Mothers and Daughters
Sometimes I wonder if I am screwing up my kids or if they are screwing up me. A part of me has always thought that somehow my mother’s issues became my issues, and as hard as I try not to be like my mother…I’ve become my mother. Frankly, I think mothers are the reason therapists have jobs.
So, as I raise my daughters, I worry how much my issues and neuroses have affected them. Am I setting them up for years of therapy?
Therapy around our house is commonplace. For the last six years, one or all of us has seen a therapist on a fairly regular basis. Therapy has helped us diagnosis, understand, and cope with our children’s reactive attachment disorder.
It’s not just… [more]
Being Real…Too Much of a Good Thing?
On Saturday, my day revolved around attending and presenting at the first conference put on by the Northwest Georgia Adoptive and Foster Parent Association. It was a great conference. And the organizers of the event (two foster moms and several others who helped) were cool, calm and truly organized.
My topic was “Attachment 101 – Basic Attachment Issues for Children with Traumatic Pasts.” Interestingly enough, I was the third person on the agenda to speak on that topic…speaking in the last slot of the day.
So, I arrived early enough to hear one of the other speakers addressing this topic, and have lunch with her and her husband. She heads a very active advocacy group for foster parents in a neighboring state and… [more]
Wiped Out!
It’s happening more and more in response to LuLu’s explosions…I shut down. By the time I got us safely home from church last night, I was wiped out. I had plenty of other things to accomplish this evening, as it was only 8:30, but my brain was mush. And my body could barely move.
I actually snuggled and consoled LuLu, and she calmed down, only to flare again, so I gave her the additional medication she takes when she can’t calm down, and hurried her off to bed…mostly because I had had enough!
I can’t describe the “shut down” feeling to those who haven’t experienced it. I’m assuming it is secondary PTSD or in other words, my trauma response. And mine… [more]
