I don’t really mean this but other people can suck it with their bragging FB posts listing their kids grades and test scores and showing their kids various award certificates.
mommyatty, We just got over a bad experience that was almost exactly the same with Focalin. It's been four weeks off the Focalin now and it is a serious night and day difference. We put DS on Wellbutrin and are getting daily glowing reports from school and our happy kid is back.
I don’t really mean this but other people can suck it with their bragging FB posts listing their kids grades and test scores and showing their kids various award certificates.
Agree. The past three years have been hard academically and socially and honestly some days it just feels like we are the "only ones." I know it's not true but we really need to find our village.
circa1978, depression in kids is so freaking scary. Nothing like taking your 8 year old to the pediatric ER because you’re scared he’s going to harm himself. He still has really down periods, but now that we added an antidepressant, he’s doing so much better. And having a small suicidal child makes me as a parent feel very, very alone and like an utter failure.
So add me to the “when my kid is better, I’m better. When my kid struggles, my mental health is in the crapper” club.
I don’t really mean this but other people can suck it with their bragging FB posts listing their kids grades and test scores and showing their kids various award certificates.
THIS !! Graduation season is upon us and I wish I could make all of those posts go away.
circa1978, depression in kids is so freaking scary. Nothing like taking your 8 year old to the pediatric ER because you’re scared he’s going to harm himself. He still has really down periods, but now that we added an antidepressant, he’s doing so much better. And having a small suicidal child makes me as a parent feel very, very alone and like an utter failure.
So add me to the “when my kid is better, I’m better. When my kid struggles, my mental health is in the crapper” club.
I don’t really mean this but other people can suck it with their bragging FB posts listing their kids grades and test scores and showing their kids various award certificates.
Agree. The past three years have been hard academically and socially and honestly some days it just feels like we are the "only ones." I know it's not true but we really need to find our village.
solidarity like … it’s been an awful 3 years here too … I got bombarded w posts about kids thriving academically during the pandemic and how I just need to do xyz to get back on track not realizing what kind of incredibly complicated situation we had going on
I don’t really mean this but other people can suck it with their bragging FB posts listing their kids grades and test scores and showing their kids various award certificates.
THIS !! Graduation season is upon us and I wish I could make all of those posts go away.
My FB feed literally has posts like, here's a list of everything my kid excels in and here's a photo of all of his awards he got this week; here's a list of all the scholarship money my kid got from all these different colleges; here's my kid's end of semester grades. Like omg why.
THIS !! Graduation season is upon us and I wish I could make all of those posts go away.
My FB feed literally has posts like, here's a list of everything my kid excels in and here's a photo of all of his awards he got this week; here's a list of all the scholarship money my kid got from all these different colleges; here's my kid's end of semester grades. Like omg why.
and sniff sniff here’s the last xyz … it’s awful … solidarity (((ohgillian)))
Post by karinothing on May 23, 2023 8:38:14 GMT -5
Ugh this week has been so hard for DS. His anxiety has been ramped up for some reason. At both gymnastics and swim this week he was really unable to participate. Gymnastics he could do a bit but swim he didn't get in the water at all (and this hasn't happened since last fall). The coaches in both cases were really good with him, but I Just feel so bad. He tries so hard but can't bring himself to move and basically just goes into a frozen state (he will stare straight ahead, clasp his hands and his eyes tear up). I hate it.
We haven't tried anxiety meds yet but maybe we are headed that way I just wish there was something I could do in the moment that made it better.
Ugh this week has been so hard for DS. His anxiety has been ramped up for some reason. At both gymnastics and swim this week he was really unable to participate. Gymnastics he could do a bit but swim he didn't get in the water at all (and this hasn't happened since last fall). The coaches in both cases were really good with him, but I Just feel so bad. He tries so hard but can't bring himself to move and basically just goes into a frozen state (he will stare straight ahead, clasp his hands and his eyes tear up). I hate it.
We haven't tried anxiety meds yet but maybe we are headed that way I just wish there was something I could do in the moment that made it better.
I don't know what you have already tried, but DD1 did an anxiety toolbox group therapy class at the pediatric therapy clinic near us (and SLP and an OT taught it). They did a lot of different mindfulness and breathing techniques as well as art projects and writing, and even though I had tried to teach her some of them previously (and her therapist did as well), she did better in a group setting with time to practice and share. She also took two rounds of social communication classes with another SLP and OT pair, and that helped a lot with lowering her anxiety overall, even though it didn't focus on that. But I think she constantly felt like she was doing things "wrong" because she doesn't pick up on the same social cues as everyone else, plus the impulse control issues that make it hard to have a dialogue when your mind is racing ahead and you constantly blurt out what you are thinking.
She had already started Lexapro at that point and we had seen improvement in many areas, but I could definitely see additional progress with the classes and then we switched her individual therapist. I wish we had done all of it sooner (I think she was 10 when we started Lexapro and turning 11 when she started the classes, but the classes were for 9-12 year olds).
Ugh this week has been so hard for DS. His anxiety has been ramped up for some reason. At both gymnastics and swim this week he was really unable to participate. Gymnastics he could do a bit but swim he didn't get in the water at all (and this hasn't happened since last fall). The coaches in both cases were really good with him, but I Just feel so bad. He tries so hard but can't bring himself to move and basically just goes into a frozen state (he will stare straight ahead, clasp his hands and his eyes tear up). I hate it.
