my 11 year old daughter....

My daughter is 11 years old and she has the following diagnosis' - generalized anxiety disorder, dyslexia and adhd. Her anxiety seems to be getting the best of her to the point that she does not want to shower because she is afraid someone will come in the house, a plane will crash into the house or something will come through the floor. She does not watch scary movies because of her anxiety and nightmares. She is perfectly okay with not showering. She still wears a pull up at night because she will wet the bed... her doctor says that she is still in the normal range for this. She struggles socially at school and school is hard enough with her ADHD and dyslexia. She gets scared of my low fuel light come on in the car and thinks we will run out of gas. She does not get out of bed in the morning because she is scared that something may happen or may have already happened so she just stays in bed. Then other times like riding the bus home she really enjoys even though its a long and very active bus. She has a history of hitting her older brother when she gets mad. She will get so upset over the smallest things and will storm off to her room. She seems to have her feelings on her shoulder all the time and we don't know if the next thing we say or do will make her upset.

I feel like I'm rambling but I just feel lost with helping her. She has received counseling in the past and the counselor moved. Her new counselor is the parent of a child in her girl scout troop and she is afraid to open up to her.

Thanks

triceps said:

Hi princess and welcome. That's a tough trio of disorders your daughter has. It's great she enjoys the long bus rides. Hopefully she can handle long rides in your car also. Is she on any medication? What a bad break having her initial counselor move. Hopefully she'll open up with her new counselor with time. I'm sure she worries about her confidentiality. All I can say is that you're a saint for taking care of all that's on your plate right now. Are you also tackling this as a single mother? Well, we're here for you to help in any way we can.

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Thank you for replying. She is prescribed Straterra for her ADHD and it also helps with Anxiety. However, its a huge battle every day to get her to take it and because school is hard if she has a rough morning it leads to a bad day. She tells me that she does not think the medication helps. I am married and her dad is involved however due to his job he goes to bed around 8pm and gets up around 3am.

breathe1 said:

Hi, Princess! I have a daughter, too! I know those situations all too well when my little girl becomes afraid or becomes unsure of herself in a particular situation. What I usually do is hug her and reassure her that all is well and that her feelings are normal and they will pass. As parents, what we say to our kids (and how we say it) is powerful, especially in a stressful / fear invoking situation. I think the reassurance of a love and safety through a hug and encouraging words help ease the anxiety or fear. Remember, a touch, a hug, brings about oxytocin, the hormone that promotes love and well-being. This is my go-to when my daughter is in any way feeling anxious. I hope that helps.

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I do try to be reassuring with her anxiety and remind to her take deep breaths and I check on her when she is the shower. I just feel for her because it seems like most areas of her life are a struggle