Kids And Mental Illness

Not only adults, but children also suffer from mental illness. It can happen at any age.  As a parent/guardian it’s your responsibility to talk to your child. Even if you don’t think your child has any type of illness, you might be wrong. Some illnesses are very easy to hide and aren’t noticed by close family or friends. Your child might be scared, depressed, confused, and might feel all alone.

When I was growing up, mental health issues weren’t openly talked about like it is now. As many of you know, I was very young when I developed OCD. Nobody knew about it.  Not one single person. I hid it very well. Even though I was very close to my mom, I didn’t tell her. At that time OCD wasn’t talked about.  I had never heard of it. I had no idea what was going on with me.  I was young, scared, and I chose to go through it alone.

Don’t let that be your child. Talk to them. If your not sure how to bring up the subject, there are lots of articles and videos on YouTube that can give you an idea.

Keep in mind that sometimes your child may not feel comfortable talking to you about it. Don’t take it personally. Offer them the choice to talk to someone else.  Let them know there are counseling services. Let them know there are lots of people that can help. Let them tell you who they are comfortable talking to.

Sometimes they get worried or scared because they don’t know what will happen if they open up. I know for me, when I was little, I was terrified if I told a doctor what was going on with me that he would lock me up in a mental ward. I was seriously so scared of this so I never said a thing about it.

Here are a few things I find very important when talking to your child about mental illness.

LET YOUR CHILD KNOW THEY ARE LOVED.

Your probably thinking, “my child already knows that they are loved”. I’m sure you are right but they might feel that once you know about the issues they are having, you might not love them anymore.  Of course we will love our children no matter what, we know that, but they may not. Let your child know they are loved no matter what.

Let your child know that they can trust you. 

This is very very important.  A child needs to know they have your trust. They might not want you telling other family members or friends what they are going through. Remember they might be embarrassed.

LET YOUR CHILD KNOW THAT THEY ARE NOT ALONE.

Let them know that there are other kids going through the same thing.  Let them know they are not the only child to have a mental illness. Let your child know they are not alone.

Even if there are no signs of a mental illness, and even if there are no family history of mental illness, please talk to your child. Be the parent they may need right now. Be there.

Hope this post can help someone who needs it.

If your struggling, Reach Out, Speak Up, And Ask For Help.

#mentalhealthmatters

Nobody should go through it alone.

Have a wonderful weekend.

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ANOTHER PANIC ATTACK

Re-post I originally posted this a few months back but wanted to share it again.

TRIGGER WARNING  Details of an attack  ⚠️

Last night it happened again.  Why does this keep happening and why can’t I prevent it from happening again?

I was tired but relaxed, wearing my comfy pajamas and watching a kids show with my son.  Not stressed, not worried.  Nothing that would trigger such a terrifying attack.

As it forced its way through my body I could tell this was going to be a “big one” and I better act fast if I wanted to “fight it”.

Not wanting my son to watch me go through this, like he has so many times before, I grabbed my glass of water and went to my room.

I noticed on my dresser a sticky note that I had written on. It had one word.  BREATHE.  I sat on the bed, took a sip of my water, and closed my eyes.

Breathe in, breathe out. I was determined to try this time. Determined to apply the techniques I learned during my counseling sessions. Breathe in, breathe out.  I took another sip of water. I find that drinking water helps.  I continued to breathe slowly.

Both feet touching the floor I wiggled my toes.  Not sure why but I guess I was making sure I could feel them. My body was tingling and I couldn’t stop my legs from shaking. Why was my heart pounding in my ears? Was I dying? Why was I so cold.? Once again, I took another sip of water. I felt nauseous, was I getting sick? Was I going to pass out and was my son going to find me on the ground dead? Was I dreaming?  Why did I feel like I was having an out of body experience?

The thoughts kept running through my mind.  I’m scared and I want it to stop. I needed to get calm, I needed to breathe, and I needed more water.

Once again I sat with my eyes closed, trying to control my emotions and trying to breathe. Telling myself this will pass, I have been through this before, I am ok, I am ok, I am ok, and I drank more water.

Seems like hours have passed but it was only minutes.  Finally the shaking starts to slow down and my breathing is almost normal. Im not as cold and I’m not as scared. I made it. Im still here. I survived another another panic attack.

Even though this happened last night and I feel much better today, I’m worried about the next time it happens.  After every attack, I feel like this, to afraid to leave the house at least for a few days. I think about one of my favorite quotes:

“Nothing changes if nothing changes”

Author unknown

Do I stay inside to scared to leave or do I leave and not be scared? Today I choose to not be scared.

If you experience panic attacks or anxiety, always remember your not alone.  So many of us suffer from it and no matter how scared we are we always pull through.