Hi, I'm new here

[Guest guest]

Hello

I am also new, only joined last week, also have a little girl in Yr 2 just

diagnosed with ocd, in Australia. Your story is very familiar to me.

(ocd) pretty much rules our family, most of our decisions are made around her

and although she has shown symptoms for the past 4 yrs it is only now I can even

bring myself to say OCD, let alone tell people about it. My younger daughter is

very easy going, funny etc and we also say how lucky we are to have her, but she

suffers because I don't pay her enough attention.

We hav just started seeing a Psychiatrist for , so fingers crossed! I

have spent so long being angry instead of informed it is unbelievable. There are

still times I completely lose it with , but everyone here must know how

hard it is to live with a child with ocd. You just do the best you can.

It is too early for me to be able to offer you anything but empathy and to let

you know you can contact me on kristin@...

Good luck to us all.K

tdec9brg <tdec9brg@...> wrote:

Hi, everyone. I'm new here and I'm not quite sure what to expect. But

I do know that I desperately need to find a place where I can get

some advice and vent some really painful, pentup emotions that I

carry with me every day. I'm tired of having this knot in my stomach.

About 20 minutest ago, my husband had to rush my 5-yr-old son to the

emergency room with severe throat and ear pain. It's just an

infection, I'm sure, but it's a symptom of the true pain that rules

everything that goes on in my home. My daughter, who turned eight in

January, has been seeing a cognitive behavioral therapist weekly

since last summer. For a long time, I knew that something about her

behavior was " just not quite right " and did all I could to hide it

from everyone, including my husband. Last summer I " fessed up " to him

that I could no longer manage the behavior/moods my daughter

displayed constantly. Long story short -- we were referred by a

friend to a wonderful cognitive behavioral therapist who quickly

diagnosed her as having General Anxiety Disorder with Obsessive

Compulsive tendencies. She began weekly therapy immediatly. We chose

to hide this diagnosis and treatment from everyone except my parents

for a couple of reasons: 1) my daughter's therapist has had dealings

with my daughter's principal concerning another student and let's

just say that the administration in my daughter's elementary school

is NOT sympathetic to psychological conditions in children. The

principal is apparently power hungry and if contacted by a therapist

regarding what's best for a student, will do the exact opposite just

to prove how powerful she is. The only reason why we told my parents

is because my daughter does not want my five-year-old son to know

where I take her each week and we needed someone to be able to watch

him while she is at therapy. I have a very closeknit family, with all

of my brothers, cousins, aunts, uncles, ect. living within five

minutes of us. Hiding this has been extremely difficult.

Additionally, my husband commutes 5 hours round trip a day to work --

he is gone from 6 am to 8 pm 5 days a week and travels out of state

or out of the country at least 1 week out of the month. He does his

best and is a great dad, but time simply does not permit him to truly

understand how life is in our house on a day-to-day basis. My

daughter is in second grade, my son is in kindergarten, and I have

been going to graduate school parttime for the last three years to

get my teaching degree. In addition I volunteer for the pta and am my

daughter's girl scout leader. I constantly feel like I'm being pulled

in a hundred directions. A couple of weeks ago, realizing theat the

therapy was not working, we also began seeing a psychiatrist, who

prescribed Zoloft to my daughter. She is complaining of stomach pain

(but was complaining of that before the meds), can't sleep (but

couldn't before, either) and her obsessive/compulsive behaviors are

out of control. I'm at my wits end and am finding myself getting more

and more angry at her. I want the OCD gone. I don't want to deal with

it anymore. I find myself screaming inside my own head, " why can't

she just be normal?!?! " and then feeling extreme guilt for having

such thoughts. And then there's my son, who because of this I feel

like I never seem to have enough time and energy for. And now, when

he had a fever two days ago that I gave OTC meds for and said it

would go away on it's own, is on his way to the hospital crying in

pain. And why didn't I take him to the dr today? Because my daughter

had a sleepover at our house last night. And, since I'm always

bending over backwards to make her happy, hoping that it will somehow

magically cure the ocd, after her friend went home, I took her

shopping and bought her 4 pairs of shoes and a whole spring wardrobe

I couldn't afford hoping to keep her on that " happiness high. " I

can't belive how I've rambled to complete strangers, but I feel like

there's just nowhere else to go and I'm hoping to find my lifeline

here. Thanks for listening.

Send instant messages to your online friends http://au.messenger.

[Guest guest]

So glad you decided to lean on us. Please, please, don't beat up on yourself.

Even when I haven't been so distracted, I'd have a kid whose illness took me by

surprise. My husband is also gone quite a lot, even though he works two minutes

from the house. He's very caught up in his work. You'd have your hands full

without an OCD kid. So, cut yourself a break. Don't feel you have to take on

everything right now. There will always be someone else who can head that PTA

fundraiser or whatever. (I've had to learn the hard way, since I'm a " yes "

person.)

And I've learned over time that when I bend over backwards for one kid, the

others will grow resentful. Have you explained anything to your five year old?

It doesn't have to be very specific. Maybe just that his sister is having

special problems and you need to take care of her just like you'll take care of

him when he's sick.

Hang in there, and come back often.

F.

tdec9brg <tdec9brg@...> wrote: Hi,

everyone. I'm new here and I'm not quite sure what to expect. But

I do know that I desperately need to find a place where I can get

some advice and vent some really painful, pentup emotions that I

carry with me every day. I'm tired of having this knot in my stomach.

About 20 minutest ago, my husband had to rush my 5-yr-old son to the

emergency room with severe throat and ear pain. It's just an

infection, I'm sure, but it's a symptom of the true pain that rules

everything that goes on in my home. My daughter, who turned eight in

January, has been seeing a cognitive behavioral therapist weekly

since last summer. For a long time, I knew that something about her

behavior was " just not quite right " and did all I could to hide it

from everyone, including my husband. Last summer I " fessed up " to him

that I could no longer manage the behavior/moods my daughter

displayed constantly. Long story short -- we were referred by a

friend to a wonderful cognitive behavioral therapist who quickly

diagnosed her as having General Anxiety Disorder with Obsessive

Compulsive tendencies. She began weekly therapy immediatly. We chose

to hide this diagnosis and treatment from everyone except my parents

for a couple of reasons: 1) my daughter's therapist has had dealings

with my daughter's principal concerning another student and let's

just say that the administration in my daughter's elementary school

is NOT sympathetic to psychological conditions in children. The

principal is apparently power hungry and if contacted by a therapist

regarding what's best for a student, will do the exact opposite just

to prove how powerful she is. The only reason why we told my parents

is because my daughter does not want my five-year-old son to know

where I take her each week and we needed someone to be able to watch

him while she is at therapy. I have a very closeknit family, with all

of my brothers, cousins, aunts, uncles, ect. living within five

minutes of us. Hiding this has been extremely difficult.

Additionally, my husband commutes 5 hours round trip a day to work --

he is gone from 6 am to 8 pm 5 days a week and travels out of state

or out of the country at least 1 week out of the month. He does his

best and is a great dad, but time simply does not permit him to truly

understand how life is in our house on a day-to-day basis. My

daughter is in second grade, my son is in kindergarten, and I have

been going to graduate school parttime for the last three years to

get my teaching degree. In addition I volunteer for the pta and am my

daughter's girl scout leader. I constantly feel like I'm being pulled

in a hundred directions. A couple of weeks ago, realizing theat the

therapy was not working, we also began seeing a psychiatrist, who

prescribed Zoloft to my daughter. She is complaining of stomach pain

(but was complaining of that before the meds), can't sleep (but

couldn't before, either) and her obsessive/compulsive behaviors are

out of control. I'm at my wits end and am finding myself getting more

and more angry at her. I want the OCD gone. I don't want to deal with

it anymore. I find myself screaming inside my own head, " why can't

she just be normal?!?! " and then feeling extreme guilt for having

such thoughts. And then there's my son, who because of this I feel

like I never seem to have enough time and energy for. And now, when

he had a fever two days ago that I gave OTC meds for and said it

would go away on it's own, is on his way to the hospital crying in

pain. And why didn't I take him to the dr today? Because my daughter

had a sleepover at our house last night. And, since I'm always

bending over backwards to make her happy, hoping that it will somehow

magically cure the ocd, after her friend went home, I took her

shopping and bought her 4 pairs of shoes and a whole spring wardrobe

I couldn't afford hoping to keep her on that " happiness high. " I

can't belive how I've rambled to complete strangers, but I feel like

there's just nowhere else to go and I'm hoping to find my lifeline

here. Thanks for listening.

