a bipolar daughter and the family who loves her: Extended Release Lithium Works Better

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.

Wednesday, December 2, 2009

Extended Release Lithium Works Better

We were right about needing the extended release Lithium, and Caroline is getting through the afternoon and evening much more smoothly since switching. This is good because the afternoon and evening are when everyone is trying to do homework, get ready for some activity, etc., and having a hypomanic Caroline isn't helpful. She has her first basketball game this Friday, and is pretty excited.

5 comments:

Seekingsunshine said...: That is awesome news! My little Elijah has done much better on the Lithium Carbonate ER (brand name Eskalith CR, but he gets the generic) then he did on the regular Lithium.; December 3, 2009 at 11:45 AM
Megan said...: Isn't it great when you figure out that something small can make such a big difference?; December 3, 2009 at 2:23 PM
N said...: Thanks for sharing. My dd is on Lithium and I will discuss the XR with her pdoc!; December 5, 2009 at 9:51 AM
N said...: Thanks for sharing... My dd is on Lithium and I will discuss this with my dd's pdoc!; December 5, 2009 at 9:51 AM
Megan said...: Always glad to pass on any helpful experience...we all need as much help as we can get!; December 6, 2009 at 5:32 PM