Families of Depressed & Bipolar Kids Community
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Our current situation
concerneddad40 posted:
Hello,
My 13 yo son showed signs of deppression July of last year and later ran away but was found quickly by the sherrif. We got him into to see a therapist who stated he had mild depression and that he did not require meds. Mar 23 at about noon he tried taking his life, thank god the shower rod could not hold his weight and broke. He is currently admitted as an inpatient at a mental health institution for children. Tough choices, The family wants him out ofcourse but doctors and social workers are recommending an extended stay to build his confidence. My concern is the unfortunate consequences of leaving him there. He speaks of other children with problems all the time and I as a parent don't see how being surrounded by many children with multiple problems would help him. Is building confidence and slowly healing the shame he feels for what he has done more important than a safer environment? I feel we could help him more than a place filled with disfunctional teens ranging from the same problems he has to very disturbing mental conditions, but I am asking because I am talking about my son and ofcourse am basing my decisions right now on the love I have for my children as well as trying to do what he needs.
My 13 yo son showed signs of deppression July of last year and later ran away but was found quickly by the sherrif. We got him into to see a therapist who stated he had mild depression and that he did not require meds. Mar 23 at about noon he tried taking his life, thank god the shower rod could not hold his weight and broke. He is currently admitted as an inpatient at a mental health institution for children. Tough choices, The family wants him out ofcourse but doctors and social workers are recommending an extended stay to build his confidence. My concern is the unfortunate consequences of leaving him there. He speaks of other children with problems all the time and I as a parent don't see how being surrounded by many children with multiple problems would help him. Is building confidence and slowly healing the shame he feels for what he has done more important than a safer environment? I feel we could help him more than a place filled with disfunctional teens ranging from the same problems he has to very disturbing mental conditions, but I am asking because I am talking about my son and ofcourse am basing my decisions right now on the love I have for my children as well as trying to do what he needs.
1 Replies |Watch This Discussion | Report This| Share this:Our current situationHello,<br />My 13 yo son showed signs of deppression July of last year and later ran away but was found quickly by the sherrif. We got him into to see a therapist who stated he had mild depression and that he did not require meds. Mar 23 at about noon he tried taking his life, thank god the shower rod could not hold his weight and broke. He is currently admitted as an inpatient at a mental health institution for children. Tough choices, The family wants him out ofcourse but doctors and social workers are recommending an extended stay to build his confidence. My concern is the unfortunate consequences of leaving him there. He speaks of other children with problems all the time and I as a parent don't see how being surrounded by many children with multiple problems would help him. Is building confidence and slowly healing the shame he feels for what he has done more important than a safer environment? I feel we could help him more than a place filled with disfunctional teens ranging from the same problems he has to very disturbing mental conditions, but I am asking because I am talking about my son and ofcourse am basing my decisions right now on the love I have for my children as well as trying to do what he needs.
momuv4girls responded:
I am very sorry to hear about your son - this is SO very difficult, and you need a support system in place......for him and YOU !
First off, I would not go see that therapist again ! Hopefully, your son will get a knowledgeable, smart, board certified child psychiatrist to treat him, because in my opinion, a great psychiatrist can help your son get on-track and feel better quicker than anything else !!
It is hard to give advice about his facility - - there are good facilities and not-so-good facilities. You need to talk to his Dr.s and monitor his progress.
How is he doing with his meds? Is he becoming successful in therapy there? Do you have outside Dr.s in place if/when he does get discharged ?
I know how overwhelming this ALL is, and I'm so sorry you are faced with such unknown. You must arm yourself with knowledge and support.
I will pass along some links that will hopefully help you. Please write back anytime, I am happy to help anyway I can !!
http://www.aacap.org/cs/root/child_and_adolescent_psychiatrist_finder/child_and_adolescent_psychiatrist_finder
The Above link is to find a qualified Child Psychiatrist.
http://www.bpkids.org/flipswitch
The Above link has great info. about teen depression.
http://www.parentsmedguide.org/parentsmedguide.htm
The Above link is about medication for depression.
Okay, I don't want to completely overwhelm you right now, just wanted to help with info and resources.
I do have plenty more if / when you would like.
Try and take care of yourself and stay strong...you are not alone !!!!
((((((Hugs & support)))))
-Kathleen
First off, I would not go see that therapist again ! Hopefully, your son will get a knowledgeable, smart, board certified child psychiatrist to treat him, because in my opinion, a great psychiatrist can help your son get on-track and feel better quicker than anything else !!
It is hard to give advice about his facility - - there are good facilities and not-so-good facilities. You need to talk to his Dr.s and monitor his progress.
How is he doing with his meds? Is he becoming successful in therapy there? Do you have outside Dr.s in place if/when he does get discharged ?
I know how overwhelming this ALL is, and I'm so sorry you are faced with such unknown. You must arm yourself with knowledge and support.
I will pass along some links that will hopefully help you. Please write back anytime, I am happy to help anyway I can !!
http://www.aacap.org/cs/root/child_and_adolescent_psychiatrist_finder/child_and_adolescent_psychiatrist_finder
The Above link is to find a qualified Child Psychiatrist.
http://www.bpkids.org/flipswitch
The Above link has great info. about teen depression.
http://www.parentsmedguide.org/parentsmedguide.htm
The Above link is about medication for depression.
Okay, I don't want to completely overwhelm you right now, just wanted to help with info and resources.
I do have plenty more if / when you would like.
Try and take care of yourself and stay strong...you are not alone !!!!
((((((Hugs & support)))))
-Kathleen
Report This| Share this:Our current situationI am very sorry to hear about your son - this is SO very difficult, and you need a support system in place......for him and YOU !<br /><br />First off, I would <u>not</u> go see that therapist again ! Hopefully, your son will get a knowledgeable, smart, board certified child psychiatrist to treat him, because in my opinion, a great psychiatrist can help your son get on-track and feel better quicker than anything else !! <br /><br />It is hard to give advice about his facility - - there are good facilities and not-so-good facilities. You need to talk to his Dr.s and monitor his progress.<br /><br />How is he doing with his meds? Is he becoming successful in therapy there? Do you have outside Dr.s in place if/when he does get discharged ?<br /><br />I know how overwhelming this ALL is, and I'm so sorry you are faced with such unknown. You must arm yourself with knowledge and support.<br /><br />I will pass along some links that will hopefully help you. Please write back anytime, I am happy to help anyway I can !!<br /><br /><a rel="nofollow" href="http://www.aacap.org/cs/root/child_and_adolescent_psychiatrist_finder/child_and_adolescent_psychiatrist_finder">http://www.aacap.org/cs/root/child_and_adolescent_psychiatrist_finder/child_and_adolescent_psychiatrist_finder</a> <br /><br />The <u>Above </u>link is to find a qualified Child Psychiatrist.<br /><br /><a rel="nofollow" href="http://www.bpkids.org/flipswitch">http://www.bpkids.org/flipswitch</a> <br /><br />The<u> Above</u> link has great info. about teen depression.<br /><br /><a rel="nofollow" href="http://www.parentsmedguide.org/parentsmedguide.htm">http://www.parentsmedguide.org/parentsmedguide.htm</a> <br /><br />The<u> Above</u> link is about medication for depression.<br /><br />Okay, I don't want to completely overwhelm you right now, just wanted to help with info and resources. <br />I do have plenty more if / when you would like.<br /><br />Try and take care of yourself and stay strong...you are not alone !!!!<br />((((((Hugs & support)))))<br />-Kathleen
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