Special needs daughter & periods

peachyprice

Your poor baby girl.

I really hope your GP is more helpful tomorrow, you can't put her, or yourself, through this for the next 3 years. If she's aleady worked out when her next period will be it will take over her life, she'll spend the weeks counting down just waiting for it to happen.

If you don't have any joy tomorrow is there anyone else at your surgery that can help? Do you have practice nurses that might be more understanding. I guess you may end up having to go to a paediatric gynae as nicki suggested (I didn't know they existed either) you may have to go private but it would be worth it.

Good luck to you both, I really hope you get the help you need.

Brighton_belle

Hi OP, this is really awful for her and you Nothing helpful to add but had to acknowledge how dreadful this sounds, and unfair.
Hope you got better help from the GP today.

jackyann

Cathy - ask the school to help you contact the school nurse - I mean the one employed by the NHS (it may be a 0-19 team where you are, or specific to schools, since re-organisation it varies). She will have experience & information as well as access to specialist help if needed (in some areas they can do direct referrals to specialist paediatricians, though this may not be needed)
I hope you got a bit of help from the GP today - but "stopping them" is not a viable long-term option, and the "injection" will often result in a small amount of break-through bleeding so your daughter does need help & information - and you need support in dealing with this.
You will find a number of girls with special education needs do find this scary & difficult, so you need to find someone who has the experience to deal with it. Your GP may be a short term help, but most will not have the specific skills & experience.
Good luck.

themull1

My daughter had tablets to stop her period coming on when she went on holiday, but i dont know if you can take them all the time. She was 12 when she got them off the doctor.

midnightraven3

poor girl

what about the implant? the stick thing?
sorry i dont know the name of it
that stops them,
maybe she could have that under the circumstances

there must be something that can be done to help her
i hope something helps OP

cathy36

Well I have just got her to school this morning and have decided with the school that if needed to pick her up at lunch time, bring her home, change her and return her back. It is lighter now as it is day 6 but still dont think she can sit in it all day. She is now too frightened to go to the toilet and is giving herself stomach aches which she thinks is period pains so hot water bottles are being used. I have a hospital appointment tomorrow with her so am hoping they can help in a big way with her fear. I think everyone is right in saying that popping a tablet/injection is a short term fix and not really dealing with the problem long term. Unfortunately once the barrier of fear goes up with her you can not get through to her to tell her that it will ok etc and whats starts off as fear turns her into a hysterical girl. She had a big fear of 'periods' from year4 when they were taught this at junior school and ever since has kept saying I don't want to turn 12/13. Even on her 12th birthday this was over shadowed by the dreaded 'P' and worry instead of being happy and excited. She also came out of school crying in year4 asking if it hurt laying eggs. I know they have to be taught but why couldn't her teacher take the nurturing group out and teach them differently as the harm was done from that day as black is black and white is white to her. I went out yesterday for a 2hour break as friends were saying if you leave her with your mum she WILL HAVE TO do it herself. When I got home my mum bless her had to change her as she was holding on for so long not wanting to go to the toilet that the tummy ache was unbearable. My mum was fine about it as she couldn't sit and watch her uncomfortable.
Lets hope tomorrow is the start for onwards and upwards.
xx

LE3

does she cope with normal toileting at school or does she have a carer to help? If she copes normally, then she WILL cope with this, it's just a case of getting to her own level of understanding - would she respond to a big "celebration" of the fact that she's growing up - maybe a special "grown up" necklace or something as a present?
If she has a carer at school to help with toileting, they will help with this too - there is a young lady I know who has a carer to help with toileting and the carer also helps with period related issues.

jackyann

cathy36 wrote: »

She had a big fear of 'periods' from year4 when they were taught this at junior school and ever since has kept saying I don't want to turn 12/13. Even on her 12th birthday this was over shadowed by the dreaded 'P' and worry instead of being happy and excited. She also came out of school crying in year4 asking if it hurt laying eggs. I know they have to be taught but why couldn't her teacher take the nurturing group out and teach them differently as the harm was done from that day as black is black and white is white to her.

This is really not acceptable Cathy. When you are over this initial difficult time, I do hope that you can get some proper help. I hope that the school nurse can help and suggest some suitable resources (have you looked for support groups on the internet?) Where I worked, it was the nurses / health visitors who did this teaching, not the teachers.
I suggest you look for some simple relaxation exercises as well. You can tell her that "breathing like this" will help.

meritaten

I know the pill has been prescribed to girls younger than your daughter because of 'heavy' periods etc. would it not be possible for docs to prescribe it for her? Seems cruel to make her go through this every month when it could easily be stopped!
PS if doc wont prescribe it - perhaps family planning clinic may?

jazabelle

What about the mini pill? I've been on it years - and don't ever have periods. I know it's not always simple for everyone, but it's an option to look at if she's able to at her age.

Good luck.