How can I encourage his dreams?
Many parents feel conflicted about encouraging their child with bipolar disorder to pursue his dreams. As parents it can be difficult to know when to encourage a dream and when to give your child a reality check—even if it’s clear that they’re following something that won’t happen, if you tell them, you could risk a breakdown.
Certainly some actors, politicians, musicians, and business people have bipolar disorder. Don’t be quick to crush your child’s dreams or tell him that something is unrealistic. If he is manic or grandiose, you likely can’t reason with him anyway and the fantasy may pass as he stabilizes. Also recognize that all children have dreams both realistic and unrealistic as they grow.
If this dream is a lasting and reasonable goal even if it is ambitious, then encourage your child to reach his dreams by setting up smaller goals that could lead there. For instance, if acting is an interest, you may consider enrolling him in a local theatre group. This could help him see if the interest is something he wants to continue to pursue or if it’s not really for him after all. If you are constantly pointing out the negatives of a particular dream, then you become the enemy. Your child may decide that you just don’t want him to succeed and hyper focus on the goal even more. Help your child be the one to discover what’s right for him—let him explore lots of options and find what he likes.
Excerpt from The Childhood Bipolar Disorder Answer Book published by Sourcebooks, Inc.
Copyright 2008 by Tracy Anglada and Sheryl Hakala All Rights Reserved