a bipolar daughter and the family who loves her: Date Night a Success!

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.

I can't believe we actually went on a date and didn't get a single phone call! Miraculous, really! We are very grateful. We tried not to talk about the kids, although they have a way of sneaking in, and just reminisced and laughed, and ate great Mediterranean food. Dessert too, yum. Of course now we have to put the youngest two to bed, but that is a small price to pay. I hope we can do this a lot more.

Present Medications

I am listing our daughter's medications because I know a lot of my followers would be interested in comparing notes, especially those just starting out on this journey. We started with just one medication, Trileptal, seven years ago. This ballooning to several meds is typical. Most bp kids end up needing at least one atypical anti-pyschotic, and one to two mood stabilizers, and often a sleep aid.

Lithium ER 1200mg, traditional mood stabilizer

Lamictal 550 mg, ODT, mood stabilizer, anti-depressive properties

Amantadine 100 mg, anti-seizure effect, calming effect, older Parkinson's drug

Seroquel XR, 850 mgs, atypical anti-psychotic

Benadryl, 25 mg for preventing Tardive Dyskenisia, which can be caused by the atypical antipsychotics

Trileptal 1500 mgs, newer mood stabilizer

Krill Oil, 300mg, once a day

B-Complex vitamin, because Seroquel depletes Vit B

Vit D 3, 5,000 mg in the fall and winter

Clonidine .1 mg as needed for severe anxiety

Loestrin, 10mg, to clear up acne

Megan's Favorite Books and Audio Material

Why Do I Still Feel Depressed: Recognizing and Managing the Ups and Downs of Bipolar II Disorder and Soft Bipolar Disorder, by Jim Phelps, MD
Why Christian Kids Rebel, by Tim Kimmel
Transforming the Difficult Child, by Howard Glasser, Jennifer Easley
The Prodigal God, by Tim Keller
The Out of Sync Child, by Carol Kranowitz
The Omega 3 Connection, by Dr. Andrew Stoll
The Bipolar Child, by Dimitri Papolos
The Age of Opportunity, by Paul Tripp
Taking Charge of ADHD, Russell Barkley
Straight Talk About Psychiatric Medications for Kids, by T. Wilens
Preparing Your Daughter for Every Woman's Battle, Shannon Etheridge
Preparing for Adolescence, CDs, Dr. James Dobson
Passort to Purity, CDs, by Dennis and Barbara Rainey
How Children Raise Parents, by Dan Allender

a bipolar daughter and the family who loves her

About our Daughter

How Did You Know She Was Bipolar So Young?

Friday, October 30, 2009

Date Night a Success!

4 comments:

Megan's Favorite Music