Hi, Im a fellow parent that reads here when Im feeling a bit out on a limb and alone with my teenager & our troubles and occassionally chime in. I've learned from similar to be pretty private about things in other avenues. Sorry to hear of your troubles. Especially the part of the copping harsh judgements from people that may have no understanding or be able to check themselves for empathy towards your daughter, or be judgy and make you both feel worse without them even realising. Its good to hear what you wrote today that your daughter has let you know that shes been feeling- hurt & confused. Even if tomorrow she is back to silence, that sounds like a shift? Im just another parent struggling along with a teenager. But to me it sounds like your backing your daughter to do what she may want to do, with loving boundaries. Also letting her know shes got support. I hope it is a good week for you and your daughter and she can see that running away either physically or by shutting people & family out is not always a really workable solution. Its sometimes a feeling. Good luck with things. ... View more

Hi @sunflowermom , Thanks for your reply. I don't go on here super often. I also blink and have been working and parenting for a month sometimes it seems... Being able to take a holiday sounds amazing. I do hope you enjoyed it and with your other family members. It sounds like you really had earned it! Yes I liked your comments & I have learned this last 18 months or so to look at the little things more too. The beauty driving around or just a good nights sleep. I am not in full or even a medium crisis feeling tonight but am feeling a little ragged after my daughter stayed out all night in the streets over one of the nights of the weekend. She talks to me a fair bit and I will probably / hopefully hear what actually went on sometime later this week. I have to hope she can get through these risky behaviours. She is also showing some of the funny behaviour that can be before a not so good mental time, sleep patterns are out and she repeatedly writes a certain number. Time to check in with GP...She's in a very close close friendship with another girl, almost like an obsession and it seems they bring out the risk taking (or other things) in one another. This friend is in their own difficult situation or has behaviour that is ...I'll say tricky. The friend seems very much the dominant friend from my outside view. Yes I would like to get away from the foot dropping feeling one day but it seems far away after this weekend and a few recent dramas, some seem to come direct from friend. My daughter is currently refusing to see a counsellor at the momment, though did for a year after the attempt time- we just had the one.... I do see a therapist myself, now the crisis has lightened and I have a little more time to myself. It helps to come up with strategies and get other ideas. I think I am feeling a bit isolated by my daughter's behaviour lately. I feel for her being more isolated too. Many former friends seem to have dropped away....Mental illness is just not something people stand around talking about on the school pick ups. I hope things are good on your end with your daughter's schooling and it is so positive to hear it can come through to that place from extremes. I know you may have put an update elsewhere, but I hope it is a smooth week in your end of the world. 🌼🌻 ... View more

Yes, Thankyou for sharing the recovery journey as the last person has put it. Your ongoing sharing has helped me over again in weathering my own journey with my handful of a beautiful but (wild) child daughter. Even when things have been good I feel I'm just waiting on the other foot to drop at times. Hearing the running away story was hair raising. I am yet to go through this and hope not to...ever. It sounded like you turned it to positive somehow, what a feat! Thanks for sharing these hair raising experiences & the learning you have had with your child with other parents like me. Take care ... View more

Hi @taokat I have been reading on this forum after my daughter's attempt over a year ago. Your old posts and others sharing has helped me alot over this time to feel not alone. I go on the forum and read when I just think I can't do this. Then I know that theres lots of you out there and it feels a little bit better -Thank you. I want to say something as someone that has had various training, experience and interest in brains, trauma, people.....No expert but have been around long enough to learn things and still learning. I have sadly also the shared the experience first hand of what many here are dealing with or have dealt with as a carer/ parent of young one with mental health issues/ suicide attempts and what life looks like after that. Including the experiences with mental health professionals as a parent, which can be a whole thing of itself. I am getting off the point I wanted to make after reading your posted experience. I know nothing of who you went to see.... But the posted experience really made me upset to hear this said to you, another caring mother or how it was said. I raised my eyebrows and two things popped into my head 1) Was this mental health professional very young? Or less experienced....It sounds like they could either be very 'green' so could be into parroting the trauma brain developement theories at you because they were excited about these basic ideas that, yes can feed into supporting young people by helping to interpret their behavior as a form of communication. But just doesn't mean much in real life without the compassionate responses to the behaviours to back it up. or 2) Were they 'burnt out' and operating as a less than optimal communicator to be what sounded like very lacking in compassate attitude towards you, a primary carer of a fragile young one, who has in turn no doubt become fragile through loving the child they care for through All experiences and crisis as we do. Thus this professional may have felt the need to explain ideas in cold way that depersonalized you and made you feel well .. maybe made to feel below that person, by the sound and tone of the post - it sounded pretty yucky and rude to me. Just some musings. I hope you have moved on from the experience and if you need to deal with that person again for some reason that you can feel empowered, or hopefully not deal with them again? Whatever might be going on...It did just not sound like a quite right interaction. Best of luck with you daughters studies and getting along as joyfully as possible on bad days, as I try to do myself also. ... View more

Thanks for sharing your story. I am new to posting on forum but have found it very helpful reading, to not feel alone. I am a parent reaching 1 year since my beautiful then aged 14 yo daughter's suicide attempt , seemed out of the blue but it was all there in hindsight. All I can advise is take it day by day , be gentle with yourself and seek any and all supports, preferably that are not judgy. Im sorry to hear the mental health service is so slow, so soon after an attempt. Gosh. Your words 'doors slamming in the face' bought a tear to my eye as I am feeling like this today after banging my head on the wall, still trying in the process to access any ongoing services when the issues are still in effect for my daughter. Good luck with your son , moving through this time together. I can hear you are a concerned and loving parent in your words. ... View more