---------------------------------

Finding fabulous fares is fun.

Let FareChase search your favorite travel sites to find flight and hotel

bargains.

[Guest guest]

Hi and welcome! It all sounds very familiar to us! We all are trying to

keep those plates spinning. Can I ask what dosage of Zoloft your

daughter is on and how long she's been on it? My DD (OCD onset at age

7) started Prozac at age 8 and had a hard time for the first 6 weeks.

It made her very anxious and then it was slowly better and better until

my regular girl emerged. We've had bad spells since then but they have

been easier to manage because I know more what to expect. I'm sorry you

are shouldering this alone so much. That's pretty common on this board

too. My DH is great, but since I'm the one home all day I am really the

one dealing with my daughter too.

Dina

[Guest guest]

She's been on Zoloft for nearly 3 weeks now (20 days to be exact).

She's on 25mg; the first 4 days the dr. had us splitting the pill in

half for a 12.5 mg. dose per day, then bumped her up to the full

pill. Yesterday I tried giving it to her during the day instead of at

night figuring maybe if it was keeping her awake by the time she went

to bed she wouldn't be so wired. We go back for our second visit to

the psychiatrist on Tuesday and I'm hoping he'll have some advice on

whether the symptoms she's experiencing are medication related or

just part of the GAD/OCD. The kids are off from school for the next

week and I'm just hoping to get her the opportunity to start feeling

more relaxed and rested.

>

> Hi and welcome! It all sounds very familiar to us! We all are

trying to

> keep those plates spinning. Can I ask what dosage of Zoloft your

> daughter is on and how long she's been on it? My DD (OCD onset at

age

> 7) started Prozac at age 8 and had a hard time for the first 6

weeks.

> It made her very anxious and then it was slowly better and better

until

> my regular girl emerged. We've had bad spells since then but they

have

> been easier to manage because I know more what to expect. I'm

sorry you

> are shouldering this alone so much. That's pretty common on this

board

> too. My DH is great, but since I'm the one home all day I am

really the

> one dealing with my daughter too.

>

> Dina

>

[Guest guest]

Hi, welcome to the group!! This group has been my best support (and

sanity-saver) over the years. My son's OCD popped up in 6th grade,

he's now in 12th.

It's not uncommon for the OCD to increase when beginning medication.

So hang in there, hopefully this will be *the* medication to work.

And for some people (not all), it might take a few weeks of a good,

regular dosage to begin to kick in more. It's like when someone

begins some medication for depression; it can take up to 8 weeks

before it begins to help with the depression. OCD takes higher

dosages of medication to touch the OCD so, as I said, just " hang in

there " these first weeks.

When my son's OCD began, that first year was soooooo bad. He had all

these compulsions 24/7, a lot of touching type things, some

repetitive things, bedtime was hard, schoolwork was hard.... I have

2 other sons also, one a twin to my OCDer and then an older son. And

I would tell them (especially the twin) that - my OCDer - was

NOT to be " stressed " because it made his OCD worse or made

school/homework impossible that night, etc. And then I was helping

him do his homework (I wrote for him) so had no time to help with the

other 2 or time for any interruptions, etc.... With my sons being

older and knowing about 's OCD, sometimes when they complained

to me about no time to help them or time for them, my reply

was, " well, do YOU have a mental illness?!!?? " SIGH! But we

survived! And at calmer times I tried to find time (or made an

effort and *found* time) for them. Even just 20 minutes to talk,

catch up, some one-on-one time can help.

Tempers can flare all around when you are sooo tired of OCD! I had

to apologize more than once to for losing my patience or even

some mean comment I said. And remind myself and tell him that it was

*OCD* I was fed up with, mad at, and not HIM. I know he felt like I

didn't like him at times, my impatience, etc. He put me in my place

once with the comment, " Well how do you think *I* feel??? " with being

fed up and living with OCD inside his head.

So - you are NOT the only parent who goes through all this, we are

not perfect, just human! Anger, frustration, tears...we have to

remind ourselves to direct it at OCD and not our kids. Hard

sometimes. (like I said, I apologized more than once)

With fevers and such, I'm not one who takes my kids to the doctor

either. I tend to go with OTC stuff too. And, yes, over the years

there have been some " guilty " times when I felt bad for not taking

them sooner. My oldest once had strep. Well, we weren't a " get

strep " family and all his stomach and throat complaints just had me

trying OTC stuff at home. So after like 3 days I took him to the

doctor: strep! Another time there was a broken toe I delayed on

taking him for. One son has an allergy to nuts. We've been to the

emergency room for that more than once; but sometimes I've said, " can

we wait and see if the Benedryl works??? " to him before going, LOL.

That's because we had to sit in the waiting room so long one trip

that the Benedryl apparently was kicking in and there was nothing for

the doctor to do that time. What else? Oh, other times too anyway

with each kid. (With sports I had gotten used to injuries and always

waited a few days before taking to doctor for any body aches/pains)

What are some of the OCD behaviors that your daughter has?

single mom, 3 sons

, 18, with OCD, dysgraphia and Aspergers(autism, mild)

>

> Hi, everyone. I'm new here and I'm not quite sure what to expect.

But

> I do know that I desperately need to find a place where I can get

> some advice and vent some really painful, pentup emotions that I

> carry with me every day. I'm tired of having this knot in my

stomach.

[Guest guest]

Thanks for your words of understanding. I'm just so

angry/confused/sad by this whole situation sometimes I don't know

what to do. Finding this support group has been a real lifesaver. My

daughter's symptoms range from mild to severe and change on a daily

basis. Just when one behavior disapates, another new one surfaces--

it's extremely frustration. She's done a multitude of things like:

constant hand washing, having to take a certain number of steps,

counting, getting off her bed and rubbing her face on her carpet for

a certain amount of time, tapping, swallowing, etc. all in a rhythmic

pattern and/or a certain number of times. She'll also repeat phrases

a certain number of times. In addition, every time she either does a

behavior, thinks about doing a behavior, or stops herself from doing

a behavior, she feels the need to tell me about it. So, all of our

conversations have to do with all of the abovementioned things. There

is no longer any " normal " conversation. It's just me listening to her

worry about things -- things she's done, wants to do, stops herself

from doing, thinks about doing, etc. She's an excellent student but

on her last report card her teacher indicated that she has a hard

time completing tasks in a timely manner. (Hard to do when you have

to write over a pencil stroke x-number of times before you can go on

to the next word, or when you have to erase a stray mark until you

put a hole in the paper, LOL)

> >

> > Hi, everyone. I'm new here and I'm not quite sure what to expect.

> But

> > I do know that I desperately need to find a place where I can get

> > some advice and vent some really painful, pentup emotions that I

> > carry with me every day. I'm tired of having this knot in my

> stomach.

>

[Guest guest]

I remember when 's OCD began, there were just multiple changes

with his compulsions. Some stayed, some went away, new ones popped

up.

used to trace over letters. He actually did that back in

elementary school (before OCD hit in 6th grade) and I said to myself

then, " a little bit of OCD there. " I can look back at his work and

see some letters darker than others.

Also at that younger age he used to ask me questions. After I joined

this group I learned the term " reassurance questions. " I

thought, " Aha! That was a bit of OCD back then too! " He used to

worry/ask about getting cancer or about how long some scratch/cut

would take to heal or what some pain/feeling he felt in his body

might be. So he was asking about that, repeatedly asking. I just

felt he worried too much. And would sometimes impatiently say, " what

did I tell you last time you asked??? " or sometimes would just switch

my answer a bit; or tell him I was tired of his asking, LOL.

