Bipolar Disorder in Children
Your kid is “up” one minute and “down” the next. Her moods swing with the alarming unpredictability of a roller coaster. It’s hard for a parent to know whether these mood swings are the normal emotional speed bumps of growing up, or whether they’re signs of an emotional disorder known as bipolar disease, or “manic depression.” It’s a condition marked by severe mood changes – soaring “highs” and bottomless “lows” – that happen for no obvious reason at all, and it’s tough for a parent to know when it’s time to get professional help.
In this episode of Keeping Kids Healthy, host Dr. Winnie King will introduce you to two adolescents who’ve been diagnosed with bipolar disease, and they’ll share with you what’s going on inside their heads as they and their families try to cope with their changing moods. And you’ll gain from the wisdom of two of the country’s leading experts on bipolar disorder, who will guide you through the most important tips for evaluating and treating your own child’s mood swings.
Guests:
Eva Kemp, age 13
Barbara Kemp, Eva’s mother
Kevin Reardon, age 12
Loretta Reardon, Kevin’s mother
Gabrielle Carlson, MD - Director, Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, Stony Brook School of Medicine, State University of New York at Stony Brook, NY; Symposium Chair and Presenter, American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry’s Annual Meeting, Bipolar Spectrum Disorders, 2004; Relevant Published Works Include: “Early Onset Bipolar Disorder: Clinical and Research Considerations,” in Journal of Clinical Child & Adolescent Psychology; Psychiatric Disorders in Children and Adolescents, published by W.B. Saunders Co., 1990.
Jill Goldberg Arnold, PhD - Consulting Psychologist, Multi-Family Psycho-Education for Families of Children with Bipolar Disorder, The Ohio State University, Division of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry; Relevant Published Works Include: Raising a Moody Child: How to Cope with Depression and Bipolar Disorder, with co-author Mary Fristad, PhD
Tips:
How Parents of Bipolar Kids Can Better Take Care of Themselves:
-
Be sure to take breaks, away from your kids. Access respite care through the state if you have to. You’re going to be a better parent if you are able to get away once in a while.
-
Preserve couple time
-
Be particularly careful to eat healthy
-
Make sure to get enough sleep
-
Exercise regularly
-
Do what you need to do, to build and maintain a support network for yourself – and use it!
-
Don’t try to do everything yourself!
-
Recognize that you have a tougher than average kid, and it’s ok to find and ask for help.
Resources:
American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
http://www.aacap.org/Children and Adolescent Bipolar Foundation
http://www.bpkids.org/National Alliance for the Mentally Ill
http://www.nami.org/For Parents who need info regarding schools:
Technical Assistance Alliance for Parent Centers.
http://www.taalliance.org/
888-248-0822
