Not a good week

[kate]

Thank you Lucky and Meg for your replies.

I will let you know as soon as I hear anything more. The Health Visitor said she would be in contact with the school nurse either today or Tuesday.

If no one has been in touch with me by Thursday I will phone the Health Visitor again.

Kate x

[Meg]

Yes , keep chasing them !!

Love

Meg

[Meg]

Kate - the latest research for you

Behavior Therapy Urged for Kids With OCD

If you have a child or teenager who suffers from obsessive-compulsive disorder, a new study strongly suggests that cognitive-behavior therapy should be part of any treatment plan.

The study, which appears in the Oct. 27 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association, found that cognitive-behavior therapy was more effective at relieving the symptoms of obsessive-compulsive disorder than treatment solely with the antidepressant sertraline (Zoloft). However, the study also found a combination of the two was the most effective of all.

"We examined the relative benefit of three active treatments -- cognitive-behavior therapy alone, medication management alone, a combination of the two -- and a placebo over 12 weeks," said study author Dr. John March, chief of child and adolescent psychiatry at Duke University Medical Center.

"We found that the combination of cognitive-behavior therapy and medication was superior. The response rates were quite a bit more robust for both cognitive-behavior components," he said. "The best treatment for obsessive-compulsive disorder is cognitive-behavior therapy."

Obsessive-compulsive disorder is an anxiety disorder that affects as many as 4 million Americans, according to the American Psychiatric Association. About one in every 200 American children has the disorder, according to the study.

The disorder causes people to obsess over certain situations, such as being contaminated by germs, worrying about causing harm to themselves or others, or being concerned that they will act inappropriately by swearing or making unwanted sexual advances, according to the American Psychiatric Association. People with obsessive-compulsive disorder usually understand their fear is excessive.

The compulsion part of the disorder arises out of a need to lessen discomfort and anxiety over the obsessive thoughts. For example, someone worried about germs might spend hours cleaning their homes or themselves. Some people repeat words or phrases or a behavior over and over again, hoping that these activities will protect them.

One hundred and twelve children with obsessive-compulsive disorder who were between the ages of 7 and 17 were recruited for the study. They were evenly divided and randomly assigned to one of four groups: cognitive-behavior therapy alone, medication management alone, a combination of cognitive-behavior therapy and medication, or placebo.

Ninety-seven youngsters completed 12 weeks of treatment, including 25 from the cognitive-behavior therapy group, 26 from the medication-alone group, 25 from the combination group, and 21 from the placebo arm.

The combination group fared the best, with nearly 54 percent reporting no symptoms of the disorder at the end of treatment. Just over 39 percent of the cognitive-behavior therapy alone group reported remission, and slightly more than 21 percent of those on medication alone reported no symptoms. Just 3.6 percent of those on placebo said their symptoms had been significantly reduced.

March said this study means that "if you have a child with obsessive-compulsive disorder, it's no longer reasonable not to include cognitive-behavior therapy in treatment."

He added that it's especially important to treat obsessive-compulsive disorder in children as quickly as possible, before the ritualistic behavior is further ingrained in the brain.

"I think this is a really important study," said Dr. Anne Marie Albano, a child psychologist at the New York State Psychiatric Institute. "Cognitive-behavior therapy is paramount to overcoming obsessive-compulsive disorder and medication is the ancillary treatment."

Albano added, "Cognitive-behavior therapy can relieve your child of a heavy burden in a short period of time."

March said he didn't know how long each treatment might last, but that "cognitive-behavior therapy seems to be a much more durable treatment. It teaches you a set of skills that should help you in relapse prevention."

A

[kate]

Meg,

Thanks very much for that.

I hadn't realised that OCD is so common - 1 in every 200 American children, amazing.

Will keep you posted.

Kate x

[Meg]

Kate,

You may find that you need to educate those around her at school such as teachers etc.

Don't assume they know about it. They may know the term OCD but not understand the implications as it affects her.

How is she taking it ?


Meg

It is impossible to get out of a problem by using the same kind of thinking that it took to get into it.
- Albert Einstein.

[kate]

Meg,

As soon as I hear word from the Health Visitor that the school nurse has been informed, I will be arranging a meeting with her form tutor and head of house.

On Friday, when her doctors appointment was, she was adamant that she wasn't going to go. I told her that the sooner treatment started the better her chances of overcoming it were.

She sat in the car outside the doctors and kept saying she wasn't going in and that she would rather suffer with it for the rest of her life than to discuss it with the doctor.

I just kept telling her that she WAS going in and eventually she got out of the car and we went in.

The doctor was very understanding and I got my daughter to answer questions about her symptoms to let her feel that she was more in control of the situation.

When we came out, she seemed very relieved and told me that she had thought that the doctor would have fired lots of questions at her and that she would have had to talk for ages about the rituals that she has to perform.

She said she was glad she had gone and seemed pleased that she would be getting help.

Today was the first day back to school after the half term.

She had bought herself a new pencil case and, cos of the way her anxieties manifest themselves, she had to ask me a couple of times whether it was ok to throw away her old pencil case, as her dad had bought it for her and she has to get someones approval that she is doing the right thing in throwing it away.

I just said that it was fine to throw it away and she actually let me put it in the dustbin.

It's as if she trusts me more to reassure her about the anxieties, as if we have a kind of small support group going between ourselves.

Overall I believe she is glad that she has seen the GP and that she may soon get some relief from the exhausting and frustrating rituals that she has to perform.

I still feel that I'm bobbing around in a vast sea trying to keep myself afloat.

Strange way of putting it, I know, but I feel that if I thought about it all for too long and in depth then I may well have a touch of the hysterics!

I feel so very sad about the whole thing.

I'm just waiting to hear from the Health Visitor or the school nurse so that I can get the ball rolling with the school.

I'll let you know as soon as I hear anything

Luv Kate x

[jill]

Hi Kate,

Sorry to hear what you and your daughter are going through right now.
I myself have a daughter who has suffered PA and anxiaty
since the age of 3 she is now 11.
I know how hard it can be when the help you want does not come
fast enough.
I can understand how you feel right now I used to say things to my
sister eg I don't want to play this game no more or stop the word
I want to get off. I have had every emotion under the sun you can
think of over the years but what kept me going was my daughter,
she has fought this all the way, now she is doing well.
Your daughter will supprise you to, she will show you just how strong
she can be. Remember Kate all problems have a begining and an
end.

From one mother to another you can do this. Just take one day
at a time.

THINKING OF YOU

LOVE JILLXX

[kate]

Hi Jill,

Thanks very much for your reply.

Did you get any help for your daughter from you doctor?

It was so nice to hear from you as, although such anxieties in children must be very common given the statistics, to actually talk to someone who's child is going through it themselves is a big support in itself.

Does your daughter still suffer at all or is she over it completely?

Thanks again for replying Jill.

Luv Kate x

[seh1980]

hi Kate,

It's normal that your daughter wasn't too keen to speak to the doctor t first - I know I have felt like that enough times!! I must be a very difficult time for you both right now so best of luck!!

Sarah

[kate]

Thanks, Sarah

Kate x