If your daughter understands about bossy/worrisome OCD, is she

actively working on any of her OC's right now? Have you two tried

limiting how many times each day she can " tell/confess " something to

you? Just starting easy, like if she presently seems to do it 30x,

then make an agreement to try for 29 or 28x (if this is something

hard for her) this week or if it's easier for her go down 1x each

day; earn rewards for success; maybe more points count for succeeding

and less points for effort but no success (we always say to reward

effort, their " trying " is very important too). Or she can only

confess/tell you 4x in an hour. Just vary it, set a goal for less

than it is presently.

If her grades at school begin to suffer, you might talk with them

about giving her more time on her work. We had to set up a 504 Plan

for and he was able to bring all unfinished work home, plus

we got extra time for him to turn in his work with no penalty.

Schoolwork was tough for him (and me!) and we tried to get all *this*

week's work turned in by the following Monday. We did our best each

night, like always getting math done since the kids exchanged papers

to check them in class each day.

Well, just some quick thoughts & typing!

Keep us updated on how things are going. This is a great place to

just VENT too!

>

> Thanks for your words of understanding. I'm just so

> angry/confused/sad by this whole situation sometimes I don't know

> what to do. Finding this support group has been a real lifesaver.

My

> daughter's symptoms range from mild to severe and change on a daily

> basis. Just when one behavior disapates, another new one surfaces--

> it's extremely frustration. She's done a multitude of things like:

[Guest guest]

My daughter does that same thing - the slightest scratch on her finger has

to be examined and reexamined until it is finally healed. There could

literally be hourly updates on its condition. It didn't help that last fall,

2 weeks after being diagnosed; she broke her arm and had to have it

surgically repaired. For the next two months she had to do everything with

her non-dominant hand. We were amazed at how easily she took to it and how

persistent she was in working through it. Since then, though, she does seem

to concentrate more on every little thing she feels inside and outside of

her body, constantly worried that something is wrong with her or going to go

wrong with her. Her CBT has her working on trying to cut down on her OCD

behaviors and her temper flare-ups little by little each week. Like you

said, try doing X one less time today, 2X times tomorrow, etc. She can

handle that, but the behavior she's cutting down on is immediately replaced

by a different behavior. We also tried the reward system, as suggested by

the CBT, for example if you you feel like hitting yourself, and can stop it,

mom will put one pom-pom in a jar. When the jar is full, you get the reward.

That worked for a short time, but my daughter, intelligent as she is,

quickly realized that she could fake getting mad and controlling it just to

get the jar filled up faster. It's hard to know sometimes what's real and

what she's doing to try to get a reaction or reward from us. We go see the

psychiatrist for the second time this afternoon and I'm hoping he can guide

us on some of the medication issues we're having.

_____

From:

[mailto: ] On Behalf Of

Sent: Monday, April 02, 2007 10:41 PM

Subject: Re: Hi, I'm new here

I remember when 's OCD began, there were just multiple changes

with his compulsions. Some stayed, some went away, new ones popped

up.

used to trace over letters. He actually did that back in

elementary school (before OCD hit in 6th grade) and I said to myself

then, " a little bit of OCD there. " I can look back at his work and

see some letters darker than others.

Also at that younger age he used to ask me questions. After I joined

this group I learned the term " reassurance questions. " I

thought, " Aha! That was a bit of OCD back then too! " He used to

worry/ask about getting cancer or about how long some scratch/cut

would take to heal or what some pain/feeling he felt in his body

might be. So he was asking about that, repeatedly asking. I just

felt he worried too much. And would sometimes impatiently say, " what

did I tell you last time you asked??? " or sometimes would just switch

my answer a bit; or tell him I was tired of his asking, LOL.

If your daughter understands about bossy/worrisome OCD, is she

actively working on any of her OC's right now? Have you two tried

limiting how many times each day she can " tell/confess " something to

you? Just starting easy, like if she presently seems to do it 30x,

then make an agreement to try for 29 or 28x (if this is something

hard for her) this week or if it's easier for her go down 1x each

day; earn rewards for success; maybe more points count for succeeding

and less points for effort but no success (we always say to reward

effort, their " trying " is very important too). Or she can only

confess/tell you 4x in an hour. Just vary it, set a goal for less

than it is presently.

If her grades at school begin to suffer, you might talk with them

about giving her more time on her work. We had to set up a 504 Plan

for and he was able to bring all unfinished work home, plus

we got extra time for him to turn in his work with no penalty.

Schoolwork was tough for him (and me!) and we tried to get all *this*

week's work turned in by the following Monday. We did our best each

night, like always getting math done since the kids exchanged papers

to check them in class each day.

Well, just some quick thoughts & typing!

Keep us updated on how things are going. This is a great place to

just VENT too!

>

> Thanks for your words of understanding. I'm just so

> angry/confused/sad by this whole situation sometimes I don't know

> what to do. Finding this support group has been a real lifesaver.

My

> daughter's symptoms range from mild to severe and change on a daily

> basis. Just when one behavior disapates, another new one surfaces--

> it's extremely frustration. She's done a multitude of things like:

[Guest guest]

My daughter has always over reacted to any physical injury...ironically except

for the real ones! A little paper cut is reason to halt the world. She's

12....this was normal when she was 5, but not now! I should probably start the

CBT with something simple like this.

Laurie

Nienburg <tdec9brg@...> wrote:

My daughter does that same thing - the slightest scratch on her finger has

to be examined and reexamined until it is finally healed. There could

literally be hourly updates on its condition. It didn't help that last fall,

2 weeks after being diagnosed; she broke her arm and had to have it

surgically repaired.

---------------------------------

Need Mail bonding?

Go to the Q & A for great tips from Answers users.

[Guest guest]

,

One of the repeated questions would ask was " how long will it

take this to heal? " I think I finally settled on " 10 days " as an

answer.

So does your daughter hit herself too when frustrated/fed up with

OCD? (note the " too " since sometimes does this)

How did the psychiatrist visit go?

>

> My daughter does that same thing - the slightest scratch on her

finger has

> to be examined and reexamined until it is finally healed. There

could

> literally be hourly updates on its condition.

[Guest guest]

She definitely went through a phase that she would hit/punch/pinch

herself when she got angry. At the time, I wasn't sure why she was

hitting herself but it was one of the most disturbing things I ever

saw! Luckily, that behavior seems to be under control for the moment.

She continually asks about the most minor scratches and bruises, " Why

isn't it better yet? I can still see it. When will it be gone? Will

it come back? Will it get worse?, etc " Also, everytime she feels

ANYTHING, inside or outside her body, she needs to come to me, tell

me about it and worry about what it is. For example, tonight she was

watching tv and leaning on her arm. Her hand fell asleep. It took a

good 15 minutes to convince her that it happens to everyone and that

it was ok. But, when I left her in bed, she was still shaking her

hand trying to get the feeling to go away. Stuff like that goes on

all day, every day. Since she broke her arm last fall and had to have

it surgically repaired, she's definitely been much more sensitive to

worries about her body and being sick or injured.

The psychiatrist visit left me with even more questions. He's not

happy with how she's responding (or rather not responding) to the 25

mg of Zoloft. I need to pay very close attention to her for the next

week and look for any signs of improvement. Then, we'll revisit what

to do about the medicine.

On the upside, I was feeling like I just needed to start doing some

more reading on my own to get a handle on what all of this is and how

as a parent I can help her. I went to amazon.com and ordered some

books, a few of which came yesterday. The one I started

reading, " Freeing your child from Obsessive-compulsive disorder " is

really answering a lot of questions for me and giving me some ideas

on how I can help her CBT. Today, she was very upset about something

and didn't want to tell me. So, she wrote it down on a piece of paper

and gave it to me. She then ran into her room and locked her door. I

read the paper and it was something so minute that most kids wouldn't

even think about. But for her, this was just a troubling thought she

couldn't get out of her mind. I went to her room and she didn't want

to look at me. I explained to her that she needed a " worry box. " I

told her that whenever a thought or worry got stuck in her head, she

could write it down, put it in the box, close the box, then put the

box on the highest shelf in her closet. I explained to her that the

thought then couldn't be in her mind because she had taken it out and

put it away. She was receptive to the idea and so we tried it. I'm

hoping at least I've given her a tool she can use to help her feel

more in control. I also started referring to her OCD as the OCD

monster in her head. And I've started explaining to her that she can

help stop what he's trying to do to her. The other book I bought was

a story book called " Up and Down the Worry Hill, " a story of a boy

with OCD and his treatment. I read it to her tonight and she was

amazed at how alike she and the main character are. It really hit her

hard when she realized that she wasn't alone and that there are other

kids out there who face the same things she does and that through

hard work we can beat this thing and give her control back.

