Guest guest Posted July 20, 2011 Report Share Posted July 20, 2011 I keep telling her what she feels is part of her anxiety. At the start of the summer, her anxiety and OCD got so bad, one evening she asked me to PLEASE take her to the doctor because she couldn't stand how she felt anymore. We went to the er and the doc was wonderful with her. I was so impressed. He could not have handled her better. He explained all the things she was feeling was anxiety. He told her that he has anxiety and a lot of doctors do. He told her she would make a good doctor one day, since she understands all of this (since she was a toddler, she wanted to be a doc, so she loved that!).  He was so patient and kind. She is one who can feel EVERY TINY thing happening in her body and can tell one something is " off " even by a tiny bit. She has always been that way. We have done a lot of relaxtion techniques and when she is having one of these " episodes " , it is so extreme right now, that she just cannot calm down.  To add to the dehydration worry, she is worried that her cup is dirty or a bug is in it. She will only drink bottled water, from an unopened bottle, and once she has drank from it, she cannot drink from it again. I dont know if I should even buy bottled water anymore - not sure if that would help or make her really not drink and then really become dehydrated!! I have a home daycare and have a large group of older kids (all preschool and school age) and it has been rather hectic/loud/crazy here this summer. It has been very hot and humid. I think those things have made it more difficult for her to cope right now. Thanks Steph!Sharon To: Sent: Wednesday, July 20, 2011 9:14 AM Subject: Re: How do you know  Sharon, That does sound incredibly difficult. You seem like a wonderful, atentive mom with good instincts, and it sounds like you do a good job of walking the line between taking her concerns seriously and not letting them take over your lives. I think gave you good advice. I'd probably have the heart checked to rule it out and downplay the other stuff, while offering solutions (e.g. drink more water). I'm also wondering whether she's experiencing some real physical symptoms (changes in heartrate, stomachaches) due to her anxiety? Would she be open to learning relaxation techniques? Steph in Virginia (17 y/o dd with OCD, anxiety/depression, Asperger's, and NVLD) > > Gosh Sharon, you brought back memories! was like that. And even with my other 2 sons, I'm not one who took them to the doctor for any little thing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted July 20, 2011 Report Share Posted July 20, 2011 I usually buy those, the really small ones. She still doesnt finish them. I told her I was going to charge her for them, since she is wasting them (actually I am drinking what she doesnt finish). She got very upset, apologized, said she just cant help it.  <sigh>  I called to schedule her doc appt for her heart missing a beat feeling. Now I feel like a horrible mom. They were shocked I wasnt rushing her into the er as soon as it started. I tried explaining her anxiety and ocd, and they just wanted me to say and acknowledge that something could be wrong with her heart, but I am waiting to see her doc tomorrow (no appts with him today and nearly impossible to have my daycare parents come pick up their kids so I could take her today).  They said to take her to the er if anything changed or got worse. I called dh at work and he agrees she is ok to wait til tomorrow. He is actually going to be the one to take her in, so that should be interesting! I would rather do it, but it is much easier for him to take the time off with no notice than it is for me.  Sharon To: " " < > Sent: Wednesday, July 20, 2011 9:57 AM Subject: Re: Re: How do you know  I have seen very tiny bottles of water, I think at Trader Joes. It might help to get a small bottle she can down in one swallow?  Good luck I could have freed hundreds more if only I had been able to convince them they were slaves. Harriet Tubman To: " " < > Sent: Wednesday, July 20, 2011 7:29 AM Subject: Re: Re: How do you know  I keep telling her what she feels is part of her anxiety. At the start of the summer, her anxiety and OCD got so bad, one evening she asked me to PLEASE take her to the doctor because she couldn't stand how she felt anymore. We went to the er and the doc was wonderful with her. I was so impressed. He could not have handled her better. He explained all the things she was feeling was anxiety. He told her that he has anxiety and a lot of doctors do. He told her she would make a good doctor one day, since she understands all of this (since she was a toddler, she wanted to be a doc, so she loved that!).  He was so patient and kind. She is one who can feel EVERY TINY thing happening in her body and can tell one something is " off " even by a tiny bit. She has always been that way. We have done a lot of relaxtion techniques and when she is having one of these " episodes " , it is so extreme right now, that she just cannot calm down.  