/PANDAS in the United States, where he has been instrumental in treating children and advocating for greater recognition of the illness, both nationally and internationally. He discusses what NOT to do during a flare, the power of therapy and working with families, and, most of all, the importance of never giving up.
3 / Hidden Signs of Brain Inflammation in PANS | Dr. Jennifer Frankovich (Stanford)
Dr. Jennifer Frankovich is at the forefront of treating children with sudden-onset neuropsychiatric symptoms in California’s Bay Area. The demand for her program is extraordinary—her team can accept only a fraction of referrals, reflecting both the urgency and complexity of this work. Her team is systematically collecting patient data to build a much-needed body of research, helping to move the entire field forward. She also urges the medical community to reconsider why routine strep screening has fallen out of practice, despite the well-established connection between strep infections, inflammation, and significant changes in mood and behavior. Dr. Frankovich emphasizes that inflammation often leaves clues. Symptoms such as rashes, unexplained physical pain, and delayed reflexes may be critical signals—ones parents can recognize and bring to the attention of clinicians.
Flying through Fog
with Krystal Vivian – News/Talk 95.3 Michiana's News Channel
Lindsey Forsythe – mom of two kids with PANS/PANDAS
& Angela Henry – LCSW, founder of Center for Collaborative Healing
1 / When Strep Hijacks Your Child's Brain: One Family's PANDAS Journey
What happens when a simple strep infection transforms your child
into someone you don't recognize? Flying Through Fog dives deep
into the hidden world of PANS/PANDAS — a condition where
common infections trigger autoimmune responses that attack the
brain, causing sudden personality changes, severe anxiety, and
behavioral issues that leave families desperate for answers.
2 / Siblings, Schools, & Friends: Navigating PANS/PANDAS Conversations with Kids
One of the hardest parts of a PANS/PANDAS diagnosis isn't just
getting the diagnosis—it's figuring out how to talk about it. How
do you explain to your child that their brain is under attack by their
own immune system? What do you tell siblings who've been walking
on eggshells for months? And how much should teachers, friends,
and extended family really know? In this episode, licensed clinical social worker Angela Henry joins hosts Krystal Vivian and Lindsey Forsyth for an essential conversation about communication. They break down how to have age-appropriate discussions with children about their diagnosis, why naming the disease can actually be liberating, and how to navigate the delicate
balance between privacy and advocacy. From the child who presents
about PANDAS to their entire fifth-grade class to the teenager who
only confides in one parent, they explore how different families
approach these conversations in ways that work for them.
3 / A Light in the Fog: Parents Share Their PANS/PANDAS Stories of Hope
When you're in the darkest moments of your PANS/PANDAS
journey—when your child is a shell of themselves, when every day
feels like surviving an impossible storm—it's hard to imagine that
things will ever get better. But they can. And they do.
For the final episode of Season 1, hosts Krystal Vivian and Lindsey
Forsyth are joined by Angela Henry to share powerful stories of hope
from real PANS/PANDAS families. From the mom whose daughter
went from a watermelon "cake" due to severe food restrictions to
eating real birthday cake a year later, to the child who missed a year
and a half of school and is now getting straight A's, to the 19-year-old thriving in pre-med who wants to become the doctor that helps other PANDAS kids—these stories prove that healing is possible.
Miscellaneous Podcasts
featuring members of MIND Global Council
Disclaimer
The resources listed here are provided for informational convenience only. MIND
Global Council does not endorse, verify, warrant, or determine the qualifications,
fitness, availability, appropriateness, or suitability of any provider, organization,
directory, referral, or resource. Individuals and professionals are encouraged to
exercise their own independent judgment when selecting resources or providers.
