a bipolar daughter and the family who loves her: Sweet Surprise!

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.

Sunday, August 15, 2010

Sweet Surprise!

Caroline surprised me this morning with a gift she bought from Bath and Body Works yesterday at the mall. She spent her own allowance on this gift, and included a very sweet note. She gave me permission to share it:

"Dear Mommy,

You do so much for me and our family on a day-to-day basis and rarely get the credit you deserve. You mean more than you could possibly dream of to me and I'm honestly not sure I'd still be walking this earth if it wasn't for you and your love and dedication to me. God has given me the deep honor to call you my mother. Please know that I'm eternally grateful for you not giving up on me no matter how disrespectful, ungrateful, selfish, hot-tempered, and cold-hearted I've been toward you and your undying love to me and my undeserving soul.

I love you eternally and forever.

From your Loving daughter,

Caroline"

Isn't that amazing! Thank you God for this encouragement and for giving her faith in You and in us her parents in spite of the suffering!

4 comments:

asplashofsunshine said...: Often the word amazing is thrown around, but I have to say that Caroline is AMAZING... and so are you! Thank you for sharing.; August 15, 2010 at 12:58 PM
Sarah said...: Beautiful. Thanks so much for sharing!; August 15, 2010 at 1:34 PM
Anna said...: She is a very insightful young woman with a grateful heart.; August 15, 2010 at 6:23 PM
marythemom said...: I think I'm going to cry! You're doing a great job!

Mary; August 21, 2010 at 12:05 AM