We learned more about Annie’s challenges, and we all learned together how to support her. All four of us participated, individually, and as a group. We never realized how stressful it was for her and her brother to have a father who went through periods of being unable to get out of bed and to have parents who fought a lot.Ī life-changing part of Annie’s residential treatment was family therapy. He always tried to keep his mental illness from interfering with the children and our relationship, but the therapist explained that it probably impacted Annie despite his best efforts. However, our family therapist helped us to see that my husband’s chronic depression caused significant distress in the home as she was growing up. At first, we dismissed this, as there was no abuse or neglect in her past. One of the important things we learned from Annie’s treatment is that PPD is often associated with childhood trauma. My husband and I were fighting more than talking at this point, and suddenly I realized that Annie was really sick. I had to stay home more often from work because I worried about her. Her brother started having nightmares and doing badly at school. She got angry and lashed out at us, even though she has always been an easygoing person. Her little brother and her father and I then went through a very difficult period for the next year. Ethan couldn’t understand her accusations and didn’t know how to handle her. But after a couple of months, she accused him of cheating on her all the time, of having other girlfriends even. The first few times, she wanted to know where he had been, and he had good explanations. None of us could believe he would do that to her, but Annie was adamant. She confronted him to account for all of his time when not with her. Out of nowhere, she thought he was being unfaithful to her.Īt first, she just suggested it, but then she insisted. An old family friend, we had all known him for years, since they were both kids. In her senior year of high school, Annie started getting suspicious of her boyfriend. It started subtly too, which is another reason we had a hard time facing the reality of her situation. It’s difficult to admit that your own child is so severely sick. I wish now that we had faced it head on and gotten her help right away, but it is so hard to see what’s happening in someone so close to you. When our daughter started showing signs of having a severe mental illness, I’m sorry to say we remained in denial for a long time. It is possible to work together to manage this condition, to reduce symptoms, to strengthen relationships, and to get the treatment that will make life better for everyone in the family. If you suspect or know that someone you care about is struggling with PPD, take heart in the stories of other families. Living with PPD is very difficult, including for family members. They can get angry easily and hold grudges against people. They tend to be socially isolated and struggle to form any close relationships. Someone with PPD believes other people are out to harm them, cannot be trusted, or are not loyal. PPD causes paranoia: persistent false beliefs not justified by actions or any evidence. Paranoid personality disorder, or PPD, falls into the category of personality disorders characterized by odd thoughts and behaviors. There are several different types of personality disorders, which are mental illnesses that cause an abnormal way of thinking about oneself, other people, and the world in general.
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