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, March 5, 2010

Happy, Calm, Good

That would describe Caroline right now. She is stable and free of that awful stomach virus. She is so pleasant when the meds are just right. She turns 14 on Sunday. Tomorrow I will take her to a salon for a little pampering. She doesn't have any friends to invite to a party, but she seems just fine with a low-key family celebration. Every time I see the secretary at her school, she tells me how much she adores Caroline, how sweet she is, so pretty, always misses her when she is sick, just loves her. This is the real Caroline that we know too.
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4 comments:

Hartley said...

How wonderful for your family that you get to have the 'real' Caroline for her birthday! I hope your celebration is terrific -- Happy 14th Birthday Caroline! :)

Take care,
Hartley
www.hartleysboys.com

March 6, 2010 at 11:04 AM
So_blessed said...

I'm so happy that Caroline is stable. Hope she enjoyed her 14th b-day!

Revisedfully
http://revisedfully.wordpress.com/

March 8, 2010 at 12:41 AM
Anonymous said...

So happy Caroline was stable which equals "real" in our house too. Hope she enjoyed her B-day!

The compliments from school must fill your heart with joy!

Revised,
http://revisedfully.wordpress.com/

March 8, 2010 at 1:19 AM
Unknown said...

And BEATIFUL! Hope her 14th year is the best ever and the start of many to come!

March 8, 2010 at 3:16 PM

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