OCD and taking care of children - Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) Message Board

irishmom1 · 05-24-2007, 08:10 AM

I read so many posts about harming thoughts, panic attacks, anxiety. For those of you that have children, how do you handle this stuff and take care of your children?

Anxiety makes me mentally weak. I have a very hard time especially in the mornings because I wake up in a panic. Anx makes me feel that I don't have any common sense. then I worry that I can't take care of my son.

I keep alot to myself. Put on a happy face when inside I'm a ball of nerves.

How do you cope in taking care of your children?

seriousperson · 05-24-2007, 11:08 PM

If I knew 20 or 30 years ago what I now know about my mental health, I would never have had children. But then without my children I doubt I would have survived this long. Anyway, in spite of it all, they have turned out fairly well.

Looking back, I think the immediacy of their needs helped distract me from that first-thing-in-the-morning anxiety. I was able to take things one (or two or three) at a time.

That doesn't mean that there weren't times when I felt like I was at the end of it all with regards to being a parent. Then I would call other parents who would give me advice of varying degrees of usefulness. And I would read books on parenting. My middle daughter has the most mental health issues (she's like me) and I still remember about 15 years ago getting a book from a library at the daycare center titled, "The Difficult Child." It was good to read a book that actually described children like mine.

Probably the best thing I ever did as a parent was apologizing to them for the way I acted when I was emotionally not very adult. That, and telling them I love them. Those two things can make up for a lot of shortcomings.

findingbalance · 05-25-2007, 06:10 AM

I am so grateful that I have my two boys. There are times when I feel guilty about them having to deal with a mom who has a mental disease. They give me a reason to keep going; to wake up and face the morning when I don't want to. They give me unconditional love and the strength to keep moving. So I keep fighting this illness. At times I am just going through the motions. I too apologize when I am in a particularly bad mood or having a rough day. When they are older, I will openly discuss my health with them and answer their questions. I tell them I love them all the time. I have a very supportive husband who is always there to help. In short I do the best I can. Every family has difficulties, many families deal with one disease or another. The important thing is to keep trying, keep moving, keep loving, and keep fighting.