Tag Archives: depression

Episode 27: Going Back to School and Caring for the Caregiver

September 1, 2021Episodesadvocacy, anxiety, coronavirus, COVID-19, depression, educational advocacy, IDEA Act, IEP, IEPs, Individual Education Plans, Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, stress, trauma, TSC, TSC Alliance, tuberous sclerosis, tuberous sclerosis complextsc-now

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In Episode 27 of TSC Now, host Dan Klein learns how parents can prepare for the start of a new school year despite the ongoing pandemic. Dan also talks to a licensed professional counselor to get advice on how parents and caregivers can cope with the stress, anxiety and trauma the last year and a half has caused, so that they are looking out for their own well-being in addition to supporting their loved ones with TSC.

First, Dan talked to Lilian Ansari, TSC Alliance Community Programs Resource Advisor (01:13). She gives helpful advice and tips on making decisions about in-person schooling, ensuring that Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) make up for lost learning that may have occurred while students were at home, and how parents can most effectively communicate with their IEP team. Lilian also shares the resources and support available from the TSC Alliance to help parents effectively advocate for their kids in their school system.

You can access all of our School resources here. If you have general school-related questions you can call Shelly Meitzler, Community Program Manager East, at (800) 225-6872 or email her at smeitzler@tscalliance.org.

Then, Dan talks to Latrice Hamilton, a licensed professional counselor at Journey to New Beginnings. With many TSC caregivers feeling the stress and anxiety of the ongoing pandemic in addition to sending kids back to school, Latrice offers some helpful advice on how to manage stress, communicate effectively with loved ones, and ask for help so that parents can make sure they are taking care of their own mental well-being in addition to caring for their loved ones with TSC.

All of the TSC Alliance’s COVID-19 resources can be found at www.tscalliance.org/covid-19. If you need immediate support from the TSC Alliance you can call our emergency hotline 9 am – 9 pm Eastern: (240) 463-7250.

Resources and Links

TSC Alliance Education Publications: https://www.tscalliance.org/individuals-families/school-issues/
TSC Alliance IEP Intake Form: https://www.tscalliance.org/iep-intake-form/
TSC Now Episode 4: Educational Issues in TSC and How to Advocate for Your Child in School with Lilian Ansari: https://tsc-now.blubrry.net/2019/08/16/episode-4-educational-issues-in-tsc-and-how-to-advocate-for-your-child-with-lilian-ansari/
ABC to SAP: Why Your Child Needs a Seizure Action Plan Webinar: https://youtu.be/V1h7rVo58Po
SAP Coalition Virtual Backpack: https://seizureactionplans.org/virtual-backpack/
Butterfly Hug Method for Bilateral Stimulation: https://emdrfoundation.org/toolkit/butterfly-hug.pdf

Episode 12: Living with TSC During COVID-19

April 26, 2020EpisodesAMLs, coronavirus, COVID-19, depression, patient advocacy, TAND, telehealth, telemedicine, TS Alliance, TSC, tsc-associated neuropsychiatric disorders, tuberous sclerosis, Tuberous Sclerosis Alliance, tuberous sclerosis complextsc-now

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In episode 12 of TSC Now, host Dan Klein does a deep dive on the ongoing COVID-19 crisis and its impact on the tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC) community. Throughout the episode he shares resources the Tuberous Sclerosis Alliance (TS Alliance) has developed to support the community during the pandemic, and plays clips from past webinars hosted by the TS Alliance and our partner advocacy organizations. He also interviews two guests to better understand how COVID-19 is affecting both individuals and families and TSC clinics.

First he speaks with Laura Lubbers, PhD (3:50), Chief Scientific Officer at Citizens United for Research in Epilepsy (CURE). Laura’s sister Ellyn is an adult with TSC and was taken to the hospital earlier this month when she developed a fever and later tested positive for COVID-19. Laura shares about what that experience was like and how she helped coordinate Ellyn’s care remotely. Fore more resources from CURE visit: https://www.cureepilepsy.org/for-patients/covid-19-and-epilepsy/.

Next, he speaks to Karen Agricola, MSN, APRN, FNP-BC (21:20), a family nurse practitioner and coordinator at The Tuberous Sclerosis Clinic at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital. She shares how the clinic has adapted care during the pandemic and offers advice on how to stay safe and utilize telemedicine to maintain care.

