It is 5am. I can’t sleep.
Later today the whole family is going to visit David. Can we say I feel a little angst about this?
Yes we can.
See, we have more than one child with emotional needs. More than one child with an Autism diagnosis. More than one child with feelings of angst, feelings of sadness and worry.
Will David erupt? Will he be mellow like he was this past week for his mom and I?
I don’t know. When dealing with mental illness, there are no guarantees. No promises.
Medication can only bring him part way.
How do we handle things if the visit goes bad? Do we continue to bring the other children for future visits and risk harm to their emotional state?
Where do we draw the line?
Don’t mistake this as us giving up on David. This isn’t that. This is us, worrying about our other children.
We can not forget that there is more in our lives than just David. We can not forget that David is a part of our family.
How do we find balance?
Related articles
- Explaining mental illness to the siblings. (whynotfathers.com)
- What’s the connection between autism and depression? (pattidudek.typepad.com)
- Are Mental Illnesses Being Overdiagnosed? (edwardhotspur.wordpress.com)
- Heidegger & Being; Part One (volitionsphilosophy.wordpress.com)
- Abnormal Is the New Normal (slate.com)
- CDC Announces One in Five Children Has a Mental Illness in the U.S. (counselheal.com)
- Attention deficit leads US kids’ mental health problems, CDC reports (vitals.nbcnews.com)