About our Daughter

I am mother to four wonderful daughters, ages 17, 19, 21, and 23, and wife to the greatest husband on earth. God has given us a special child to raise one who was diagnosed with early-onset bipolar disorder at the age of seven, though she showed signs of it from the age of fifteen months. She also has ADHD, Sensory Integration Disorder (sensory seeking), Dyslexia, and Non-Verbal Learning Disorder-NOS, all typical comorbidities for a bipolar child. In spite of the trials, she enjoys lacrosse, running (finished her first marathon in October of 2014!), and reading and writing her own books. I will share with you the many joys and sorrows we have faced and will face in the future with the hope that you may find better understanding about this mental illness caused by both chemical and structural abnormalities in the brain. I desire that you will be encouraged by this blog if you are also dealing with a bipolar child. Thank you for reading and sharing in our journey.

How Did You Know She Was Bipolar So Young?

I wrote a long explanation of how we came to this bipolar diagnosis in a child so young under my post of March 19th of 2009. If your child or a child you know bears similarities, please seek out a good psychiatrist and don't wait for "things to get better." Often they will simply get worse, and the longer a child is unmedicated, the more damage their brain can accrue. Early diagnoses and treatment are key to providing these children with a chance at a successful life later as a teen and an adult.
Never change, start or stop a medication without the approval of your child's physician!

Wednesday, March 25, 2009

When Siblings Suffer

My fifteen year old daughter "Elizabeth" begs often to be sent away to boarding school because she hates being here so much and dealing with Caroline.  I really feel for her.  My husband is much harder on her, probably too hard, than with the other girls.  She says she feel like no one ever listens to her or pays attention to her.  She failed her driver's permit test today and now she's really upset.  It is hard when I already feel guilty about all that she has gone through, and the things that haven't been a part of her growing up because of Caroline's illness.  I pray that she will be able to recover from this dysfunctional home that we never wanted to be this way.  I do try to do things just with her, but I feel like I am always competing with her busy social life and homework and Young Life involvement.  
Posted by at

1 comment:

domandkat said...

The last sentence is the most telling I think. Sure Elizabeth has a less than perfect home situation with her sister, but she also knows how to make you feel guilty! And she knows how to use the guilt you feel against you. She can complain that you aren't spending enough time with her, but it looks like she's filled her schedule and isn't willing to meet you halfway by clearing some of her business to spend time with you! It works both ways even with 15 year olds. You can tell her that I failed my driver's test on my birthday when I was 16! Embarrassing, but a week later I had my license and my world has never been the same since...

Sorry if this seems a bit harsh, but I think you're giving yourself a bad rap here, sweetie!

March 25, 2009 at 6:16 PM

Post a Comment

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)