I am sobbing, tears of sorrow, tears of joy, and tears of hope...
For my children with Bipolar Disorder and for ALL children with mental illness...
Everyone must see this, this is how I feel!
I found a wonderful new blogger out there the other day, Amy Hellman, who blogs at, Amy Hellman's Parents and Mental Illness Blog she is also the mother of three children, two of which have been diagnosed with mental illness. The strength she seems to posses is limitless. I love this quote from her,
"I don’t medicate my children to make my life easier. I medicate them because 1) their professional doctor or psychiatrist said to try this medication, and 2) because I really feel that my child has the right to be treated for an illness that is biological in nature and destroying their lives. Any parent would want to fix what is harming their child. If that means we try medications than we do."
Personally, I have really been struggling with this, as we continue to tweek meds, run the course of the clinical trial, and chart chart chart moods day after day with little to no improvements in behavior and or mood. Things are relatively unpredictable and definitely unstable despite meds. In addition, it is NOT a secret that my husband does not agree with the diagnoses that the kids have been given, does not agree that they should be on medicine, and feels that it makes no difference. In fact he stated tonight that he thinks I am trying to "fit" the kids into the diagnosis of bipolar disorder because he just doesn't see it at all. He says he doesn't see the sadness (he's looking for the typical signs of depression in adults not kids) and symptoms like were in the video I posted a few days ago. How is it that three different clinicians from three different agencies have confirmed the symptoms of childhood bipolar disorder in my two children and have deemed it necessary to prescribe mood stabilizing medicines, but my husband claims he just doesn't believe it?!
Can you say denial!!!!!!!!!!!!!
