Way OT.. Kids, anxiety- Anyone with insight?
My ten year old daughter has always been easily stressed.. What my parents call delicate.. She is smart, sweet, well liked, beautiful.. Special in many, many ways. But we are starting to be concerned that her anxieties are out of control.
She is starting to get panicky at bedtime- thinks its hard to breathe, tummy aches, can't sleep, upset.. She is afraid of things normal, like tests at school.. And abnormal, like dying in her sleep. I feel so sad that she gets so upset and sad.. And I feel helpless.
We are contacting her pediatrician tomorrow, but was just wondering if anyone else has dealt with this. I could use support please. Thanks.
I am still loving life with my sleeve! Been maintaining at or below goal for over 4 years!
"People spend a lifetime searching for happiness; looking for peace. They chase idle dreams, addictions, religions, even other people, hoping to fill the emptiness that plagues them. The irony is the only place they ever needed to search was within." - Ramona L. Anderson
I am still loving life with my sleeve! Been maintaining at or below goal for over 4 years!
"People spend a lifetime searching for happiness; looking for peace. They chase idle dreams, addictions, religions, even other people, hoping to fill the emptiness that plagues them. The irony is the only place they ever needed to search was within." - Ramona L. Anderson
Like your daughter, he was afraid of normal and not-so-normal things. One of his biggest fears turned out to be that both my husband and I would just leave/abandon him either by choice or no choice like death. I have no idea where that thought ever came from.
Even after diagnosis, we had an incredibly difficult time getting it under control. I cried with him so many times when his stomach was in agony. We had gone thru the gammit of tests to make sure it was nothing physical. We were encouraged to get him to school as much as possible...to push him beyond what he thought he could do. He tended to be a whiner (still does sometimes), so we had to try to break him of that...tough love, you know. I can't even tell you how hard that was.
We were also in the process of trying to tweak his ADHD meds, AND our insurance wasn't the greatest, so we couldn't afford everything he needed all at once. We tried a few different therapists and meds. And our pediatrician, although very supportive, wasn't comfortable with any of it, admitting it wasn't his field and felt it would be too easy to make a serious mistake, so he wouldn't help prescribe anything and didn't really know a psychologist to refer us to.
We did finally find a good psychologist that we still go to, and she prescribes the meds. It took some trial and error to find the right mix. And since he's 13 with the hormones constantly changing, chances are we'll have to change again. Therapy wasn't helping much anymore, and I was okay with that...so was this shrink. That's sometimes hard to find...most shrinks want the kids in regular therapy. If necessary, I'm all for it, and it really helped him in the beginning, but after a while....he just needed the meds. (Please don't take offense to the term "shrink." I don't mean it as an insult...it's just easier to type.) I am not one for "doping" kids up w/o the right behavior therapy to go with it, but I think people/parents who fight all medication make a big mistake. There are real chemical and physical imbalances going on, and it's hard on both the kid and their family.
Anyway, he started a new school in 7th grade, and that was a blessing....a fresh start for him. It took some adjusting; he wasn't crazy about it at first and wanted me to seriously consider home schooling him. We did consider it, but I really felt it was better for him to be in school. He still had bad tummy days every now and then, but not nearly as bad or often as before. Eventually he adjusted, and he likes it now. It's been a long time now since we've even thought much about it. Our biggest problem is making sure he remembers to take his meds every day...typical junior high boy...you can imagine how often he forgets. :/
Major changes or events are usually a trigger for kids, especially if their personality seems to be sensitive anyway. For our son, it was more of a slow build up of some things.
As Christians, we spent a LOT of time on our knees through it all. And friends and family were very supportive and encouraging. Things obviously didn't get instantly better or easier, but I don't know where we'd be w/o our Lord and His family. Our son has a strong faith of his own, but this tested him to the limits...it tested all of us.
Wow...this turned out to be a LOT longer than I expected. I haven't talked about this in a long time. I hope my story gives you hope...and I hope you realize that it may be a while before things get better, but with the right help and a lot of love and prayer, you will make it...and so will she. And probably come out stronger on the other side.
You've got my prayers and support...and if you need to talk, feel free to contact me anytime.
Jodi
"Walking with a friend in the dark is better than walking alone in the light." ~ Helen Keller
I am still loving life with my sleeve! Been maintaining at or below goal for over 4 years!
"People spend a lifetime searching for happiness; looking for peace. They chase idle dreams, addictions, religions, even other people, hoping to fill the emptiness that plagues them. The irony is the only place they ever needed to search was within." - Ramona L. Anderson
Not sure how much a Pediatrician is going to be able to help unless he refers her to a psychologist, which is what I would suggest.
As young as she is you still have control with regard to getting her psychological help if it is warranted; however, as she enters the teenage years, and should the symptoms persist, getting her to a psychologist at that time is going to be much more difficult.
While I don't have experience with anxiety disorders in children, I do have experience with trying to deal with a teen getting psychological help, and I can assure you that it's a lot easier when they are your daughter's age than if you wait...
I am still loving life with my sleeve! Been maintaining at or below goal for over 4 years!
"People spend a lifetime searching for happiness; looking for peace. They chase idle dreams, addictions, religions, even other people, hoping to fill the emptiness that plagues them. The irony is the only place they ever needed to search was within." - Ramona L. Anderson
once upon a time I had a group to talk about Binge Eating Disorder, and later one about Clean Eating.
PM me if you are interested in either of these.
size 8, life is great
I am still loving life with my sleeve! Been maintaining at or below goal for over 4 years!
"People spend a lifetime searching for happiness; looking for peace. They chase idle dreams, addictions, religions, even other people, hoping to fill the emptiness that plagues them. The irony is the only place they ever needed to search was within." - Ramona L. Anderson
Batwingsman · 0 replies · 924 views
Batwingsman · 0 replies · 924 views