Dan closes out the episode by playing a clip of TS Alliance President and CEO Kari Luther Rosbeck (37:30), who introduces our TSC Awareness Month of Caring and shares how you can support the TS Alliance throughout the month of May.

Finally, be sure to join us for our next Virtual Town Hall on Friday, May 1: “Accessibility to Treatments During COVID-19,” co-sponsored by the Dravet Syndrome Foundation, Lennox-Gastaut Syndrome Foundation and Tuberous Sclerosis Alliance. You can register now here: https://zoom.us/meeting/register/tJ0of-ipqT4iE9KhuijP08JP9wL3j-_tmRzO

Resources and Links:

All of the TS Alliance’s COVID-19 resources can be found here: https://www.tsalliance.org/individuals-families/covid-19/
Video recordings of previous webinars can be found here: https://www.tsalliance.org/covid-19-webinar-and-virtual-town-hall-recordings/
A schedule of upcoming webinars can be found here: https://www.tsalliance.org/upcoming-covid-19-and-tsc-webinars-and-virtual-town-halls/
A recording of the Virtual Town Hall “TSC/LAM Virtual Town Hall: A COVID-19 Update,” held in partnership with The LAM Foundation, can be found here: https://youtu.be/pPHtFVc4vPs
For COVID-19 resources from our partners at Citizens United for Research in Epilepsy (CURE), visit: https://www.cureepilepsy.org/for-patients/covid-19-and-epilepsy/
A recording of the webinar “Managing Anxiety During COVID-19,” presented by Tanjala T. Gipson, MD of LeBonheur Children’s Hospital, can be found here: https://youtu.be/m4rHD0Zhdpc
A recording of the Virtual Town Hall “Accessibility to Care During COVID-19,” held in partnership with the Child Neurology Foundation and Dup15q Alliance, can be found here: https://youtu.be/-4s4mV_u9g4
To learn how you can get involved in our TSC Awareness Month of Caring visit: https://give.tsalliance.org/campaign/tsc-global-awareness-day-of-caring/c281515

This episode was sponsored by:

Episode 6: TSC-Associated Neuropsychiatric Disorders (TAND)

October 15, 2019Episodesaggression, anxiety, autism spectrum disorder, behaviors, depression, neuropsychiatric disorder, sleeplessness, TAND, TS Alliance, TSC, TSC research, tsc-associated neuropsychiatric disorders, tuberous sclerosis, Tuberous Sclerosis Alliance, tuberous sclerosis complextsc-now

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In episode 6 of TSCnow, host Dan Klein talks to Petrus de Vries, MBChB, MRCPsych, PhD, Sue Struengmann Professor of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at the University of Capetown in South Africa. They discuss tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC)-associated neuropsychiatric disorders, otherwise known as TAND. TAND refers to a whole spectrum of neurological manifestations of TSC, including aggressive behaviors, autism spectrum disorder (ASD), intellectual disabilities, psychiatric disorders, neuropsychological deficits, as well as school and occupational difficulties. Most people with TSC suffer from one or several of these manifestations and it is often one of the most impacting aspect of the disease for both children and adults affected. They talk about the six levels of TAND (behavioral, intellectual, neuropsychological, psychiatric, academic and psychosocial) and the different manifestations people experience within each level. He also talks about the challenges families and caregivers face when seeking treatment for these manifestations.

In response to the growing need of those affected, Dr. de Vries shares how he worked with other experts at the 2012 Consensus Conference to develop the TAND checklist, a tool to help clinicians identify what aspects of TAND a person is struggling with and develop a personal profile for those affected, and the corresponding consensus guidelines for when and how to use the checklist. He also discusses that, while no two people are affected the same and this uniqueness poses significant challenges for diagnosis and intervention, recent research suggests that there are several TAND “clusters” that those affected generally fall into.

Finally, Dr. de Vries discusses the TANDem Project, an international collaboration of families affected by TSC, researchers and clinicians to provide scientific evidence for greater TAND intervention and treatment. The project is being headed by Drs. de Vries and Anna Jansen at UZ Brussels.

To learn more about TAND visit: www.tsalliance.org/tand

To download the TAND Checklist visit: https://bit.ly/2ObP3wn

To learn more about TAND clusters visit: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/29530301

Learn more about the TANDem project here: https://bit.ly/2MkQyqy