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 24, 2010

More Than a Mustard Seed of Faith

Caroline badly twisted her ankle yesterday evening while practicing lacrosse. Today her ankle swelled up to twice it's size, so I decided to take her to the ER to make sure it wasn't broken, which I was highly suspicious that it was. If it was broken, she wouldn't get to play lacrosse for the rest of the season like she had been waiting for since the fall. She was pretty worried. But, on the way to the hospital, she surprised me while she said outloud to herself, "God has a plan, God has a plan..." and "It's okay if I miss the season. God might have other plans for me..." I was amazed at her faith. Most adult Christians don't have that kind of trust in God's sovereignty. thankfully, the ankle is not broken, just a bad sprain, so with two weeks of rest, she most likely can finish out the season. I am so grateful!

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