I’m happy to welcome some new subscribers to Gray Colored Glasses, many of whom have learned about my work because of the PANS/PANDAS book project. If you’re new to the site, I recommended reading The Short Story for a brief introduction to my son’s dual diagnosis, which fuels my commitment to PANS awareness, and The Language of Disability, which offers a broader perspective of what I’ve learned as Isaac’s mother. If you haven’t done so yet, please also check out the PANS/PANDAS book project page to learn more about the work I’m doing with Michigan State University School of Journalism, Front Edge Publishing, and multiple nonprofit and advocacy organizations to bring a new volume on PANS/PANDAS to life.

This book will serve as an “on-ramp,” offering a basic understanding of the disorder and a wealth of resources for further exploration, making it accessible to new patients, school and community leaders, and beneficial to laypersons and physicians alike. We hope it will be a huge step forward in raising awareness and moving beyond the mythology that has too long hindered progress for people living with PANS/PANDAS and working on behalf of this community.

I had the opportunity to visit Michigan State University in person in late January, where I delivered a guest lecture based on our family’s lived experience with PANS. A full class of journalism students is studying the disorder this semester, Spring 2025, in order to produce a guidebook with the working title, 100 Questions & Answers About PANS/PANDAS. This will be the latest volume in Michigan State University’s award-winning Bias Busters series.

The week following my lecture, Sarah Lemley, Executive Director, and Kym McCornack, Outreach Coordinator, both of Northwest PANDAS/PANS Network (NWPPN) offered a comprehensive introduction to PANS/PANDAS adapted from their Grand Rounds presentation to medical students. This week, the class will hear from Sheilah Gauch, LICSW, the Principal and Clinical Director of Dearborn Academy, who serves on the board of several PANS/PANDAS nonprofit and advocacy organizations. (See her Psychology Today blog, The Whole Child.) Next week’s presentation will be co-lead by Jennifer Vitelli, Executive Director of Look.Foundation, and Gabriella True, President of ASPIRE, Alliance to Solve PANS & Immune-Related Encephalopathies. As community editor for the project, I have the privilege of listening in on each of these lectures and hearing student questions and answers.

Between classes, students have been interviewing families impacted by PANS/PANDAS to learn what questions they should be asking in the book. Soon, their interviews will turn to a blue ribbon panel of research and medical professionals who will help them to formulate the answers. Meanwhile, I’m working behind the scenes to secure a few key scientists-clinicians who will vet the book’s content prior to publication, with strong interest from one of the field’s preeminent experts.

Later this spring, after students have completed the writing, we will begin the process of editing, writing front matter (Foreward, Preface, Introduction), and engaging with Front Edge Publishing for copyediting, cover design, publication and launch. My gratitude for all who have partnered with us and contributed to this project is overflowing. This book will make a huge impact for the PANS/PANDAS community, and I hope you will join me in eagerly anticipating its arrival.