Forgotten Kids
Forgotten KidsForgotten Kids are children that have disabilities that are barely visible. They have their arms and legs, can see and hear, run, play, etc., but most have never been invited to a birthday party or to a sleep over. They are the last to be chosen to play and the first to be blamed. Their illnesses aren�t fatal, but a small part of their hearts and souls die with every rejection. Their behaviors seem odd or unpredictable to themselves as much as to society. They are misunderstood and overlooked, thus the name �Forgotten Kids.� Maybe I can bring understanding by showing and providing insight into the life of a child struck with mental illness and hopefully people will realize that my child is just as special as the next.
An estimated 7,000,000 children in Missouri that suffers from these �invisible disabilities.� Mental illness not only affects the life of the child but the whole community. I live with this fact every day because my son suffers from Bipolar, better known as Manic Depression. Bipolar children long to be free of the strange feelings of sadness or euphoria and the voices that torment them. They wish for a good nights sleep and hope for a day when they can put their words on paper. They dream of friends who don�t abandon them when their moods change; and look for a miracle in the eyes of doctors who don�t always believe that bipolar can happen to a child. Until society becomes more aware and accepting of these illnesses, our future children with these disabilities stand no chance.
My son,was diagnosed at age nine after his third stay in a child�s psychiatric unit. He was admitted following a period of behaviors I could not understand nor control. I remember him being �different� (I now know he was Manic) as far back as three years old, leaving me with raging emotions of guilt, shame, loss and grief. By age nine, he had begun lying, stealing, destroying property, setting fires, and hurting himself (these are called rages.) He had no friends at school, though he would say that wasn�t true. He was filled with an anger I could not comprehend. Most people who...
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