PANS/PANDAS STORIES

About PANS/PANDAS STORIES

Welcome to PANS/PANDAS Stories. Join Lucy McDonald as she talks to children and parents living with this misunderstood neuropsychiatric condition and to the experts dedicated to understanding and treating it. Awareness is growing, and this podcast hopes to grow it further. Real stories, honest conversations, and hope for anyone finding their way along the long and complicated road to recovery. Some episodes contain themes listeners may find upsetting. This podcast does not replace medical advice.

Publisher

Lucy McDonald

Category

health & fitness

Language

en

Explicit

No

First episode

2 Oct 2023

Latest episode

23 Sept 2026

Latest episodes

2 of 27 episodes have a transcript.

1. 

   23 Sept 2026TRANSCRIPT

   Expert: Paediatric PANS & OCD specialist Barb Shephard talks ERP

   Paediatric PANS & OCD specialist Barb Shephard discusses Exposure and Response Prevention for OCD and her work with PANS in this interview.

2. 

   10 Sept 2026TRANSCRIPT

   OCD Special: I-CBT - Suicidal Intrusive Thoughts with Therapist Angela Henry

   Therapist Angela Henry explains how I-CBT addresses suicidal intrusive thoughts in OCD by targeting doubt and distinguishing reality, offering a new treatment approach.

3. 

   6 Jul 2026

   The Day Our Children Changed Overnight: Two Mothers on PANS/PANDAS

   A whopping episode-in more ways than one. In this podcast I speak to PANS/PANDAS parent and advocate Lindsey Forsyth and her friend and fellow PANS/PANDAS mother, Kate Rooney. Longer than normal, as there was so much to talk about, and it was also my first-ever triple-header. Coming from London, Florida, and California. The pair speak passionately and candidly about navigating the system and trying to work out what good care looks like. They talk about sudden onset, IVIG, OCD, the importance of community, and how their faith has helped them. There is a lot of information in this podcast. Many US doctors are mentioned by name (all positively), and different treatments and medications are discussed. This is not medical or therapeutic advice. Please see a healthcare professional to discuss your child. **Also, while you are here, my PANS PANDAS online therapy course is now available. Three hours of easy-to-watch short films covering how to look after yourself so you can look after your child; the main symptoms and therapies; flares and what recovery may look like for you. Lots of resources and peer-reviewed. Early bird price of £99.** Link here: lucy-mcdonald-s-school.teachable.com/purchase?product_id=6744859

Inside a recent episode

Expert: Paediatric PANS & OCD specialist Barb Shephard talks ERP

Published 23 Sept 2026 · Transcript excerpt

[…] We're calling it obsessions with anxiety. We have safety behaviors, OCD compulsion. So I do think they are very, very similar. And I actually treat them just about the same, like with ERP and maybe slight adaptation, but, um, Yeah, I think that you'll see with OCD more so than generalized anxiety, parents being very involved in rituals as well. And it's a systems disease as opposed to a more individual worry. And that system, you know, I think that's so important. And there is, again, talking about screeners a lot, but there is a family accommodation screener, isn't there? […]

Reach and audience

Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.

Apple Podcasts (US)

4.9 / 5

21 ratings

Spotify

5.0 / 5

27 ratings

Contact PANS/PANDAS STORIES

Guest appearances

Books guests

Based on episode analysis; this does not confirm that the show is currently accepting guests.

Questions about PANS/PANDAS STORIES