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Swapping ADHD Stress Stories

It helps, so much, to know I’m not the only mom that lets the stress of parenting an ADHD child get the best of her.
ADHD Parenting Blog | Tuesday January 13th - 5:32pm | More January 2009 Blogs
 
Parenting ADHD Children blogger Kay Marner is mother to an ADHD daughter in Ames, Iowa

Jennifer Choi commented on my recent blog post about how, in the course of trying to cope with parenting an ADHD child, I’ve been ignoring my diabetes. As the mom of two boys with ADHD and other special needs, she’s been there. She knows what can happen when mom ignores her own health.

A trip to the emergency room with a panic attack was her wake-up call to taking better care of herself. She now takes medication to treat her anxiety, as well as working on a variety of lifestyle changes and coping skills.

After Jenn commented on my blog, I paid a visit to hers: www.canmombecalm.blogspot.com. I intended to just take a quick peek, but ended up staying to read every post, then going back to it this morning (bleary-eyed, because Natalie was awake from 3:30-6:00 am) hungry for updates on Jenn and her two beautiful kids. This is a woman I could talk to, I thought. This is a woman I could be friends with. (Isn’t the Internet great?)

I feel really stupid about my frequent mini-breakdowns—my crying jags; the times I can’t cope with mothering a child with special needs and all the baggage that comes with it. But it helps—so much—to know I’m not the only mom that stress sometimes gets the best of!

If this topic hits a nerve with you, give Jenn’s blog a read. Then come back! I’ll share Nat’s latest med-change news with you tomorrow.

1 Comments:

  • Posted by Patti J. - Jan 16 2009 @ 1:54 PM
    1/16/09 blog
    Mornin' Kate, I have a 16 yr-old ADHD (stress the 'H' part) that I didn't sleep thru the nite for 4 years. I even stopped dreaming. Helped me get him on meds initially and finally got the Dr. that understood ADHD. With my 31 yr old and before menopause, I found I would have crying jags at least once a month! I used to call them my 'pity party days' when I felt sorry for myself and cried most of the day/nite. Then I got over it. It's ok. It's a way of letting some of the stress out. I don't have the same issues you have with your child, luckily for me, just the 'H' part of ADHD (and the ADD stuff too). But there are days---! Just got into your blog, it's great. It's nice to see that I'm not the only one that feels like everyone is waiting to put me down because my kid is not doing the things they think he should be doing, or that I am not discipline in the 'correct' way for my kid to be 'correct'. They just don't get it most of the time. Even my step-mom who taught these kinds of kids (and worse) for 17 years! Still learns some things from my son, yet also still expects him to be mentally mature and equal to other 16 yr olds. Not. Maybe it's just me and I have 'learned' not to expect him to be as mature and work around it to get him there. Not sure. Gotta go. Happy Friday. 3-day holiday this week.
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