Hope for Pandas & Pans

05/17/2026

It’s been a hot minute since I’ve shared anything about Hope for PANDAS & PANS, but life has been full in the best and hardest ways. ❤️

For those who may not know our story, our daughter battled PANDAS/PANS for years before we finally found answers. Watching your child suffer from something they can’t even explain is heartbreaking beyond words. There were days filled with fear, confusion, exhaustion, tears, and feeling completely alone.

But there was also hope. There was healing. And there was God carrying us through every single step of it.

Today, our daughter is thriving, healthy, joyful, and using her voice to advocate for other kids and families walking through this battle. And that is exactly why Hope for PANDAS & PANS was created — to remind families they are not alone.

If you’re in the thick of it right now, keep fighting for your child. Trust your gut. Ask questions. Keep searching for answers. There is hope, even when it feels impossible to see.

Thank you to everyone who has supported, prayed for, encouraged, and shared our mission. We’re still here. Still advocating. Still believing for healing and awareness for so many children. ❤️✨

04/28/2026

I wanted to share! Came across The Pandas Docs on my personal page last week! Love that they are sharing their own personal experiences! It’s amazing when you can find someone who can better understand what your child is going through with PANDAS/PANS!

02/27/2026

I shared this on my personal page and wanted to share on here as well!

This is such a BIG moment for the PANDAS/PANS community!

For so many years, families like ours have fought to be heard. Many doctors didn’t recognize PANDAS/PANS, and getting the right diagnosis and treatment was often a long, exhausting, and heartbreaking journey.

That’s why it’s incredibly encouraging to see National Geographic shining a light on this condition. Awareness matters. Validation matters. And most importantly — our kids matter.

We are so thankful that God led us to Dr. Ashley. Through his care and guidance, Henley received the treatment she needed — and it truly saved her life. We will forever be grateful for the healing, hope, and restoration we’ve seen.

If you’re new here or walking this journey with your child, please know this:
You are not alone.
There is hope.
And there are answers.

We’d love for you to read Henley’s story and learn more about our mission at Hope for PANDAS & PANS.

And take a moment to check out this powerful article from National Geographic that is helping bring much-needed awareness to families everywhere:

https://www.nationalgeographic.com/health/article/strep-throat-autoimmune-disease-chronic-fatigue?fbclid=IwdGRleAQIH6tleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBzcnRjBmFwcF9pZAo2NjI4NTY4Mzc5AAEeg2YGvrEZgJW22tpJcdwNvq_gsp4Pdy-T7vZs3dLapSLwRt7P1WQUZ_3YjPU_aem_eza_KFvur9M0RC5Z10Ie9w

Let’s keep spreading awareness, supporting families, and trusting God every step of the way.

Growing research suggests the bacteria left behind by the common childhood infection may trick the immune system into attacking both the invader and the body's own cells.

09/30/2025

What is PANDAS & PANS?
Many families have never even heard these names until their child is suddenly struggling with symptoms that seem to come out of nowhere. PANDAS (Pediatric Autoimmune Neuropsychiatric Disorders Associated with Strep) and PANS (Pediatric Acute-onset Neuropsychiatric Syndrome) are conditions where the immune system attacks part of the brain, often after an infection, causing sudden and severe changes in a child’s behavior, emotions, and health.

At Hope for PANDAS & PANS, we share stories, encouragement, and resources so families know they are not alone—and so more people can recognize the signs earlier. Awareness matters, because awareness leads to answers, and answers lead to healing.

09/21/2025

Henley Kate’s Journey — From Darkness to Healing

Our journey with PANDAS/PANS began in November 2020. Our vibrant, fearless, 10-year-old daughter, Henley Kate, went from joyfully living her life to suddenly being consumed by anxiety, fear, and confusion. After a battle with strep and then a stomach bug, everything changed. She no longer wanted to go to school. She cried daily, grew anxious when I wasn’t beside her, and experienced symptoms that no longer felt emotional — they felt medical.

Her world shrank.

The bold little girl who played soccer, danced on TikTok, went to camps, and made everyone laugh... was gone. In her place was a child afraid to sleep, afraid to let me out of her sight, plagued by severe separation anxiety, headaches, verbal tics, OCD behaviors, explosive anger, and irrational fears. She was exhausted. So were we. But worse than the fatigue was the isolation — few people understood what we were going through. They didn’t see the pain, the confusion, the despair behind our doors.

For over a year, I searched for answers — researching, crying, praying — until one Facebook post changed everything. A friend messaged me: “Have you heard of PANDAS?” I hadn’t. That night, We watched the documentary My Kid Is Not Crazy, and suddenly it all made sense. We were not alone.

From there, I joined groups, asked questions, and started chasing hope. It was a long and painful road. We tried functional medicine. We changed diets. We used supplements. Nothing worked. Then came the answer to prayer: the doctor I had tried so hard to get into opened a new clinic — and he took Henley’s case. She was officially diagnosed with PANDAS in early 2022. He started her on antibiotics and steroids. Within a week, she began to return to us.

But her healing wasn’t complete... yet.
Roughly six months later, in another God-ordained appointment, we uncovered what had been hiding in plain sight: black mold exposure. Henley had unknowingly spent a year in a building filled with it — and her immune system had been under attack long before we even knew what PANDAS was. The diagnosis then shifted from PANDAS to PANS. With anti-fungals, activated charcoal, and the grace of God, we saw her heal completely.

Today, almost five years later, Henley Kate is thriving. She’s playing volleyball, going to sleepovers, hanging out with friends, and living life fully — with joy. We still have small flare-ups every now and then, but we know how to manage them. We’ve walked through fire... and found healing on the other side.
We believe this journey happened for a reason.
That reason is Hope for PANDAS & PANS — a faith-led nonprofit created to give families what we were desperately searching for: understanding, encouragement, resources, and hope. Our prayer is to walk alongside others in their darkest moments and remind them:

You are not alone... there is hope and healing through His love.

09/12/2025

At Hope for PANDAS & PANS, encouragement is at the heart of what we do. We’ll be posting regular reminders of faith, strength, and hope — because sometimes all it takes is one uplifting word to brighten a hard day.

09/12/2025

So many people ask: “What is PANDAS/PANS?”
Here’s a simple way to understand it ⬇️
Awareness brings understanding, and understanding brings hope. Please share to help another family know they are not alone.

09/06/2025

Welcome to Hope for PANDAS & PANS ❤️
What started as our family’s fight to understand what was happening to our daughter, Henley Kate, has now become a mission to help others know they’re not alone.
Henley was once a fearless, joyful little girl who loved life — until one day, everything changed. After recurring strep infections, she developed PANDAS (a form of PANS triggered by strep). Later, exposure to toxic black mold caused her symptoms to worsen and shift into PANS (Pediatric Acute-onset Neuropsychiatric Syndrome), bringing severe anxiety, OCD, emotional instability, tics, sleepless nights, and debilitating fear.
For years we searched for answers. We were dismissed, misunderstood, and heartbroken — until we finally heard the words PANDAS/PANS and found the doctor who would help guide us toward healing.
Through God’s grace, Henley Kate is thriving again. 🙌
We created Hope for PANDAS & PANS to walk alongside families facing the same uphill climb. Our mission is simple:
💛 Encourage.
📖 Educate.
🙏 Offer hope.
🩺 Help families get the treatment their children need.
This is just the beginning. We’ll be sharing our full story, resources, faith-based encouragement, and eventually — merch, podcasts, and other projects that will directly support families in need of treatment and resources.
👉 If you or someone you love is walking through the darkness of PANDAS/PANS…
Let us walk with you.
You are not alone. There is hope and healing through His love.