Something quite daunting has been on my mind lately. That something is the question of how would I handle it if one of our children were ever diagnosed with a disorder, whether it be anxiety, depression, or something else. What prompted this topic to be on mind so much is a pattern I had been noticing on a tight-knit online forum community of mostly parents to which I belong. It is a place where most everyone feels comfortable enough to open up about things that may be too uncomfortable to discuss with someone face-to-face.
One day, a fellow-parent brought up the subject of their child possibly suffering from a particular disorder. Because this parent felt comfortable enough to start the discussion, a slew of other parents came forward about how they suspected the same thing in their children or with stories about how their own children had already been diagnosed. Since this is a fairly small online community, I was quite astonished at the number of parents who came forward. Out of curiosity, I started looking up information about PCH treatment for children online. I was floored by the amount of information out there, both from parents and professionals.
In general, I am not overly worried about our children, but some thoughts sneak into my head once in awhile. For example, one of our children gets upset very easily and seems to have less coping skills than his brother and sister. More than once I have wondered whether he has an anxiety disorder, especially when he gets so upset over somethings that are so small to the point where he begins to hyperventilate.
Have you ever had similar thoughts to this about your own children?