As a parent you are going to make mistakes throughout your daughter's recovery, that’s OK and completely normal. Unfortunately it’s how you learn how to navigate this awful illness that has crippled your daughter. This is new territory for everyone; you, them, family and friends.
Give yourself time to figure things out!
When my daughter was first diagnosed with her eating disorder I instantly jumped onto the internet, did endless amounts of research often finding myself spiraling down a rabbit hole to all hours of the night. I would research, read books, follow pages on social media, watch YouTube videos, the list goes on. It got to the point where I was inundating myself with so much information I was so incredibly confused. What was actually the right way to approach it? I didn’t want to make any mistakes, but I learned very quickly that was the only way I was actually going to learn what I needed to do for my daughter. Everyone’s journey is different and there is no right answer. What will work for one might not work for another?
You know your daughter better than anyone. You know how she responds to discipline, pressure, life, friends, family, school, etc. You have to figure out how you want to go about handling her recovery, and what will work best for her and your family. Find a treatment team that you trust, lean on them, ask a lot of questions but know they too could all have a different opinion on what to do. Take all the information, process it and figure out what you feel will be best for you daughter and then go with your gut.
It takes time, loads of patience and a lot of trial and error. You are going to make mistakes…. a lot to be honest. The key is to learn from them, apologize when you do make a mistake and figure out the next best course of action. You can either choose to tear yourself down over those mistakes or move on and learn from them. Just like our teenagers are learning every day, we too as parents are, especially in this unchartered territory.
Take a deep breath and know you are doing your absolute best!
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