To add to the dehydration worry, she is worried that her cup is dirty or a bug is in it. She will only drink bottled water, from an unopened bottle, and once she has drank from it, she cannot drink from it again. I dont know if I should even buy bottled water anymore - not sure if that would help or make her really not drink and then really become dehydrated!! I have a home daycare and have a large group of older kids (all preschool and school age) and it has been rather hectic/loud/crazy here this summer. It has been very hot and humid. I think those things have made it more difficult for her to cope right now. Thanks Steph!Sharon To: Sent: Wednesday, July 20, 2011 9:14 AM Subject: Re: How do you know  Sharon, That does sound incredibly difficult. You seem like a wonderful, atentive mom with good instincts, and it sounds like you do a good job of walking the line between taking her concerns seriously and not letting them take over your lives. I think gave you good advice. I'd probably have the heart checked to rule it out and downplay the other stuff, while offering solutions (e.g. drink more water). I'm also wondering whether she's experiencing some real physical symptoms (changes in heartrate, stomachaches) due to her anxiety? Would she be open to learning relaxation techniques? Steph in Virginia (17 y/o dd with OCD, anxiety/depression, Asperger's, and NVLD) > > Gosh Sharon, you brought back memories! was like that. And even with my other 2 sons, I'm not one who took them to the doctor for any little thing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted July 20, 2011 Report Share Posted July 20, 2011 Yah, you know her heart is okay. But, the nagging feeling 'what if THIS time she actually does need medical attention?'  I guess it is kind of like her nagging feelings?  I have encouraged yoga, without much luck  What I have found, with my child, is that when I have her close to the Earth, she relaxes. I can't explain it, but around running water, big trees, she seems closer to happy then at any other time.  Around animals like horses make a difference too.  If I could wave a magic wand and take her away, we'd live on a mountian somewhere, grow our own food. No traffic, no smog, no TV, no cusdoty battle  I want her in a place she can breath, ya know? I feel like, if I can tease out ALL enviormental contrbutions to this, then we can deal with her actual issues.   Meanwhile, I guess I just hold onto the image of who I know she is underneath. She really is the sweetst kid. I had pushed her to read a 'thick book' and move past Junie B . She was SO frightened to even try. She said she could not read thick books, even if it meant she never went to college or the 4th grade. I told her we'd go to the zoo when she had finished. She pushed herself to finish the book in time to go to the zoo for my birthday becasue she knew I really wanted to go. It was part of her gift to me. She is a good reader, so I was not funnly understanding her fear about thick books. When she read the final few chapters out loud to me, I was shocked. I don't know when this started, but when she reaches the end of a page she goes back and rereads the last sentence of each paragraph and if a sentence contains an odd number of words, she rereads that too. No wonder it took her so long! Poor kid and WOW, what a gift that she pushed herself to finish. I struggle with, do I push her to keep reading? Or to I accomidtae and get books on tape? I wish I had not lost that guide book that came with her when she was born To: " " < > Sent: Wednesday, July 20, 2011 8:28 AM Subject: Re: Re: How do you know  I usually buy those, the really small ones. She still doesnt finish them. I told her I was going to charge her for them, since she is wasting them (actually I am drinking what she doesnt finish). She got very upset, apologized, said she just cant help it.  <sigh>  I called to schedule her doc appt for her heart missing a beat feeling. Now I feel like a horrible mom. They were shocked I wasnt rushing her into the er as soon as it started. I tried explaining her anxiety and ocd, and they just wanted me to say and acknowledge that something could be wrong with her heart, but I am waiting to see her doc tomorrow (no appts with him today and nearly impossible to have my daycare parents come pick up their kids so I could take her today).  They said to take her to the er if anything changed or got worse. I called dh at work and he agrees she is ok to wait til tomorrow. He is actually going to be the one to take her in, so that should be interesting! I would rather do it, but it is much easier for him to take the time off with no notice than it is for me.  Sharon To: " " < > Sent: Wednesday, July 20, 2011 9:57 AM Subject: Re: Re: How do you know  I have seen very tiny bottles of water, I think at Trader Joes. It might help to get a small bottle she can down in one swallow?  Good luck I could have freed hundreds more if only I had been able to convince them they were slaves. Harriet Tubman To: " " < > Sent: Wednesday, July 20, 2011 7:29 AM Subject: Re: Re: How do you know  I keep telling her what she feels is part of her anxiety. At the start of the summer, her anxiety and OCD got so bad, one evening she asked me to PLEASE take her to the doctor because she couldn't stand how she felt anymore. We went to the er and the doc was wonderful with her. I was so impressed. He could not have handled her better. He explained all the things she was feeling was anxiety. He told her that he has anxiety and a lot of doctors do. He told her she would make a good doctor one day, since she understands all of this (since she was a toddler, she wanted to be a doc, so she loved that!).  