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!

Thursday, August 4, 2011

Love the New CNP at the New Psychiatrist's Office

I am so relieved to have found a sharp, compassionate, up-to-date CNP at the new psychiatrist's office that Caroline and I will be going to now.  Probably Mae would see her too for her ADHD. The right person makes ALL the difference, doesn't it?

If we end up moving because of Bill's job search, we will have to start all over finding a good psychiatrist, psychologist, homeschool co-op, lacrosse league or whatever.  But I feel very confident that I know what I to look for now and I think interviewing several docs is a good idea before settling on one practice, or one school situation.
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4 comments:

Mo4 said...

It sure does! I am amazed at the differences. I noticed that most of the good ones in our area don't take insurance. I guess they know they are good and don't want to bother with the paperwork!? At any rate, we managed to find a good one that does. (Got lucky I suppose) I don't even want to think about having to hunt down a new Doc.

August 4, 2011 at 9:53 PM
Anonymous said...

Could you make a post about the things you look for in a doctor based on your experience? To help us moms out?

August 5, 2011 at 1:48 PM
Megan said...

Mama Bear- the things I look for are:

1. They take their time with you and act like they truly care about you and your child. They are not condescending!

2. They seem like they try to stay update on the latest treatments for bipolar disorder in kids, not just adult bipolar since kids can be so different.

3. They understand and follow the premise that most kids can't take antidepressants or stimulants because it makes bipolar disorder much worse usually.

4. They call me back within 24 hours if I call them for an emergency consult over the phone!

5. They have good office staff who get meds refilled on time when I have requested it!

6. I can get fast emergency appointments with them. If they tell me they can see my kid in three weeks, forget them!

August 6, 2011 at 11:04 AM
Megan said...

Oh, and also I need a doc who trusts ME as the parent that I have real intuition about where my kid is at, what meds they are and are not responding to, etc. Parents are the best at knowing their kids moods and the doc needs to listen to us!!

August 6, 2011 at 11:05 AM

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