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!

Sunday, December 6, 2009

Oops! I accidentally deleted some comments!

Sorry, Meg, if your last comment did not appear. I was trying to manage comments from my blackberry and I pushed the wrong button! Caroline has been a tough gal to keep stable, and yes she does tend towards very bad depression. We used to see much more of the mixed states, but I think she is outgrowing that manifestation. It is amazing that you can manage your child's bipolar disorder without medication. Is he on any all natural substances?
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1 comment:

Meg said...

Hey Megan- No problem about the comment being lost. He isn't on any natural substances but he is an only child and so we are able to make a lot of accommodations at home and really keep his home environment very simple and with very little stimulation. I think if we had other kids this would not be possible. In fact, I'm nearly positive it wouldn't. Also, he tends on the hypomanic/hyper side so our issue is usually keeping him at a regular energy level and able to relax. And we do often use children's benedryl at night to help him get to sleep. Not having to deal with deep depressions makes things easier for us, at least for now.

December 8, 2009 at 4:13 PM

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