I feel good about taking a positive step in helping her. For so long

now I've felt helpless and angry by the situation. I'm trying now to

get angry at the OCD and learn the tools we need to help her overcome

it. It wasn't until I found this group that I realized I could gather

the strength to fight this thing and help her to fight it too.

> >

> > My daughter does that same thing - the slightest scratch on her

> finger has

> > to be examined and reexamined until it is finally healed. There

> could

> > literally be hourly updates on its condition.

>

[Guest guest]

In a message dated 4/4/2007 9:38:04 P.M. Eastern Standard Time,

tdec9brg@... writes:

Today, she was very upset about something

and didn't want to tell me. So, she wrote it down on a piece of paper

and gave it to me. She then ran into her room and locked her door. I

read the paper and it was something so minute that most kids wouldn't

even think about.

This was one of the first things we (retroactively) noticed about our dd

once we realized she had OCD... having to tell us everything she " did wrong " or

even thought she did wrong. Things from YEARS ago that she was truly worried

about (all goofy things) and would sit & consternate over whether or not she

should call that person and apologize for doing whatever it was.

LT

************************************** See what's free at http://www.aol.com.

[Guest guest]

I'm amazed at my daughter's memory -- she'll pull up something from

years ago and remember word-for-word what happened and we're

like, " What is she talking about? " And it's always something so minor

that no one else would ever have given it a second thought. She's

always been that way, I can't imagine the amount of " junk " she's

tormenting herself over. Have you been able to help your child work

through this with any success?

>

>

> In a message dated 4/4/2007 9:38:04 P.M. Eastern Standard Time,

> tdec9brg@... writes:

>

> Today, she was very upset about something

> and didn't want to tell me. So, she wrote it down on a piece of

paper

> and gave it to me. She then ran into her room and locked her door.

I

> read the paper and it was something so minute that most kids

wouldn't

> even think about.

>

>

>

>

> This was one of the first things we (retroactively) noticed about

our dd

> once we realized she had OCD... having to tell us everything

she " did wrong " or

> even thought she did wrong. Things from YEARS ago that she was

truly worried

> about (all goofy things) and would sit & consternate over whether

or not she

> should call that person and apologize for doing whatever it was.

> LT

>

>

>

> ************************************** See what's free at

http://www.aol.com.

>

>

>

[Guest guest]

We haven't told my son anything yet, until today. I was in a store

with my kids and he kept picking things out for her that he wanted

her to have. It was a craft store and the things she picked out she

wasn't paying much attention to. Then, he started to cry. When I

asked him what was the matter, he told us, " I just want to make her

feel better. " Earlier that day, after one of her " episodes " he went

into his room and made her a card that said, " Feel better soon. I

love you. XOXOXOXO. " Such innocent sweetness from a kinderegartener!

So there I am in the middle of the craft store, he's crying and she's

apologizing repeatedly and getting " twitchy " because she feels guilty

and I decided I better begin to tell him something. At this point, I

told him that his sister is fine, that sometimes she just worries

about things a lot and we're trying to help her to stop thinking bad

thoughts and worrying so much. The best thing you can do for her is

love her. " He was happy that he could do something to help and he

stopped crying. My daughter became angry and said, " Why did you tell

him anything? " I told her simply, because he loves you, he's a part

of our family and we are in this together. A bit later on in the car

she said to us, " I'm glad we have him. I love him a lot, too. He

makes our family complete. " So now I know, in broad strokes, I need

to at least not hide every conversation I have with her about her OCD

and anxiety from him. It's too stressful for everyone involved to

keep taking her out of a room for private talks. From now on, as much

as we can, I'm doing it in front of him.

Hi,

everyone. I'm new here and I'm not quite sure what to expect. But

> I do know that I desperately need to find a place where I can get

> some advice and vent some really painful, pentup emotions that I

> carry with me every day. I'm tired of having this knot in my

stomach.

> About 20 minutest ago, my husband had to rush my 5-yr-old son to

the

> emergency room with severe throat and ear pain. It's just an

> infection, I'm sure, but it's a symptom of the true pain that

rules

> everything that goes on in my home. My daughter, who turned eight

in

> January, has been seeing a cognitive behavioral therapist weekly

> since last summer. For a long time, I knew that something about

her

> behavior was " just not quite right " and did all I could to hide it

> from everyone, including my husband. Last summer I " fessed up " to

him

> that I could no longer manage the behavior/moods my daughter

> displayed constantly. Long story short -- we were referred by a

> friend to a wonderful cognitive behavioral therapist who quickly

> diagnosed her as having General Anxiety Disorder with Obsessive

> Compulsive tendencies. She began weekly therapy immediatly. We

chose

> to hide this diagnosis and treatment from everyone except my

parents

> for a couple of reasons: 1) my daughter's therapist has had

dealings

> with my daughter's principal concerning another student and let's

> just say that the administration in my daughter's elementary

school

> is NOT sympathetic to psychological conditions in children. The

> principal is apparently power hungry and if contacted by a

therapist

> regarding what's best for a student, will do the exact opposite

just

> to prove how powerful she is. The only reason why we told my

parents

> is because my daughter does not want my five-year-old son to know

> where I take her each week and we needed someone to be able to

watch

> him while she is at therapy. I have a very closeknit family, with

all

> of my brothers, cousins, aunts, uncles, ect. living within five

> minutes of us. Hiding this has been extremely difficult.

> Additionally, my husband commutes 5 hours round trip a day to

work --

> he is gone from 6 am to 8 pm 5 days a week and travels out of

state

> or out of the country at least 1 week out of the month. He does

his

> best and is a great dad, but time simply does not permit him to

truly

> understand how life is in our house on a day-to-day basis. My

> daughter is in second grade, my son is in kindergarten, and I have

> been going to graduate school parttime for the last three years to

> get my teaching degree. In addition I volunteer for the pta and am

my

> daughter's girl scout leader. I constantly feel like I'm being

pulled

> in a hundred directions. A couple of weeks ago, realizing theat

the

> therapy was not working, we also began seeing a psychiatrist, who

> prescribed Zoloft to my daughter. She is complaining of stomach

pain

> (but was complaining of that before the meds), can't sleep (but

> couldn't before, either) and her obsessive/compulsive behaviors

are

> out of control. I'm at my wits end and am finding myself getting

more

> and more angry at her. I want the OCD gone. I don't want to deal

with

> it anymore. I find myself screaming inside my own head, " why can't

> she just be normal?!?! " and then feeling extreme guilt for having

> such thoughts. And then there's my son, who because of this I feel

> like I never seem to have enough time and energy for. And now,

when

> he had a fever two days ago that I gave OTC meds for and said it

> would go away on it's own, is on his way to the hospital crying in

> pain. And why didn't I take him to the dr today? Because my

daughter

> had a sleepover at our house last night. And, since I'm always

> bending over backwards to make her happy, hoping that it will

somehow

> magically cure the ocd, after her friend went home, I took her

> shopping and bought her 4 pairs of shoes and a whole spring

wardrobe

> I couldn't afford hoping to keep her on that " happiness high. " I

> can't belive how I've rambled to complete strangers, but I feel

like

> there's just nowhere else to go and I'm hoping to find my lifeline

> here. Thanks for listening.

>

>

>

>

>

>

> ---------------------------------

> Finding fabulous fares is fun.

> Let FareChase search your favorite travel sites to find

flight and hotel bargains.