We haven't tried anxiety meds yet but maybe we are headed that way I just wish there was something I could do in the moment that made it better.
I don't know what you have already tried, but DD1 did an anxiety toolbox group therapy class at the pediatric therapy clinic near us (and SLP and an OT taught it). They did a lot of different mindfulness and breathing techniques as well as art projects and writing, and even though I had tried to teach her some of them previously (and her therapist did as well), she did better in a group setting with time to practice and share. She also took two rounds of social communication classes with another SLP and OT pair, and that helped a lot with lowering her anxiety overall, even though it didn't focus on that. But I think she constantly felt like she was doing things "wrong" because she doesn't pick up on the same social cues as everyone else, plus the impulse control issues that make it hard to have a dialogue when your mind is racing ahead and you constantly blurt out what you are thinking.
She had already started Lexapro at that point and we had seen improvement in many areas, but I could definitely see additional progress with the classes and then we switched her individual therapist. I wish we had done all of it sooner (I think she was 10 when we started Lexapro and turning 11 when she started the classes, but the classes were for 9-12 year olds).
Thank you! I will look into that. His current therapist is a practioner but maybe she could recommend some group classes at other practices. Thank you. That makes sense about thinking he is doing things wrong. I often feel like he feels that way. He really struggles with telling me what is wrong though, which makes it difficult for all of us, since I don't know what exactly he needs help with or what is triggering him.
I don't know what you have already tried, but DD1 did an anxiety toolbox group therapy class at the pediatric therapy clinic near us (and SLP and an OT taught it). They did a lot of different mindfulness and breathing techniques as well as art projects and writing, and even though I had tried to teach her some of them previously (and her therapist did as well), she did better in a group setting with time to practice and share. She also took two rounds of social communication classes with another SLP and OT pair, and that helped a lot with lowering her anxiety overall, even though it didn't focus on that. But I think she constantly felt like she was doing things "wrong" because she doesn't pick up on the same social cues as everyone else, plus the impulse control issues that make it hard to have a dialogue when your mind is racing ahead and you constantly blurt out what you are thinking.
She had already started Lexapro at that point and we had seen improvement in many areas, but I could definitely see additional progress with the classes and then we switched her individual therapist. I wish we had done all of it sooner (I think she was 10 when we started Lexapro and turning 11 when she started the classes, but the classes were for 9-12 year olds).
Thank you! I will look into that. His current therapist is a practioner but maybe she could recommend some group classes at other practices. Thank you. That makes sense about thinking he is doing things wrong. I often feel like he feels that way. He really struggles with telling me what is wrong though, which makes it difficult for all of us, since I don't know what exactly he needs help with or what is triggering him.
DD1 got a lot better at expressing what was wrong after the classes and therapy because I guess she had the words to describe it. And the Lexapro to help lower the panic threshold so she could ask for help before she got too mired.
For some reason, she made way more progress in using the tools when she was in the groups than when she learned them in individual therapy. She flat out refused to use the techniques at home when she was just in individual therapy. I don't know if it was peer pressure or what. She absolutely loved the groups (and she was able to see behaviors in the other kids that helped her understand that her behaviors weren't neurotypical and why people could misinterpret them).
She met for about 18 months with the psychologist who did her original evaluation, and we weren't seeing much progress on her dental and medical phobias, so we started with a different person in the same practice to try EMDR (side benefit that she had more availability and DD1 met with her weekly all through COVID). I don't even think they do EMDR anymore, but DD1 clicked better with the second person and made a lot more progress.
In that practice, I have to meet every 4-6 weeks with a different psychologist that deals with the parents to support them and update on the child therapy. But you can always request to meet with his therapist and see if she can help you practice how to ask him what he needs before and during an episode of anxiety.
karinothing, this may sound wacky, but I accidentally got my kids melatonin with l-theanine in it (it’s melatonin plus calm). Both of my kids and I all have differing levels of anxiety. I started taking their melatonin and noticed a MARKED decrease in my anxiety and then it occurred to me that DD had also been significantly less anxious. So maybe give that a go?
I asked DS’s doctor if it was okay for him to take it since he’s also on Lexapro, and she gave it a big thumbs up. She said they’re really just starting to study l-theanine but so far, the results are very, very promising. I would have rolled my eyes at it until I accidentally experienced the benefits.
karinothing , this may sound wacky, but I accidentally got my kids melatonin with l-theanine in it (it’s melatonin plus calm). Both of my kids and I all have differing levels of anxiety. I started taking their melatonin and noticed a MARKED decrease in my anxiety and then it occurred to me that DD had also been significantly less anxious. So maybe give that a go?
I asked DS’s doctor if it was okay for him to take it since he’s also on Lexapro, and she gave it a big thumbs up. She said they’re really just starting to study l-theanine but so far, the results are very, very promising. I would have rolled my eyes at it until I accidentally experienced the benefits.
huh! I was actually just looking at l-theanie the other day and was saying "well maybe it would at least have a placebo affect!" I just called his Psychiatrist and left a message so we will see what she says.