Positive for Strep…Again…But It Isn’t Normal Strep

August 5th, 2026, at 6:55 AM, we walked into the doctor’s office to get Stephen checked for Strep, which I knew in my gut was already positive.  When the results came back positive, I wasn’t surprised. However, when the doctor said to me, “Sorry, Stephen is going to have to miss school today,” I scoffed and said a silent prayer of thanks that Stephen was not in the room when she said that.  It was the first day of school.

Stephen had just tested positive for Strep.

AGAIN.

For the 3rd time in the last 7 months.

The 9th time in the last year and 7 months.

The 23rd time in his entire life.

He is 11 years old!

I looked back. His first case was when he was 4 years old. These days, a positive Strep test isn’t anything new.  I looked at this PA. She was new to the practice, and she was clueless.

I tried to explain to her what kind of Strep Steve had, but she wasn’t listening. There was no way I was keeping Stephen home from school, especially on the first day.  The positive Strep test was just proof of something I already knew was happening.

His brain was, once again, being attacked by his immune system.

And this doctor had never heard of it.

What Stephen has is an often unknown and overlooked condition called Pediatric Autoimmune Neuropsychiatric Disorders Associated with Streptococcal Infections: PANDAS. My son was not missing his first day of school because of a positive Strep test.

Now, before anyone comes at me—

I would never intentionally put another child in danger of getting Strep. But this wasn’t new to us, and this wasn’t what we had come to recognize as “normal” Strep. It wasn’t the Strep with pus pockets on his tonsils. It wasn’t Stephen lying on the couch complaining that his throat hurt. This was the positive Strep test that, in our experience, came alongside something much different happening inside my son.

This is the part of PANDAS that I wish more people understood. You can’t always see it.  PANDAS is an invisible illness. According to statistical data from PANDAS Network, it affects approximately 1 out of 200 children. For Stephen, illness, stress to his nervous system, and environmental factors have all seemed to play a role in his flare-ups.  In the past, his stomach would hurt and his behaviors would come on slowly. Sometimes, though, it comes out of nowhere.

And suddenly there is a hole in the wall.

Before We Go Any Further…

I want to make something VERY clear:

• I am not an expert on PANDAS or PANS.
• I am not a doctor, psychiatrist, or PA, and I am certainly no immune-system expert.

I am 

• a teacher with over 20 years of experience with some very wonderful and interesting adolescents.
• a mom of two wonderful boys, 11 and 13.
• a damn good teacher
• LOVE being a mom

Mommying is a passion for me, not a job, so I live on trial and error, and resilience.  Everything I share here comes from experiences in my life, my son’s life, and the knowledge I have gained while dealing with and learning about PANDAS. When this journey started, I didn’t know ANYTHING about it. 

I had to learn.

I had to ask questions.

I had to research.

Eventually, I had to STOP ASSUMING that every medical professional we encountered would know what was happening to my child.

When the Doctor Doesn’t Know

That morning, the lack of information and knowledge the PA had about PANDAS scared me.  She gave Stephen the standard amount of Amoxicillin she would have given another child with a positive Strep test, but Stephen wasn’t just another kid with Strep.

Due to Stephen’s PANDAS, he needs specific antibiotics, steroids, and a cocktail of natural immunity boosters and probiotics.

 I knew enough by then to question what I was being told. Thankfully, I had taken the time to research about PANDAS and Stephen’s behaviors. I had built a team of medical professionals I could call when he had a flare-up. It took us a long time to get there.  Sometimes the first sign that something is wrong isn’t something a doctor can see in a ten-minute appointment.  THAT is why I’m HERE right now! 

Sometimes it’s anxiety.

Sometimes it’s rage.

Sometimes it’s your sweet child suddenly behaving like someone you don’t recognize.

Sometimes it’s a hole in your wall.

And sometimes it is your gut screaming at you:  Something isn’t right.

Listen to it.