>

>

[Guest guest]

Hi,

everyone. I'm new here and I'm not quite sure what to expect. But

> I do know that I desperately need to find a place where I can get

> some advice and vent some really painful, pentup emotions that I

> carry with me every day. I'm tired of having this knot in my

stomach.

> About 20 minutest ago, my husband had to rush my 5-yr-old son to

the

> emergency room with severe throat and ear pain. It's just an

> infection, I'm sure, but it's a symptom of the true pain that

rules

> everything that goes on in my home. My daughter, who turned eight

in

> January, has been seeing a cognitive behavioral therapist weekly

> since last summer. For a long time, I knew that something about

her

> behavior was " just not quite right " and did all I could to hide it

> from everyone, including my husband. Last summer I " fessed up " to

him

> that I could no longer manage the behavior/moods my daughter

> displayed constantly. Long story short -- we were referred by a

> friend to a wonderful cognitive behavioral therapist who quickly

> diagnosed her as having General Anxiety Disorder with Obsessive

> Compulsive tendencies. She began weekly therapy immediatly. We

chose

> to hide this diagnosis and treatment from everyone except my

parents

> for a couple of reasons: 1) my daughter's therapist has had

dealings

> with my daughter's principal concerning another student and let's

> just say that the administration in my daughter's elementary

school

> is NOT sympathetic to psychological conditions in children. The

> principal is apparently power hungry and if contacted by a

therapist

> regarding what's best for a student, will do the exact opposite

just

> to prove how powerful she is. The only reason why we told my

parents

> is because my daughter does not want my five-year-old son to know

> where I take her each week and we needed someone to be able to

watch

> him while she is at therapy. I have a very closeknit family, with

all

> of my brothers, cousins, aunts, uncles, ect. living within five

> minutes of us. Hiding this has been extremely difficult.

> Additionally, my husband commutes 5 hours round trip a day to

work --

> he is gone from 6 am to 8 pm 5 days a week and travels out of

state

> or out of the country at least 1 week out of the month. He does

his

> best and is a great dad, but time simply does not permit him to

truly

> understand how life is in our house on a day-to-day basis. My

> daughter is in second grade, my son is in kindergarten, and I have

> been going to graduate school parttime for the last three years to

> get my teaching degree. In addition I volunteer for the pta and am

my

> daughter's girl scout leader. I constantly feel like I'm being

pulled

> in a hundred directions. A couple of weeks ago, realizing theat

the

> therapy was not working, we also began seeing a psychiatrist, who

> prescribed Zoloft to my daughter. She is complaining of stomach

pain

> (but was complaining of that before the meds), can't sleep (but

> couldn't before, either) and her obsessive/compulsive behaviors

are

> out of control. I'm at my wits end and am finding myself getting

more

> and more angry at her. I want the OCD gone. I don't want to deal

with

> it anymore. I find myself screaming inside my own head, " why can't

> she just be normal?!?! " and then feeling extreme guilt for having

> such thoughts. And then there's my son, who because of this I feel

> like I never seem to have enough time and energy for. And now,

when

> he had a fever two days ago that I gave OTC meds for and said it

> would go away on it's own, is on his way to the hospital crying in

> pain. And why didn't I take him to the dr today? Because my

daughter

> had a sleepover at our house last night. And, since I'm always

> bending over backwards to make her happy, hoping that it will

somehow

> magically cure the ocd, after her friend went home, I took her

> shopping and bought her 4 pairs of shoes and a whole spring

wardrobe

> I couldn't afford hoping to keep her on that " happiness high. " I

> can't belive how I've rambled to complete strangers, but I feel

like

> there's just nowhere else to go and I'm hoping to find my lifeline

> here. Thanks for listening.

>

>

>

>

>

>

> ---------------------------------

> Finding fabulous fares is fun.

> Let FareChase search your favorite travel sites to find

flight and hotel bargains.

>

>

[Guest guest]

It really is comforting to read words that I could have written

myself written by other people. It definitely makes me feel less

alone and angry. And, it's even beginning to help with the guilt!

Good luck to you and stay strong, I know I'm trying to!

> Hi, everyone. I'm new here and I'm not quite sure what to

expect. But

> I do know that I desperately need to find a place where I can get

> some advice and vent some really painful, pentup emotions that I

> carry with me every day. I'm tired of having this knot in my

stomach.

> About 20 minutest ago, my husband had to rush my 5-yr-old son to

the

> emergency room with severe throat and ear pain. It's just an

> infection, I'm sure, but it's a symptom of the true pain that rules

> everything that goes on in my home. My daughter, who turned eight

in

> January, has been seeing a cognitive behavioral therapist weekly

> since last summer. For a long time, I knew that something about her

> behavior was " just not quite right " and did all I could to hide it

> from everyone, including my husband. Last summer I " fessed up " to

him

> that I could no longer manage the behavior/moods my daughter

> displayed constantly. Long story short -- we were referred by a

> friend to a wonderful cognitive behavioral therapist who quickly

> diagnosed her as having General Anxiety Disorder with Obsessive

> Compulsive tendencies. She began weekly therapy immediatly. We

chose

> to hide this diagnosis and treatment from everyone except my

parents

> for a couple of reasons: 1) my daughter's therapist has had

dealings

> with my daughter's principal concerning another student and let's

> just say that the administration in my daughter's elementary school

> is NOT sympathetic to psychological conditions in children. The

> principal is apparently power hungry and if contacted by a

therapist

> regarding what's best for a student, will do the exact opposite

just

> to prove how powerful she is. The only reason why we told my

parents

> is because my daughter does not want my five-year-old son to know

> where I take her each week and we needed someone to be able to

watch

> him while she is at therapy. I have a very closeknit family, with

all

> of my brothers, cousins, aunts, uncles, ect. living within five

> minutes of us. Hiding this has been extremely difficult.

> Additionally, my husband commutes 5 hours round trip a day to work -

-

> he is gone from 6 am to 8 pm 5 days a week and travels out of state

> or out of the country at least 1 week out of the month. He does his

> best and is a great dad, but time simply does not permit him to

truly

> understand how life is in our house on a day-to-day basis. My

> daughter is in second grade, my son is in kindergarten, and I have

> been going to graduate school parttime for the last three years to

> get my teaching degree. In addition I volunteer for the pta and am

my

> daughter's girl scout leader. I constantly feel like I'm being

pulled

> in a hundred directions. A couple of weeks ago, realizing theat the

> therapy was not working, we also began seeing a psychiatrist, who

> prescribed Zoloft to my daughter. She is complaining of stomach

pain

> (but was complaining of that before the meds), can't sleep (but

> couldn't before, either) and her obsessive/compulsive behaviors are

> out of control. I'm at my wits end and am finding myself getting

more

> and more angry at her. I want the OCD gone. I don't want to deal

with

> it anymore. I find myself screaming inside my own head, " why can't

> she just be normal?!?! " and then feeling extreme guilt for having

> such thoughts. And then there's my son, who because of this I feel

> like I never seem to have enough time and energy for. And now, when

> he had a fever two days ago that I gave OTC meds for and said it

> would go away on it's own, is on his way to the hospital crying in

> pain. And why didn't I take him to the dr today? Because my

daughter

> had a sleepover at our house last night. And, since I'm always

> bending over backwards to make her happy, hoping that it will

somehow

> magically cure the ocd, after her friend went home, I took her

> shopping and bought her 4 pairs of shoes and a whole spring

wardrobe

> I couldn't afford hoping to keep her on that " happiness high. " I

> can't belive how I've rambled to complete strangers, but I feel

like

> there's just nowhere else to go and I'm hoping to find my lifeline

> here. Thanks for listening.

>

>

>

>

>

> Send instant messages to your online friends

http://au.messenger.

>

>

[Guest guest]

Wow. That is beautiful! I really needed it too. I've been trying to convince my

10 yr. old son that we should share his problem with my dh, but he doesn't trust

dad not to tease him about it (he claims that happened before). Of course, my

husband already knows, but it would help if he could share some of the duties

and go with me to the psychiatrist. At some point, I think I may just have to

let my son know that his father already knows what's going on. Maybe it would be

a relief to him, in some way.

