need support

Specialties Disabilities

Published

I am an RN but am at my whits end with my daughter. She has PDD and Oral-Facial-Digital Syndrome Type I (OFD). The OFD has been a challenge, but one that I have been able to handle without much difficulty - the PDD is another story.

She is 14 and now in foster care, this time probably permanently. She has become very aggressive and violent on more than one occaision. We have been working with social services for a couple of years and have tried everything. She was in foster care, treatment foster care and then a residential facility for 8 months.

She did very well in the residential facility and came home in June. She had not had a violent or aggressive episode in several months and had learned some really wonderful coping skills. I took 30 days of Family Medical Leave when she came home to help with the transition, but it only took 12 days for her to become violent again.

It was basically hell for several weeks. My other children are afraid of her but love her. My husband and I are at a loss and we are once again walking on egg shells waiting for her to blow.

Anyway, long story short, she is back in foster care and probably permanently. I would like to find some sort of on-line support or information on other families in this situation. I know I am not alone, but I don't know how to find other like me. I have practical questions about taxes and child support and questions about how to rebuild my and my kids relationship with her.

I figured if anyone could help, the allnurses bunch would be able to point me in the right direction.

Thanks, Heather

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Specializes in LTC,Hospice/palliative care,acute care.

HI-I have a co-worker whose situation sounds alot like yours.Her teenage son has some type of PDD and her and the rest of the family have been through hell.He spent several yrs in a residential treatment facility and is home now.He is the son of her ex-husband and she is remarried and has 2 girls-their safety continues to be the big issue.Some really frightening things have happened..I'll see her next week,I'll try to get some helpful info for you..I have found good support groups via Google for lots of different issues. Just talking with someone who understands really helps.Good Luck-I'll see what I can find for you ...Her focus now is the rest of the family-if he freaks out (when,not if) he'll leave the home again.She has accepted that it may not be possible for him to have a relationship with the rest of the family.

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Specializes in Nephrology, Cardiology, ER, ICU.

Heather - I pm'd you.

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