Introducing Glitch
It is finally time to share the latest PANS PANDAS UK Youth Board project with the world, and we couldn’t be more excited!
Co-produced with our amazing Youth Board and OCD advocates Taming Olivia, this cuddly creature was designed to help young people with PANS and PANDAS, and their friends and family, understand more about the conditions.
Read on to find out where Glitch comes from, who created him, what experts say about the Glitch project and to discover the rest of the Glitch range!
Where does Glitch come from?
The PANS PANDAS UK Youth Board are young people, aged between 8 and 25 years old from across the UK who are living with PANS or PANDAS. They meet regularly online and help with lots of exciting projects like creating resources, campaigning and sharing their lived experiences. When we ask members what motivated them to join the youth board, the answer is always the same:
“I want to help other young people with the conditions, and for them to know they are not alone.”
One of the ways that these incredible young people have come up with to achieve this aim is to create an amazing comic. Knowing that many resources about PANS and PANDAS are aimed at parents or professionals, and building on the success of their incredible PANS PANDAS Awareness Day ‘Ask the Experts’ campaigns, in July 2024 the youth board set about creating a resource which is specifically aimed at young people, designed in a way which makes them feel seen.
What is Taming Olivia?
We teamed up with Catherine and Pete at Taming Olivia, working closely with them to bring this ambitious project to life. Over a series of online meetings, our youth board brainstormed ideas for characters, design and storyline, working hard to ensure that everything from the colours to the details of clothes and expressions reflected their own experiences of living with PANS and PANDAS.
Taming Olivia is a creative mental health space which helps to build positive wellbeing for people who experience symptoms of OCD and related conditions. As well as being amazing illustrators, Catherine and Pete are the OCD advocates behind loads of creative and supportive resources. Find out more at www.tamingolivia.com
(Please note, Taming Olivia also discuss subjects and circumstances affecting adults, which may not be suitable for a younger audience)
Who designed Glitch?
First came a bio for the main character, with big decisions to be made about what they should look like, what their story should be and who should join them in the comic. They chose the name ‘Glitch’ to represent how having PANS and PANDAS can feel:
“It’s like there is something wrong with my brain… like there’s a glitch in the way I think”.
After deciding Glitch should be a panda who lived with PANS, the youth board mapped out his storyboard. Taming Olivia then sketched out a draft of this storyboard for review. Once the board members had given feedback, this storyboard was transformed into an amazing comic. Capturing even some of the complexities of PANS and PANDAS in so few words and images isn’t easy, but we think the youth board have done an incredible job!
What do the experts say?
We have been overwhelmed with positive feedback from medical, clinical and educational professionals:
“Wow, how amazing is Glitch! What a brilliant idea and way of reaching out to young people with the condition. Visually brilliant too. The Youth Board are an incredible bunch, I think that every time we meet with them. They must be so proud too of what they’ve created.”
“I think Glitch is a great, engaging character that can help children and families explore the challenges of living with PANS/PANDAS in an accessible and imaginative way. Glitch supports creative expression, helping children talk, write, or draw about their experiences in a way that helps both them and others understand what’s happening.”
“This is absolutely fabulous! Imaginative but so real and relatable for many children, young people and adults and their families living with PANS PANDAS. Yet another excellent resource developed by The PANS PANDAS UK Youth Board. Well done.”
Our Glitch range
We have also created a whole range of Glitch merchandise (including these stickers!) to help you raise awareness of PANS and PANDAS.
You can download these profile pictures to share your love and support for Glitch:
A big team thank you
Katy, Elizabeth, Clarise and Helen, PANS PANDAS UK team members and facilitators of the Youth Board, have been with ‘project Glitch’ since the beginning:
“It was so important to everyone involved that this project was brought together as a team and that, at every stage, young people’s ideas and perspectives took centre stage.
We are so grateful to Catherine and Pete at Taming Olivia for their creativity, enthusiasm and generosity throughout our work together. We are also hugely thankful to the Quilter Foundation for funding this project, and for their support and interest in watching Glitch come to life.
Most of all, we are so proud of every single member of the youth board who played a part in bringing this comic to life.”
What will Glitch do next?
We hope that you and your family enjoy reading Glitch’s story and that you find it helpful as you navigate PANS and PANDAS together.
If you would like to see more of Glitch, please take a moment to fill in this very short form. Your feedback can help us to show the importance of resources like this, and can help shape what Glitch does next!