Thanks for sharing,

F.

tdec9brg <tdec9brg@...> wrote:

We haven't told my son anything yet, until today. I was in a store

with my kids and he kept picking things out for her that he wanted

her to have. It was a craft store and the things she picked out she

wasn't paying much attention to. Then, he started to cry. When I

asked him what was the matter, he told us, " I just want to make her

feel better. " Earlier that day, after one of her " episodes " he went

into his room and made her a card that said, " Feel better soon. I

love you. XOXOXOXO. " Such innocent sweetness from a kinderegartener!

So there I am in the middle of the craft store, he's crying and she's

apologizing repeatedly and getting " twitchy " because she feels guilty

and I decided I better begin to tell him something. At this point, I

told him that his sister is fine, that sometimes she just worries

about things a lot and we're trying to help her to stop thinking bad

thoughts and worrying so much. The best thing you can do for her is

love her. " He was happy that he could do something to help and he

stopped crying. My daughter became angry and said, " Why did you tell

him anything? " I told her simply, because he loves you, he's a part

of our family and we are in this together. A bit later on in the car

she said to us, " I'm glad we have him. I love him a lot, too. He

makes our family complete. " So now I know, in broad strokes, I need

to at least not hide every conversation I have with her about her OCD

and anxiety from him. It's too stressful for everyone involved to

keep taking her out of a room for private talks. From now on, as much

as we can, I'm doing it in front of him.

Hi,

everyone. I'm new here and I'm not quite sure what to expect. But

> I do know that I desperately need to find a place where I can get

> some advice and vent some really painful, pentup emotions that I

> carry with me every day. I'm tired of having this knot in my

stomach.

> About 20 minutest ago, my husband had to rush my 5-yr-old son to

the

> emergency room with severe throat and ear pain. It's just an

> infection, I'm sure, but it's a symptom of the true pain that

rules

> everything that goes on in my home. My daughter, who turned eight

in

> January, has been seeing a cognitive behavioral therapist weekly

> since last summer. For a long time, I knew that something about

her

> behavior was " just not quite right " and did all I could to hide it

> from everyone, including my husband. Last summer I " fessed up " to

him

> that I could no longer manage the behavior/moods my daughter

> displayed constantly. Long story short -- we were referred by a

> friend to a wonderful cognitive behavioral therapist who quickly

> diagnosed her as having General Anxiety Disorder with Obsessive

> Compulsive tendencies. She began weekly therapy immediatly. We

chose

> to hide this diagnosis and treatment from everyone except my

parents

> for a couple of reasons: 1) my daughter's therapist has had

dealings

> with my daughter's principal concerning another student and let's

> just say that the administration in my daughter's elementary

school

> is NOT sympathetic to psychological conditions in children. The

> principal is apparently power hungry and if contacted by a

therapist

> regarding what's best for a student, will do the exact opposite

just

> to prove how powerful she is. The only reason why we told my

parents

> is because my daughter does not want my five-year-old son to know

> where I take her each week and we needed someone to be able to

watch

> him while she is at therapy. I have a very closeknit family, with

all

> of my brothers, cousins, aunts, uncles, ect. living within five

> minutes of us. Hiding this has been extremely difficult.

> Additionally, my husband commutes 5 hours round trip a day to

work --

> he is gone from 6 am to 8 pm 5 days a week and travels out of

state

> or out of the country at least 1 week out of the month. He does

his

> best and is a great dad, but time simply does not permit him to

truly

> understand how life is in our house on a day-to-day basis. My

> daughter is in second grade, my son is in kindergarten, and I have

> been going to graduate school parttime for the last three years to

> get my teaching degree. In addition I volunteer for the pta and am

my

> daughter's girl scout leader. I constantly feel like I'm being

pulled

> in a hundred directions. A couple of weeks ago, realizing theat

the

> therapy was not working, we also began seeing a psychiatrist, who

> prescribed Zoloft to my daughter. She is complaining of stomach

pain

> (but was complaining of that before the meds), can't sleep (but

> couldn't before, either) and her obsessive/compulsive behaviors

are

> out of control. I'm at my wits end and am finding myself getting

more

> and more angry at her. I want the OCD gone. I don't want to deal

with

> it anymore. I find myself screaming inside my own head, " why can't

> she just be normal?!?! " and then feeling extreme guilt for having

> such thoughts. And then there's my son, who because of this I feel

> like I never seem to have enough time and energy for. And now,

when

> he had a fever two days ago that I gave OTC meds for and said it

> would go away on it's own, is on his way to the hospital crying in

> pain. And why didn't I take him to the dr today? Because my

daughter

> had a sleepover at our house last night. And, since I'm always

> bending over backwards to make her happy, hoping that it will

somehow

> magically cure the ocd, after her friend went home, I took her

> shopping and bought her 4 pairs of shoes and a whole spring

wardrobe

> I couldn't afford hoping to keep her on that " happiness high. " I

> can't belive how I've rambled to complete strangers, but I feel

like

> there's just nowhere else to go and I'm hoping to find my lifeline

> here. Thanks for listening.

>

>

>

>

>

>

> ---------------------------------

> Finding fabulous fares is fun.

> Let FareChase search your favorite travel sites to find

flight and hotel bargains.

>

>

[Guest guest]

happy Easter to all celebrating - welcome - been offline for a week

and may continue offline and just checking here and there and of

course personal emails can be sent to autumn71A@...

anytime but I've found more time for kids life etc being away so I'll

continue for now

I did want to say though don't be so hard on yourself, do cut down on

all your jobs and try to find some alone time with your son - they are

all so affected by this - it stinks!!! my dd is 7 we've told all and

it's still hard - she's doing better now therapy is constant at home

or it will sneak in and sickness makes it worse - no meds for us thus

far

as far as that principal - you shouldn't have you and your dd suffer

- he/she can NOT do the opposite of what a therapist says - must be

illegal I'm sure!!!anyway hang in welcome again

email anytime

eileen

Quoting tdec9brg <tdec9brg@...>:

> Hi, everyone. I'm new here and I'm not quite sure what to expect. But

> I do know that I desperately need to find a place where I can get

> some advice and vent some really painful, pentup emotions that I

> carry with me every day. I'm tired of having this knot in my stomach.

> About 20 minutest ago, my husband had to rush my 5-yr-old son to the

> emergency room with severe throat and ear pain. It's just an

> infection, I'm sure, but it's a symptom of the true pain that rules

> everything that goes on in my home. My daughter, who turned eight in

> January, has been seeing a cognitive behavioral therapist weekly

> since last summer. For a long time, I knew that something about her

> behavior was " just not quite right " and did all I could to hide it

> from everyone, including my husband. Last summer I " fessed up " to him

> that I could no longer manage the behavior/moods my daughter

> displayed constantly. Long story short -- we were referred by a

> friend to a wonderful cognitive behavioral therapist who quickly

> diagnosed her as having General Anxiety Disorder with Obsessive

> Compulsive tendencies. She began weekly therapy immediatly. We chose

> to hide this diagnosis and treatment from everyone except my parents

> for a couple of reasons: 1) my daughter's therapist has had dealings

> with my daughter's principal concerning another student and let's

> just say that the administration in my daughter's elementary school

> is NOT sympathetic to psychological conditions in children. The

> principal is apparently power hungry and if contacted by a therapist

> regarding what's best for a student, will do the exact opposite just

> to prove how powerful she is. The only reason why we told my parents

> is because my daughter does not want my five-year-old son to know

> where I take her each week and we needed someone to be able to watch

> him while she is at therapy. I have a very closeknit family, with all

> of my brothers, cousins, aunts, uncles, ect. living within five

> minutes of us. Hiding this has been extremely difficult.

