Creatine Community Blog

“The Rare Sibling Experience: NORD Webinar” – Erin

The National Organization for Rare Disorders (NORD) recently hosted a webinar on the “Rare Sibling Experience.” As the mother of two children, one who is diagnosed with Creatine Transporter Deficiency (CTD) and one who is not, this resonated with me and I was very curious to hear from experts on the topic. Questions about how to handle the experience of my daughter as the sibling of a child with a rare disease often swirl around in my head. My son Cadman is 6-years-old and has CTD. My daughter Emma is 3. Because of their young ages, most of my concerns are about the future, how this will affect Emma as she grows up, and wanting to make sure that as their parents, we are communicating in a healthy, constructive way. The webinar covers communication tips for siblings of various ages (very different for a preschooler vs. a teenager!). Continue reading

“Coping With the Fear” – Nancy

I had just poured myself a cup of coffee and settled in for the 2-hour Ultragenyx Study, feeling I might have something to offer having been in the CTD world for 20 years, when the second question knocked the wind out of me: What is your greatest fear for the future? It happens every time that question is asked of me. It seems that the fear for the future is always lying just beneath the surface like an alligator waiting to strike. I immediately lost my ability to speak and raised my index finger, asking for a moment to gather myself. I’m surprised by my sudden and intense emotional response to that question, and I’m embarrassed. The ladies interviewing me are gracious and give me the time I need. I just met them, but I feel that maybe they have kids, too. Maybe they understand. I take a deep breath and attempt to convey how I feel, how I worry that my son will be mistreated, neglected, or abused without my vigilance.  I worry who is going to wipe his butt when he, a grown man, uses the bathroom. Or who is going to cut his food small enough so he doesn’t choke. Who is going to draw him away from his puzzles or iPad long enough to interact with real people from time to time? I worry he won’t understand where I went when I’m gone and that he’ll think I left him on purpose. I worry he won’t feel loved. Continue reading

“New Rules for our School” – Randi

We are very fortunate in our state to have scholarships for children who qualify for an IEP but don’t attend public schools. This helps with funds for a visiting Intervention Specialist (special ed teacher) as well as home-based therapies. Sonnet’s health crisis has resolved greatly since she was diagnosed and began treatment for GAMT. However, her neurologist and I vividly remember when she was dealing with fifty-plus seizures a day. It isn’t certain if a serious illness could cause another downward spiral, so our family has chosen to largely quarantine during flu season. This was extended and amplified during the pandemic. Continue reading

Creatine Decoded: CCDS Gene Therapy Research

This essay was written by Laura Trutoiu, ACD Director of Research, with support from Erin Coller, ACD Director of Communications, and Sangeetha Iyer, ACD Scientific Advisor. 

#CreatineDecoded is a quarterly educational essay series that sheds light on research relevant for Cerebral Creatine Deficiency Syndromes (CCDS). The essays feature community contributors, often parents, who, with the help of the ACD, explore in their own words the CCDS science you want to know more about. Have a topic in mind? Send suggestions to Laura Trutoiu, ACD Director of Research auract@creatineinfo.org. 

When we got Rohan’s Creatine Transporter Deficiency (CTD) genetic diagnosis mid-2017 he was two and a half and had barely started to walk. Though sweet and loving, Rohan wasn’t using words and wasn’t quite doing what other two year olds do. It was a long road to a diagnosis and finding the genetic cause was a blow and a sigh of relief. I got the call at work and jumped out of an ordinary meeting into a brave new world full of genes and mutations.
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“Creating a Meaningful Life in the Midst of COVID” – Nancy

It’s 3 AM and I can’t sleep. Again.

I came across videos yesterday of Sam completing tasks for the learning program we were doing for a while (Relationship Development Intervention-RDI), and I was reminded, once again, how little we really engage with him now, how few activities he engages in. It bothers me. Continue reading

Creatine Decoded: Featured Scientist, Dr. Jonathan Schlebach PhD

This essay was written by Celeste Graham, ACD Director of Education, with the support of Sangeetha Iyer, ACD Scientific Advisor. 

#CreatineDecoded is a quarterly educational essay series that sheds light on research relevant for Cerebral Creatine Deficiency Syndromes (CCDS). The essays feature community contributors, often parents, who with the help of the ACD, explore in their own words the CCDS science you want to know more about. Have a topic in mind? Send suggestions to Laura Trutoiu, ACD Director of Research auract@creatineinfo.org.

Dr. Jonathan Schlebach, PhD (Indiana University-Bloomington) participated in the ACD’s 2020 Virtual Conference and gave an informative talk on the “Classification of the Molecular Defects Associated with Pathogenic Variants of the SLC6A8 Creatine Transporter”. ACD Director of Research, Laura Trutoiu, noticed a recent informative publication from Schlebach’s lab and invited him to attend the 2020 Virtual Conference. “It has been a pleasant surprise to learn about all of the exciting, ongoing research in the ACD community!” Schlebach noted. As a new member of the CCDS community, we are thankful that he has been willing to jump right in with presenting some of his lab’s research findings. Read on to learn a little more about Schlebach, his lab, and his research as it relates to CCDS!

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“2020 Global Genes LIVE” – Faith

I recently joined the ACD as the new Programs Coordinator, and as part of my orientation experience, I had the amazing opportunity to participate in the 2020 Global Genes LIVE virtual conference. This event was not only educational but incredibly inspirational. I learned so much and came away from the experience with a greater understanding of why we do what we do at ACD. I would love to share some of my highlights and takeaways with you!
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“Are You a 21st Century Pioneer?” – Nancy

Pioneer. Verb. A person who is among the first to develop or be the first to use or apply (a new method, area of knowledge, or activity). Parent or grandparent of an individual with special needs, do you feel like a pioneer? Well, you are!

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Creatine Decoded: Behavior Support and the First ACD Webinar for Parents

This essay was written by Celeste Graham, ACD Director of Education with support from Laura Trutoiu, ACD Director of Research and Heidi Wallis, ACD President.

#CreatineDecoded is a quarterly educational essay series that sheds light on research relevant for Cerebral Creatine Deficiency Syndromes (CCDS). The essays feature community contributors, often parents, who with the help of the ACD, explore in their own words the CCDS science you want to know more about. Have a topic in mind? Send suggestions to Laura Trutoiu, ACD Director of Research auract@creatineinfo.org.

Education is one of the key parts of our mission here at the ACD. This “Creatine Decoded” blog post gives a brief overview of a topic near and dear to many of us as CCDS parents: what science and psychological theory say about what therapies work for our kiddos related to their behaviors. The ACD recently held a webinar focused on supporting parents in the CCDS community in regards to challenging behaviors.  I’m not sure about you, but we have seen an increase in behaviors the past few months in our house!

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