Understanding Functional Neurologic Disorder

What is Functional Neurologic Disorder?

Sometimes children or teens can experience neurologic symptoms in their bodies, even when their bodies are healthy and they have no neurologic disease or damage. These symptoms can last for a short or long time, and can range from mild to severe. Sometimes the symptoms can be muscle shaking that look like seizures. Sometimes the symptoms are tingling, numbness, or an inability to walk or see. Sometimes the symptoms can disrupt all of the areas of a child's life, and they can miss school, sleep more or less, get out of their normal routines, and avoid doing the things they used to enjoy. When this happens, it's called a Functional Neurologic Disorder.

When a child has a Functional Neutologic Disorder it is often very Stressful for the whole family. It can be particularly frustrating for parents because the want to help their child to feel better and protect them from the symptoms. Parents sometimes feel that because there is not a clear and identifiable medical cause then doctors think the symptoms are all in their child's head. This is not true - Functional Neurologic Disorders happen when neurons misfire in the body and the brain gets stuck in the messages it is receiving and giving. Essentially the brain and body can get in a cycle of not communicating smoothly with each other and will sent inaccurate messages. This process can happen for a variety of reasons.

What Causes or Affects Functional Neurologic Disorder? The brain receives and sends messages to the rest of the body in very complex ways. Many different factores can contribute to the conversion symptoms. These can affect how your child's body experiences the misfiring of neurons, including any of the following:

• A triggering event such as an injury or illness
• Sensitivity to sensations in the body
• Conditioning of the autonomic nervous system
• Behavioral habits like activity level, diet, and exercise
• Functional factors like school, activities of daily living, and scheduling
• Social or environmental factors like family life, how others respond to the child's symptoms, and social support
• Psychological and emotional factors like stress and reinforcement

How to treat FND?
Change environment - post initial treatment:

• Getting back into normal routines and expectations
• Having a structured daily schedule
• Adjustment in other's response to the patient's symptoms
• Intense daily practice of skills learned in various disciplines of therapeutic care
• Behavioral Health follow ups for:
• Learning relaxation and symptom management skills to help the patient self-clam
• Helping the patient to understand that his/ her body is safe and that they can participate in all of the activities they enjoy
• Getting support and guidance for all of the changes the family is making in the home environment
• Physical therapy, occupational therapy, Integrative Medicine (where applicable)
• Continual visits to primary care physician

It is possible to make a significant recovery and live a normal, fulfilling life. However, the lingering symptoms of this disorder are to be aware of for the patient. It's likely that the patient of FND will have to learn to cope with FND and its lingering symptoms throughout his or her lifetime.

-MTWPH