He was so patient and kind. She is one who can feel EVERY TINY thing happening in her body and can tell one something is " off " even by a tiny bit. She has always been that way. We have done a lot of relaxtion techniques and when she is having one of these " episodes " , it is so extreme right now, that she just cannot calm down.  To add to the dehydration worry, she is worried that her cup is dirty or a bug is in it. She will only drink bottled water, from an unopened bottle, and once she has drank from it, she cannot drink from it again. I dont know if I should even buy bottled water anymore - not sure if that would help or make her really not drink and then really become dehydrated!! I have a home daycare and have a large group of older kids (all preschool and school age) and it has been rather hectic/loud/crazy here this summer. It has been very hot and humid. I think those things have made it more difficult for her to cope right now. Thanks Steph!Sharon To: Sent: Wednesday, July 20, 2011 9:14 AM Subject: Re: How do you know  Sharon, That does sound incredibly difficult. You seem like a wonderful, atentive mom with good instincts, and it sounds like you do a good job of walking the line between taking her concerns seriously and not letting them take over your lives. I think gave you good advice. I'd probably have the heart checked to rule it out and downplay the other stuff, while offering solutions (e.g. drink more water). I'm also wondering whether she's experiencing some real physical symptoms (changes in heartrate, stomachaches) due to her anxiety? Would she be open to learning relaxation techniques? Steph in Virginia (17 y/o dd with OCD, anxiety/depression, Asperger's, and NVLD) > > Gosh Sharon, you brought back memories! was like that. And even with my other 2 sons, I'm not one who took them to the doctor for any little thing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted July 20, 2011 Report Share Posted July 20, 2011 Reading your post about your daughters heart and you feeling bad because they acted like you should have took her to the ER, WELL you can't win in this situations my son was having terrible headaches for weeks and I kept taking him to the doctor and just to be safe got a MRI of hid brain those doctors acted like I was wrong fir taking him in all the time. People don't understand this disease they look at you like your crazy trying to explain it. Right now my son is having headaches and nausea I know its his anxiety . Having said all this I think that will be your docs diagnosis either panic which mimics heart attacks or palpitations OR anxiety Re: How do you know Sharon, That does sound incredibly difficult. You seem like a wonderful, atentive mom with good instincts, and it sounds like you do a good job of walking the line between taking her concerns seriously and not letting them take over your lives. I think gave you good advice. I'd probably have the heart checked to rule it out and downplay the other stuff, while offering solutions (e.g. drink more water). I'm also wondering whether she's experiencing some real physical symptoms (changes in heartrate, stomachaches) due to her anxiety? Would she be open to learning relaxation techniques? Steph in Virginia (17 y/o dd with OCD, anxiety/depression, Asperger's, and NVLD) > > Gosh Sharon, you brought back memories! was like that. And even with my other 2 sons, I'm not one who took them to the doctor for any little thing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted July 20, 2011 Report Share Posted July 20, 2011 exactly! oh well, at least we will be sure. i am pretty sure it is anxiety/panic. keep you posted. thanks Sharon To: Sent: Wednesday, July 20, 2011 11:26 AM Subject: RE: Re: How do you know  Reading your post about your daughters heart and you feeling bad because they acted like you should have took her to the ER, WELL you can't win in this situations my son was having terrible headaches for weeks and I kept taking him to the doctor and just to be safe got a MRI of hid brain those doctors acted like I was wrong fir taking him in all the time. People don't understand this disease they look at you like your crazy trying to explain it. Right now my son is having headaches and nausea I know its his anxiety . Having said all this I think that will be your docs diagnosis either panic which mimics heart attacks or palpitations OR anxiety Re: How do you know Sharon, That does sound incredibly difficult. You seem like a wonderful, atentive mom with good instincts, and it sounds like you do a good job of walking the line between taking her concerns seriously and not letting them take over your lives. I think gave you good advice. I'd probably have the heart checked to rule it out and downplay the other stuff, while offering solutions (e.g. drink more water). I'm also wondering whether she's experiencing some real physical symptoms (changes in heartrate, stomachaches) due to her anxiety? Would she be open to learning relaxation techniques? Steph in Virginia (17 y/o dd with OCD, anxiety/depression, Asperger's, and NVLD) > > Gosh Sharon, you brought back memories! was like that. And even with my other 2 sons, I'm not one who took them to the doctor for any little thing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted July 20, 2011 Report Share Posted July 20, 2011 Yes, that is exactly it, the " what if " feeling. We used to do yoga, but havent in awhile. She never liked it, but it did help. We can at least get back to doing more stretching and relaxing things before bed. Deep breathing helps her, too. My dd is the SAME way as yours, when she is close to earth. Water, especially - even the swimming pool or bath tub help. Being at the lake, in the woods, on trails, etc help. She knows this. But then the anxiety about bugs comes to play. And dehydration. And heat stroke. Etc. That is great that she was able to read a thick book! And good that she was able to tell you the problem. Good job! Sharon To: " " < > Sent: Wednesday, July 20, 2011 10:45 AM Subject: Re: Re: How do you know  Yah, you know her heart is okay. But, the nagging feeling 'what if THIS time she actually does need medical attention?'  I guess it is kind of like her nagging feelings?  I have encouraged yoga, without much luck  What I have found, with my child, is that when I have her close to the Earth, she relaxes. I can't explain it, but around running water, big trees, she seems closer to happy then at any other time.  Around animals like horses make a difference too.  If I could wave a magic wand and take her away, we'd live on a mountian somewhere, grow our own food. No traffic, no smog, no TV, no cusdoty battle  I want her in a place she can breath, ya know? I feel like, if I can tease out ALL enviormental contrbutions to this, then we can deal with her actual issues.   Meanwhile, I guess I just hold onto the image of who I know she is underneath. She really is the sweetst kid. I had pushed her to read a 'thick book' and move past Junie B . She was SO frightened to even try. She said she could not read thick books, even if it meant she never went to college or the 4th grade. I told her we'd go to the zoo when she had finished. She pushed herself to finish the book in time to go to the zoo for my birthday becasue she knew I really wanted to go. It was part of her gift to me. She is a good reader, so I was not funnly understanding her fear about thick books. When she read the final few chapters out loud to me, I was shocked. I don't know when this started, but when she reaches the end of a page she goes back and rereads the last sentence of each paragraph and if a sentence contains an odd number of words, she rereads that too. No wonder it took her so long! Poor kid and WOW, what a gift that she pushed herself to finish. I struggle with, do I push her to keep reading? Or to I accomidtae and get books on tape? I wish I had not lost that guide book that came with her when she was born To: " " < > Sent: Wednesday, July 20, 2011 8:28 AM Subject: Re: Re: How do you know  I usually buy those, the really small ones. She still doesnt finish them. I told her I was going to charge her for them, since she is wasting them (actually I am drinking what she doesnt finish). She got very upset, apologized, said she just cant help it.  <sigh>  I called to schedule her doc appt for her heart missing a beat feeling. Now I feel like a horrible mom. They were shocked I wasnt rushing her into the er as soon as it started. I tried explaining her anxiety and ocd, and they just wanted me to say and acknowledge that something could be wrong with her heart, but I am waiting to see her doc tomorrow (no appts with him today and nearly impossible to have my daycare parents come pick up their kids so I could take her today).  They said to take her to the er if anything changed or got worse. I called dh at work and he agrees she is ok to wait til tomorrow. He is actually going to be the one to take her in, so that should be interesting! I would rather do it, but it is much easier for him to take the time off with no notice than it is for me.  Sharon To: " " < > Sent: Wednesday, July 20, 2011 9:57 AM Subject: Re: Re: How do you know  I have seen very tiny bottles of water, I think at Trader Joes. It might help to get a small bottle she can down in one swallow?  Good luck I could have freed hundreds more if only I had been able to convince them they were slaves. Harriet Tubman To: " " < > Sent: Wednesday, July 20, 2011 7:29 AM Subject: Re: Re: How do you know  I keep telling her what she feels is part of her anxiety. At the start of the summer, her anxiety and OCD got so bad, one evening she asked me to PLEASE take her to the doctor because she couldn't stand how she felt anymore. We went to the er and the doc was wonderful with her. I was so impressed. He could not have handled her better. He explained all the things she was feeling was anxiety. He told her that he has anxiety and a lot of doctors do. He told her she would make a good doctor one day, since she understands all of this (since she was a toddler, she wanted to be a doc, so she loved that!).  He was so patient and kind. She is one who can feel EVERY TINY thing happening in her body and can tell one something is " off " even by a tiny bit. She has always been that way. We have done a lot of relaxtion techniques and when she is having one of these " episodes " , it is so extreme right now, that she just cannot calm down.  