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!

Friday, April 10, 2009

The Helpfulness of an Online Bipolar Child Support Group

I joined an online support group through CABF and it has been a wonderful resource for me.  The other moms (maybe 95 or so) have such a wealth of experience and knowledge about cycling and medications and RTCs.  I have learned a lot in the last four weeks, especially about which of Caroline's meds take care of what.  You might think I would know that, because they are labeled either mood-stabilizers, or atypical antipsychotics, or antidepressants, or whatever, but certain of these meds are better for depression ,or for mania with agitation, or for the spring ramp-up, etc.  Something I read recently has prompted me to ask her pdoc to increase the level of one of them, and I am going to ask about increasing another.  I guess some of them have a certain therapeutic level that often isn't properly reached.  Each child has their own chemical make-up, but Caroline's is so sensitive and yet stubborn too.  

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Hi, I just found your blog and i finally have found someone who understands what i and my daughter are going through. Can you share a link to your support group?