03 July 2023 , 17:40
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A ten-year-old girl has been forced to miss months of school after developing a sore throat.
Pearl Gallagher, 10, went from being her usual "happy, confident and bubbly" self to "terrified and screaming" overnight after a simple case of tonsillitis spiralled out of control.
She was eventually diagnosed with PANDAS Syndrome, a rare condition which causes sufferers to develop obsessive-compulsive symptoms and dramatic mood swings following a streptococcal infection, reports the Liverpool Echo.
For nine months her family struggled to find an answer to her sudden health complaints, and doctors believed the St Paschal Baylon Catholic Primary School pupil was suffering from a mental illness.
But no matter how many different forms of therapy Pearl tried, she remained stuck with anxiety and fear.
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The schoolgirl suffered dramatic mood swings after developing complications from a streptococcal infection (Francesca Gallagher)
Pearl now wants to raise money for a national charity dedicated to helping people with the condition (Francesca Gallagher)Her mum Francesca, 35, told the newspaper: "She came downstairs one night about an hour after going to bed and said 'mum, I don't feel right, I feel panicky and scared, I feel really strange', and I had to cuddle her to get her to sleep again. The next morning she woke up and had a massive panic attack over nothing at all.
"This had never happened before. She was never an anxious child. She didn't know what was going on and neither did we."
At her worst point she was suffering numerous panic attacks throughout the day, and was even hallucinating and "seeing things in the ceiling of the bedroom" during her "frightening" ordeal.
Her parents took her to the A&E at NHS Alder Hey Children's Hospital in Liverpool multiple times in the week after her symptoms began, where Pearl was so distressed she locked herself in a breastfeeding room.
When an ECG to test her heart came back normal, doctors suspected she was suffering from a mental health condition and gave Francesca information about psychiatric help.
It was not until they visited their GP at Belle Vale Neighbourhood Health Centre however that PANDAS Syndrome was suggested.
Pearl "ticked all the boxes" for the condition, which can be triggered by a common throat infection or cold, and she war placed on a powerful course of antibiotics
It resulted in a dramatic change - though further health problems means it has been a complex road to recovery for the schoolgirl.
Francesca said: "One the very last day, Pearl was almost completely back to her normal self and wanted to go to school. She hadn't been in since June.
"A couple of weeks later she got a water infection and everything came crashing down again. All the symptoms came back, the constant anxiety and panic attacks. Now every time her body gets ill or catches a virus, she reacts in the same way."
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Treatment for PANDAS is rarely provided by the NHS, and so the family, who live in the Gateacre area of Liverpool, had no choice but to seek help from a private clinic in London.
Pearl was eventually diagnosed in October 2021, and was placed on long-term antibiotics, which she remains on to this day.
She has since returned to her usual bubbly self and hopes to raise money for the PANDAS UK charity on GoFundMe by completing a series of fun challenges
This includes taking on the legendary Tough Mudder obstacle course, abseiling down Anfield Stadium, and climbing Mt Snowden while dressed as a panda.
For mum Francesca, the last few years have been difficult - but she is now able to take comfort from how far her daughter has come.
She said: "PANDAS is described as the brain being on fire, and that's how she used to say she felt. Her brain was on fire, she couldn't switch it off. It was like someone in her head attacking her all the time. It was horrendous and I don't know how we made it through. I was in hospitals and doctors every day begging for help.
"But we have a very close relationship, me and Pearl, and we're the best of friends. We were in it together, and I had to promise her it would get better - and thank God it did."