To add to the dehydration worry, she is worried that her cup is dirty or a bug is in it. She will only drink bottled water, from an unopened bottle, and once she has drank from it, she cannot drink from it again. I dont know if I should even buy bottled water anymore - not sure if that would help or make her really not drink and then really become dehydrated!! I have a home daycare and have a large group of older kids (all preschool and school age) and it has been rather hectic/loud/crazy here this summer. It has been very hot and humid. I think those things have made it more difficult for her to cope right now. Thanks Steph!Sharon To: Sent: Wednesday, July 20, 2011 9:14 AM Subject: Re: How do you know  Sharon, That does sound incredibly difficult. You seem like a wonderful, atentive mom with good instincts, and it sounds like you do a good job of walking the line between taking her concerns seriously and not letting them take over your lives. I think gave you good advice. I'd probably have the heart checked to rule it out and downplay the other stuff, while offering solutions (e.g. drink more water). I'm also wondering whether she's experiencing some real physical symptoms (changes in heartrate, stomachaches) due to her anxiety? Would she be open to learning relaxation techniques? Steph in Virginia (17 y/o dd with OCD, anxiety/depression, Asperger's, and NVLD) > > Gosh Sharon, you brought back memories! was like that. And even with my other 2 sons, I'm not one who took them to the doctor for any little thing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted July 23, 2011 Report Share Posted July 23, 2011 I am aware of pandas, but not the others. I am pretty sure it is hereditary (I feel that me, my sister, my mom, my grandma all have OCD, but it has never been diagnosed). We are changing therapists, so when we get started at the new one, I will ask them about it. She does mention smells, but it is usually beacuse she is sure she is smelling/inhaling a poision that will kill/injure her. Also, we have seen signs of OCD and anxiety since she was 2 yrs old, she is 10 now. Looking back at younger than 2, there was probably something there, but being so young, we didnt know/see it. thanks Sharon To: Sent: Friday, July 22, 2011 1:30 PM Subject: Re: How do you know  Has anyone suggested testing her for Lyme, Bartonella and other tick-borne illnesses? First off, Bartonella is being implicated in more and more cases of OCD and other psychiatric illnesses - especially in children. Secondly, many of the physical symptoms she is complaining of are additional symptoms of Bartonella and other t.b.i's such as Lyme. For example, irregular heart beats, oxygen deprivation. Smell sensitivity is another example. My dd9's OCD first started when she was 7. After a few months, we determined it was due to PANDAS and treated accordingly with great results (for several months). Then, after a pretty intense decline over the winter, she was tested for all of the above. Her results were positive for Bartonella, Ehrlichiosis (the jury is still out on Lyme). Once we started the treatment for Bartonella, she started improving again. She is at about 80% right now... (We are unsure whether she has PANDAS, too, or whether the Bartonella has been the cause all along...but either way, antibiotics are the medications helping her). So, I guess I would encourage you to explore this route since it could either be the root cause of the OCD and/or the cause of the physical symptoms she is complaining of. Please let me know if you have any questions. Kara > > My dd is 10 and says things are wrong with her body all the time. Her heart skips a beat. She can't breath. She thinks she is dehydrated. She is sure she is going to have a heart attack. She has a lump in her throat. She is afraid she is going to get cancer. She smells a toxic smell. Etc, etc, etc, etc. How do you know when to listen and take it seriously? I hate to have something actually wrong with her and ignore it. In the past, she complained her ears hurt and I finally took her in. She had a BAD double ear infection and the doc seemed shocked I would not have brought her in earlier. Things like that have happened in the past. It is like The Boy Who Cried Wolf, I never know what to believe or when to take her seriously. She has started the heart skipping a beat thing recently and my husband thinks I should have that looked at, that her heart is too serious to ignore. I will make a doc appt for that, I agree with dh, > but also know the chance of her having a real problem is low and then I am just feeding in to her OCD. She comes to me about 95% of the time with these things, needing reassurance. I usually ignore her, have her answer her own question, tell her she knows the answer, things like that. When she has had a particularily difficult day, I do tell her the reason I won't answer her is because it is her OCD asking and my answering will make it worse. I tell her I do love her, and that it isn't that I don't care about her and am not concerned about her. I tell her I know she is healthy and if I really thought something was wrong with her, I would take her to the doctor. I also don't know if I SHOULD answer some of her questions. She is very smart and loves to learn. Sometimes when she asks questions, I hate to not answer because I know she loves to learn and so many of them are learning opportunities. I hate to have her miss out on that > learning opportunity. But, it is usually her OCD making her ask me. So I am torn. > Thanks > Sharon > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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