My son started struggling when he was 13.
“My son started struggling when he was 13. We had suffered a family trauma and I hadn’t realized how much the kids had felt the stress. My two boys had seemed so resilient. But when he hit 15, the hoodie came up and the lights went out. My son was struggling with depression and suicidal ideation. I am so grateful that he came to me for help. I had not realized the depths of his pain. We had to start with an in-patient hospitalization to stabilize him and it was then that I began what became a very long journey of finding local resources that could support him and us when he got out.” Jake R.
My daughter struggles with an eating disorder.
“My daughter struggles with an eating disorder. I really knew nothing about this world. I thought it was just about social media pressure and the constant pressure on girls to be slim. I had noticed her getting thinner, but I also thought that she was just growing taller and she is an athlete. It took her pediatrician telling me that she was concerned. I am a totally type A person and quickly tried to find the best therapists in the field – only to find that none of them had any slots open. It was an incredibly frustrating process. As my daughter only seemed to get worse, we finally realized that we needed to send her to a residential treatment program with an expertise in eating disorders.” Anisha S.
My son has a language based learning disability and an IEP.
My son has a language based learning disability and an IEP. Throughout elementary school, he was able to create his own accommodations to succeed. We read aloud together. Created flashcards to study for tests. He built relationships with his teachers and invested them in his success.
However, middle school was a turning point. The curriculum became more challenging and he was no longer able to keep up academically. Throw in the social stigma of having to go to the “resource room” with a myriad of kids with different academic and behavioral issues. With the mounting stressors, he started to struggle with anxiety and was diagnosed with OCD. What we thought were academic coping mechanisms were in reality OCD. This included handwriting perseveration and perfectionism and repeatedly buying new school supplies.” Melinda W.
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I am a mother of three children. For years, it was my son who struggled
“I am a mother of three children. For years, it was my son who struggled, with extreme anxiety – around food and sleep when he was younger. As he grew older, the issues became more serious as he began smoking pot as a way of self-medicating. After years of therapy and trying different medications, it became clear to me and my husband (although we did not see eye to eye on this and that was it’s own stress) that he needed more help than we could provide at home. After many tears (on my part), we sent him to a wilderness program and, after that, a residential treatment program. It was a long and hard journey but it was the right thing to do for us and for him.” Maria J.
