Hyperventilation

Sunday, August 27, 2023

I feel helpless to help her.

The absolute worst part of my kiddo’s panic attacks is the hyperventilation. It’s terrifying to watch. It takes everything in me not to go into an attack myself, just watching her.

She was doing so well in the morning. She caught in the first game, was doing well, even though the team lost. Of course, she takes the loses personally and puts a lot of the blame on herself. She even yelled at me after the game for being “too antisocial”. I, of course, told her that I was the perfect amount of antisocial. Seriously, what does it matter if I choose to sit as far away from everyone as possible, under the nice shade of a tree?

The second game, however, it all went downhill. She was at third base and I could tell that she was getting worked up. She made one error, and had her line drives hit straight to the other team’s (very tall) third baseman. By the fourth inning, she was on the verge. Then it happened. A hard ground ball hit to her that bounced off of her foot and went into left field. That’s it. That’s all it took for her panic attack to begin.

Thankfully, she knew it was coming and called time so her coach could get her off of the field. I’m also grateful that she has the coach she does. Her coach has had her own issues with mental health and has been playing and coaching long enough to know what to do in those situations. I’m also thankful that Amanda’s daughter is on the team now and also knows what to do.

Looks like she needs another medication adjustment.