> Additionally, my husband commutes 5 hours round trip a day to work --

> he is gone from 6 am to 8 pm 5 days a week and travels out of state

> or out of the country at least 1 week out of the month. He does his

> best and is a great dad, but time simply does not permit him to truly

> understand how life is in our house on a day-to-day basis. My

> daughter is in second grade, my son is in kindergarten, and I have

> been going to graduate school parttime for the last three years to

> get my teaching degree. In addition I volunteer for the pta and am my

> daughter's girl scout leader. I constantly feel like I'm being pulled

> in a hundred directions. A couple of weeks ago, realizing theat the

> therapy was not working, we also began seeing a psychiatrist, who

> prescribed Zoloft to my daughter. She is complaining of stomach pain

> (but was complaining of that before the meds), can't sleep (but

> couldn't before, either) and her obsessive/compulsive behaviors are

> out of control. I'm at my wits end and am finding myself getting more

> and more angry at her. I want the OCD gone. I don't want to deal with

> it anymore. I find myself screaming inside my own head, " why can't

> she just be normal?!?! " and then feeling extreme guilt for having

> such thoughts. And then there's my son, who because of this I feel

> like I never seem to have enough time and energy for. And now, when

> he had a fever two days ago that I gave OTC meds for and said it

> would go away on it's own, is on his way to the hospital crying in

> pain. And why didn't I take him to the dr today? Because my daughter

> had a sleepover at our house last night. And, since I'm always

> bending over backwards to make her happy, hoping that it will somehow

> magically cure the ocd, after her friend went home, I took her

> shopping and bought her 4 pairs of shoes and a whole spring wardrobe

> I couldn't afford hoping to keep her on that " happiness high. " I

> can't belive how I've rambled to complete strangers, but I feel like

> there's just nowhere else to go and I'm hoping to find my lifeline

> here. Thanks for listening.

>

>

[Guest guest]

also with your son sick maybe she's a PANDAS kid and caught something

from him??? or not PANDAS and sickness will do that too

eileen

good luck

Quoting tdec9brg <tdec9brg@...>:

> Hi, everyone. I'm new here and I'm not quite sure what to expect. But

> I do know that I desperately need to find a place where I can get

> some advice and vent some really painful, pentup emotions that I

> carry with me every day. I'm tired of having this knot in my stomach.

> About 20 minutest ago, my husband had to rush my 5-yr-old son to the

> emergency room with severe throat and ear pain. It's just an

> infection, I'm sure, but it's a symptom of the true pain that rules

> everything that goes on in my home. My daughter, who turned eight in

> January, has been seeing a cognitive behavioral therapist weekly

> since last summer. For a long time, I knew that something about her

> behavior was " just not quite right " and did all I could to hide it

> from everyone, including my husband. Last summer I " fessed up " to him

> that I could no longer manage the behavior/moods my daughter

> displayed constantly. Long story short -- we were referred by a

> friend to a wonderful cognitive behavioral therapist who quickly

> diagnosed her as having General Anxiety Disorder with Obsessive

> Compulsive tendencies. She began weekly therapy immediatly. We chose

> to hide this diagnosis and treatment from everyone except my parents

> for a couple of reasons: 1) my daughter's therapist has had dealings

> with my daughter's principal concerning another student and let's

> just say that the administration in my daughter's elementary school

> is NOT sympathetic to psychological conditions in children. The

> principal is apparently power hungry and if contacted by a therapist

> regarding what's best for a student, will do the exact opposite just

> to prove how powerful she is. The only reason why we told my parents

> is because my daughter does not want my five-year-old son to know

> where I take her each week and we needed someone to be able to watch

> him while she is at therapy. I have a very closeknit family, with all

> of my brothers, cousins, aunts, uncles, ect. living within five

> minutes of us. Hiding this has been extremely difficult.

> Additionally, my husband commutes 5 hours round trip a day to work --

> he is gone from 6 am to 8 pm 5 days a week and travels out of state

> or out of the country at least 1 week out of the month. He does his

> best and is a great dad, but time simply does not permit him to truly

> understand how life is in our house on a day-to-day basis. My

> daughter is in second grade, my son is in kindergarten, and I have

> been going to graduate school parttime for the last three years to

> get my teaching degree. In addition I volunteer for the pta and am my

> daughter's girl scout leader. I constantly feel like I'm being pulled

> in a hundred directions. A couple of weeks ago, realizing theat the

> therapy was not working, we also began seeing a psychiatrist, who

> prescribed Zoloft to my daughter. She is complaining of stomach pain

> (but was complaining of that before the meds), can't sleep (but

> couldn't before, either) and her obsessive/compulsive behaviors are

> out of control. I'm at my wits end and am finding myself getting more

> and more angry at her. I want the OCD gone. I don't want to deal with

> it anymore. I find myself screaming inside my own head, " why can't

> she just be normal?!?! " and then feeling extreme guilt for having

> such thoughts. And then there's my son, who because of this I feel

> like I never seem to have enough time and energy for. And now, when

> he had a fever two days ago that I gave OTC meds for and said it

> would go away on it's own, is on his way to the hospital crying in

> pain. And why didn't I take him to the dr today? Because my daughter

> had a sleepover at our house last night. And, since I'm always

> bending over backwards to make her happy, hoping that it will somehow

> magically cure the ocd, after her friend went home, I took her

> shopping and bought her 4 pairs of shoes and a whole spring wardrobe

> I couldn't afford hoping to keep her on that " happiness high. " I

> can't belive how I've rambled to complete strangers, but I feel like

> there's just nowhere else to go and I'm hoping to find my lifeline

> here. Thanks for listening.

>

>

[Guest guest]

We're definitely finding it at least a little easier not having to

sensor absolutely everything we say in front of my son. And, I think

it will do my daughter a world of good seeing that people will love

her just the same even when they know what's going on. If she sees

that people who love her are going to support and help her, not

ridicule her, it's got to help her anxiety. And for her I know that

lowering her anxiety level is going to be key in managing the OCD

symptoms.

Hi,

> everyone. I'm new here and I'm not quite sure what to expect. But

> > I do know that I desperately need to find a place where I can get

> > some advice and vent some really painful, pentup emotions that I

> > carry with me every day. I'm tired of having this knot in my

> stomach.

> > About 20 minutest ago, my husband had to rush my 5-yr-old son to

> the

> > emergency room with severe throat and ear pain. It's just an

> > infection, I'm sure, but it's a symptom of the true pain that

> rules

> > everything that goes on in my home. My daughter, who turned eight

> in

> > January, has been seeing a cognitive behavioral therapist weekly

> > since last summer. For a long time, I knew that something about

> her

> > behavior was " just not quite right " and did all I could to hide

it

> > from everyone, including my husband. Last summer I " fessed up " to

> him

> > that I could no longer manage the behavior/moods my daughter

> > displayed constantly. Long story short -- we were referred by a

> > friend to a wonderful cognitive behavioral therapist who quickly

> > diagnosed her as having General Anxiety Disorder with Obsessive

> > Compulsive tendencies. She began weekly therapy immediatly. We

> chose

> > to hide this diagnosis and treatment from everyone except my

> parents

> > for a couple of reasons: 1) my daughter's therapist has had

> dealings

> > with my daughter's principal concerning another student and let's

> > just say that the administration in my daughter's elementary

> school

> > is NOT sympathetic to psychological conditions in children. The

> > principal is apparently power hungry and if contacted by a

> therapist

> > regarding what's best for a student, will do the exact opposite

> just

> > to prove how powerful she is. The only reason why we told my

> parents

> > is because my daughter does not want my five-year-old son to know

> > where I take her each week and we needed someone to be able to

> watch

> > him while she is at therapy. I have a very closeknit family, with

> all

> > of my brothers, cousins, aunts, uncles, ect. living within five

> > minutes of us. Hiding this has been extremely difficult.

