TW : 15 year old daughter with risky behaviour.

[chasingrainbows]

My 15 year old daughter has been school refusal since last year. I am not sure what came first. Adolescence, Lockdown, best friend leaving to go to a new school, her father moving further away from us and has a young child (she no longer has contact with her father), non consensual sex, school fight that went viral in the first few weeks of her new school start, the pressure of living in a household after I lost my business during lockdown, overall a hot house of problems.

She now smokes marijuana regularly (almost everyday), wakes up late and is living a life that is pulling her away from school, family and regular life..

I have tried empathy, tough love, no love, enabling.

I am at wits end to know how to turn this around so that she has all the choices in life that a 15 year old should have.

[Iona_RO]

Hi @chasingrainbows 

Thank you for sharing with us what's going on for you and your daughter at the moment. It certainly sounds like you've both been through a huge amount of stress, change and distress recently. 

I'm wondering with everything that's happened, has your daughter been able to connect with her GP or therapist to get some support? I imagine things have been tough for you too throughout this, have you been able to talk to anyone and get some support for yourself too?

I'm going to send you an email as well, look out for that arriving in your inbox soon.

[chasingrainbows]

Hi lona_RO,

Thank you for reaching out.

We have connected with both a GP and Pediatrician.

My daughter is currently in the care of the most amazing Theraphist.

I found support in calling Parents Line Victoria, but am second guessing my decisions.

I am a single parent and do not have anyone to buffer/advise on how to navigate tricky situations.

I look forward to receiving your email.

Kindly

Chasing Rainbows

[Pho-RO]

Hey @chasingrainbows I wanted to pop by, and first off just say that it is very clear to me that you are doing whatever you can to support your daughter to make good decisions, and that there can be a lot of frustrations to then watch her make the choices she is currently making. I wanted to share a couple resources that we have here on our website that may be helpful reads for you in navigating this situation: 

School Refusal

Practical Strategies for School Refusal

Addiction 

Alcohol & Drugs

You can also reach out to the folks over at Family Drug Support - they have info on their website and a helpline too. 

I hope you both find your way through these trying times, and we will be there to support you as best we can along the way. Let us know if there's any other support or resources we can help you with