Depression in Children Support Group
Childhood","Children can have depression, an illness marked by persistent sadness or disruptive behavior. Mood shifts, acting out, despair, and low moods (similar to adults) are the main symptoms of depression in children and are often overlooked as normal child-like emotions. If you have a child you suspect may have depression, join the community and get support."
My daughter has struggled with depression, anxiety, and self - harmed since ale was about 7 yrs old. She had a traumatic event happen to her around that age. She was in counseling for years. She did really good for 2 years and last year she slid back into a depression. She seemed to do better, but then things got bad. She lost all of her friends, and was isolated due to the pandemic. Now, as of 2 weeks ago, she was admitted into an acute stay psych ward. She had not gotten better, and honestly I think she's gotten worse. Her doctor and counselor keep going back and forth about discharging her home and sending a referral for intermediate care.
My daughter keeps saying she hates me, that I'm a bad mother, and don't care about her. She says she is scared to be discharged bc she doesn't feel she'd be safe. My heart has been breaking and I've been crying so much. I'm scared to lose my daughter. I'm sad that she wants to push me away. This has been a roller-coaster ride for me. I don't know what to do. I'm not allowed to visit bc of the stupid fears about covid (even though I'm fully vaccinated). I can't hold her, or anything. I'm so scared that I'm going to lose her, that I'm having nightmares about her dying.
As for the rest, I'm advocating for her as strongly as I can. I am hard questions and confront the issues. I listen to what she says, and what the professionals are saying. I stay strong most of the time, but other times it hurts so much, that I can't stop crying.
As you can imagine, it is a bitter sweet thing that my daughter is now discharging in 2 days. I missed her so very much and honestly am happy to have her home, and maybe provide some normalcy for her. On the other hand, I am afraid that I will not be able to keep her safe. The environment at home and at school can not be cleaned entirely of potential weapons. I also am not able to provide 24 hours of supervision (this is a big deal since she sometimes will not sleep when she is having a bad day). I am scared and excited about her discharge. I wish this room was more active with members going through similar situations. I really need the support of someone that is going through this, or has gone through this.