> > Additionally, my husband commutes 5 hours round trip a day to

> work --

> > he is gone from 6 am to 8 pm 5 days a week and travels out of

> state

> > or out of the country at least 1 week out of the month. He does

> his

> > best and is a great dad, but time simply does not permit him to

> truly

> > understand how life is in our house on a day-to-day basis. My

> > daughter is in second grade, my son is in kindergarten, and I

have

> > been going to graduate school parttime for the last three years

to

> > get my teaching degree. In addition I volunteer for the pta and

am

> my

> > daughter's girl scout leader. I constantly feel like I'm being

> pulled

> > in a hundred directions. A couple of weeks ago, realizing theat

> the

> > therapy was not working, we also began seeing a psychiatrist, who

> > prescribed Zoloft to my daughter. She is complaining of stomach

> pain

> > (but was complaining of that before the meds), can't sleep (but

> > couldn't before, either) and her obsessive/compulsive behaviors

> are

> > out of control. I'm at my wits end and am finding myself getting

> more

> > and more angry at her. I want the OCD gone. I don't want to deal

> with

> > it anymore. I find myself screaming inside my own head, " why

can't

> > she just be normal?!?! " and then feeling extreme guilt for having

> > such thoughts. And then there's my son, who because of this I

feel

> > like I never seem to have enough time and energy for. And now,

> when

> > he had a fever two days ago that I gave OTC meds for and said it

> > would go away on it's own, is on his way to the hospital crying

in

> > pain. And why didn't I take him to the dr today? Because my

> daughter

> > had a sleepover at our house last night. And, since I'm always

> > bending over backwards to make her happy, hoping that it will

> somehow

> > magically cure the ocd, after her friend went home, I took her

> > shopping and bought her 4 pairs of shoes and a whole spring

> wardrobe

> > I couldn't afford hoping to keep her on that " happiness high. " I

> > can't belive how I've rambled to complete strangers, but I feel

> like

> > there's just nowhere else to go and I'm hoping to find my

lifeline

> > here. Thanks for listening.

> >

> >

> >

> >

> >

> >

> > ---------------------------------

> > Finding fabulous fares is fun.

> > Let FareChase search your favorite travel sites to find

> flight and hotel bargains.

> >

> >

[Guest guest]

Hi Jill and !! Welcome ! I am and have been married to my

husband Mike for 11 years. I have 2 children from a previous Marriage -

20 and 18 and has given me 2 grandchildren- Kylie 14 months

and 3 weeks ( yes! He does have his hands full ! lol ) . Mike and I

have 2 children together , 9 (ds) and 6. We didn't know about

till he was born and thankfully he was very healthy. He is now in 4th

grade and with much persistence ( and quoting fed laws ) is finally

getting inclusion in 4th grade science, social studies and reading .. but we

are

not giving up there!!

Welcome to the group !!!

Michele

************************************** See what's new at http://www.aol.com

[Guest guest]

Hi Jill and Welcome! I'm , mom to who is now 14 years old.

I'm also mom to , TJ and Katey (26,24 and 20) and MIL to Matt and

and last but not least, granmama to Hayley. Sometimes I admit that

I am married to Tim- who sometimes pops in until I send him back to his

corner. It's just Tim, and I at home - but next weekend

will be moving in with us while TJ heads over to Iraq.

keeps me busy - and as far as plateauing, well I reached that a long

time ago with the remotes. I have to have help me with that.

I look forward to hearing about all your children!

Hi, I'm New Here

> Hello everyone,

>

> I just wanted to introduce myself. My name is Jill and I am married to

> my husband for 10 years. We have three children: Jordan (7),

> Carson (4) and Emilie (23 mos. w/DS). It was a big surprise when we

> had Emilie but we are finding she hasn't really changed our lives a

> whole lot. Most of the changes we see are positive ones. We are happy

> with the way Emilie has progressed with the help of early intervention

> services -- if only she will start walking!! Hope to learn lots

> here and make new friends.

> Jill

>

>

>

> Click reply to all for messages to go to the list. Just hit reply for

> messages to go to the sender of the message.

>

[Guest guest]

Hi Jill!

I am Toni. My daughter's name is Jasmine. She is 16 now.

She didn't start walking until she was 23 months old. Don't worry, it will

come.

Try having her push something big. When Jasmine was learning to walk, she

was just afraid to let go because of her balance problems. (which we found out

was from fluid in her ears.) When we got her first set of tubes in her ears

her balance improved a lot!

The place where she had her pt had some wheelchairs sitting around. She had

always had a facination with them, so we got her to push one up and down the

hall. In about 2 weeks she was walking by herself!

I think the combination of getting the fluid out of her ears, and pushing

the wheelchair gave her the security she needed to let go and walk!

Good luck with ! It will be a fun and wild ride! And we'll all be

right here with you!

Toni-mom to Jasmine-16 and in high school now

************************************** See what's new at http://www.aol.com

[Guest guest]

Hi Jill

I am another ring in for Down Under !

I live in Adelaide, South Australia- we have 3 kidlets - is 10

in 19 days and he was born with DS, Natasha is 5 1/2 and just

turned 4. We found out about 5 weeks ago we are expecting baby #4 in May.

I have been married to my hubby for nearly 13 years now(together for 15)

- and we used to live in Sydney, but moved here to Adelaide about 5

years ago. We have moved 14 times in 15 years - and in April 2006 we

moved into this new house that we just built. I have no intentions of

moving again

has changed our lives in many different ways- one of those ways

is I found my way to this list!! This list has been a godsend many times

over and I have made some awesome friends here, and if I ever win lotto

I shall be over for the yearly Suaree!! I will even bring Trish and Jan

with me! !

is an awesome kid- and we are blessed in so many ways. We have

been lucky health wise ( touch wood) - his moods and behaviors are

increasing right now We have a sleep study scheduled for 14th of

November. He is in Year 3 at school, is fully included, but pulled out

for 2 hours a day for reading and maths. ( still unsure if that is

mainstreamed or fully included...but hey- who really cares ) BJ is

well liked by his peers- is a determined young man and can be very

persistent! He also STILL adores vegemite- and eats it religiously for

breaky- tho he has just discovered a love of toasted vegemite and cheese

sandwiches (which BTW while pregnant smells absolutely DISGUSTING!) he

has eaten vegemite nearly every day f his life since he started eating

solids..........

Enjoy the list Jill- we all like to chat here........we should start up

a group chat room or something on one night..........If you have

questions ask away- we have a wide knowledge ban k here- unless Tim has

been drinking

Cant wait to hear about you and your family exploits!!

Aussie Leis- mum to , Natasha, and Jellybean

There are three ways to get something done; do it yourself, hire

someone, or forbid your kids to do it.

Mona Crane

jillhillegass wrote:

>

> Hello everyone,

>

> I just wanted to introduce myself. My name is Jill and I am married to

> my husband for 10 years. We have three children: Jordan (7),

> Carson (4) and Emilie (23 mos. w/DS). It was a big surprise when we

> had Emilie but we are finding she hasn't really changed our lives a

> whole lot. Most of the changes we see are positive ones. We are happy

> with the way Emilie has progressed with the help of early intervention

> services -- if only she will start walking!! Hope to learn lots

> here and make new friends.

> Jill

>

> __

[Guest guest]

Thanks for all the warm welcomes and great advice already! I feel right at home

and so great to hear people being positive. Emilie is probably very close to

walking. She does like pushing things and has been walking with a pushtoy since

July. Two weeks ago she started to stand in the middle of the room not holding

onto anything. She would almost get upright and plop on her bum! It's so

exciting to watch her and I think she is very close. It's so wonderful to be a

part of the group and you'll be hearing from me often since my little one is so

young. She is full-on toddler and quite a handful these days!

Jill

Re: Hi, I'm New Here

Hi Jill!

I am Toni. My daughter's name is Jasmine. She is 16 now.

She didn't start walking until she was 23 months old. Don't worry, it will

come.

Try having her push something big. When Jasmine was learning to walk, she was

just afraid to let go because of her balance problems. (which we found out was

from fluid in her ears.) When we got her first set of tubes in her ears her

balance improved a lot!

The place where she had her pt had some wheelchairs sitting around. She had

always had a facination with them, so we got her to push one up and down the

hall. In about 2 weeks she was walking by herself!

I think the combination of getting the fluid out of her ears, and pushing the

wheelchair gave her the security she needed to let go and walk!

Good luck with ! It will be a fun and wild ride! And we'll all be right

here with you!

Toni-mom to Jasmine-16 and in high school now

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