"There's nothing wrong.."
That's what I kept telling myself over and over when we first noticed our oldest daughter was having some attention struggles.
She could NOT focus! I mean really couldn't focus. She was fine while she was on task. As soon as she wasn't there was no going back.
I kept thinking it was just "kid stuff" that she would "get through this phase" of not being able to sit still.
My instincts were YELLING at me. No. It's not just a phase, she's seriously struggling.
Her teacher at school would send multiple notes home per week about her inability to stand in line, be still, complete work, or even finish all of her lunch!
I noted every single activity the teacher noticed that she was having a hard time with. I noticed the pattern and we decided to get a second opinion. A professional opinion.
Within a few weeks we had her going to see a counselor outside of school. They did an evaluation(just a question and answer session) with my daughter and that lasted about an hour. They asked her about her emotions and basically wanted to know that makes her "tick".
She did extremely well! Answered all her questions and didn't seem nervous at all :) I am so proud of her!
After her evaluation, the next few weeks we spent with a counselor doing sessions and trying to connect where she starts to fall into distraction. She said it was evident that she experiences HIGH amounts of anxiety and we spoke about her "acting out" (what I thought was acting out) was actually moderate to severe panic attacks.
The counselor reassured what I already knew: None of it was my fault, none of it was my daughter's fault. But now we must take the techniques and steps to making life a smooth ride for our little girl.
A lot of her anxiety was triggered by school. So we all came to the mutual agreement that Homeschool was the best option and route to go with. We have found a program that we like so far! It best fits our family needs and Zoey's needs! We think it's going to exceptional for her!
Do you have a child that suffers from Anxiety, ADHD, or panic attacks? I'd really love to connect with other parents that know what i'm going through!
