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A Student with Bipolar Disorder

For families struggling with their child at school, I would like to provide a few tips on how to handle the school system. Keep in mind that trying to explain to teachers that bipolar is not a black and white disorder, that there are gray areas associated with this illness is crucial. The problem is that many teachers are not equipped to teach bipolar children, meaning they do not understand the disorder nor do they know how to handle outbursts or manic episodes that occur in the classroom (even the non-violent ones).

In addition, bipolar children need structure and consistency. Any type of disruption or change in their schedule can trigger an episode, which includes normal time off from school due to holidays and season breaks. It is important to create a plan whereby the child has the same routine everyday, including the time when the child is out of school for whatever reason.

One of the most important things you can do to help you child and the teacher is to know how your child learns, how they react to punishment and discipline, and the best course of action for most situations. By knowing your child and how he/she learns, you can help the teacher handle things much better in the classroom. Sometimes, your child will have a teacher who really does not understand bipolar and feels it is just a behavior whereby the child does not want to follow authority. If you feel your child's teacher will label your child or treat him or her differently, it is important you set up a team meeting with the school counselor, principle, teacher, and bring a bipolar advocate with you.

Remember, it is better to have additional support beyond just you and your spouse. Unfortunately, personality conflicts do occur. Therefore, if you find yourself in this situation, you should voice a request for a different teacher, which is your right. If the teacher will not place your child in with a different specific teacher, remember that you can always take the issue further. Although the teacher may not like your actions and the process could be time consuming, if you want your child to succeed and have the best in school, you might need to do something that makes you feel a little uncomfortable.

Another point is to have open and frequent communications with your child's school so that both parties are aware of what is happening, the course of action that you will need to take, or what is working for your child. Take time to document every meeting and conversations regardless of how minor you think they may be. It could be that you need this information for legal purposes. Although most teachers are not fond of extra paperwork, you should request a weekly progress report so you are aware of all problems needing to be addressed.

I cannot stress enough - THE MOST IMPORTANT THING YOU CAN DO IS MAINTAIN ALL DOCUMENTATION RECEIVED FROM THE SCHOOL. If anything should happen, this documentation might be all that saves you and your child from unnecessary disruption. Sometimes when schools transfer information, important papers are lost, which might include records of communication important to your child and any specific occurrences. In case truancy charges are ever filed, you would need this documentation.

If your bipolar child is like most, make sure that they are being taught at their academic level. For example, some bipolar children are highly intelligent, working above his or her actual grade level. But lack emotional skills, therefore, make sure your child is being challenged with the classes they are taking since a lack of stimulation academically can create boredom, causing the child to act out. If you find the child is too overwhelmed, then you might request he or she be placed in a smaller classroom.

Some people are unaware that if a child is diagnosed with Bipolar Disorder and attends public school, the school is required to make accommodations for your child in an environment in which they can learn. In other words, your child has a right to an education and if the school is not doing their part because of the paperwork and time involved in making the accommodations happen, then you have the right to speak up. For this reason, I cannot stress the importance enough of having an advocate to back you and your child. In some cases, the advocate can make further progress than the parents or at least, they can be a voice for your child.

When searching for the proper learning environment for my son, I came across the website www.bpkids.com. This site provides wonderful information for teachers and parents alike. In fact, they provide online pamphlets that can be given to the school, which provides valuable tips for the teacher on how to educate your child. At one point, I called a team meeting, handing these pamphlets out. Unfortunately, not all teachers were receptive but some were which made my son's learning process better. You will find that some teachers still do not get it. For that reason, you want to request a progress report so you can see how both child and teacher are doing, as well as the courses of action needing to be taken.

Before an Individual Education Plan (IEP) can be designed and implemented, you will need to have your child assessed and recommend by a doctor or therapist. I have an IEP in place, which has proven to be extremely important. For this, a meeting would be established with the special education department where discussion would cover the best schedule, classes, teachers, and goals to set for your child. Keep in mind that this can be changed as often as needed so the results are always geared toward your child's needs. Just make sure you keep all copies of the IEP in case you need it at a later time. In addition, maintain copies of your child's progress so you have record of what did and did not work.

When speaking with the team members, you need to be specific. In fact, you will probably have to define the skills and behaviors that you are trying to obtain. You will also need to assess your child's progress to determine if he or she is meeting goals and whether those goals are obtainable and realistic. For the goal you want your child to achieve, you will find it helpful to place a time limit, ranging anywhere from two weeks to one semester. In addition, use fact-finding questions and ask teachers what behaviors they see - what was your child doing and how often does your child do it (time of day). For example, let us say example one-teacher states your child is on strike with homework and refuses to do the assignment requested and that this behavior will not be tolerated and must stop. Although being on strike and refusing to do homework is frustrating, you want to find out what goal the teacher was trying to get your child to achieve at the time? If the child is one strike several times a day, set a goal of no more than twice a week to help minimize the behavior while giving the child a specific goal to reach.

You will also need to discuss a course of action for frustration, distress, anger, and sadness, as they will occur at school just as they do at home. For example, determine the best action for handling a manic episode or outburst in the classroom. The course of action chosen would need to be written down and then signed by you and the teacher, again so you have a copy for future legal purposes. To give you an example of what you might give the teachers, consider the following:

• If your child is showing signs of distress or frustration, ask him or her how he/she is doing. Look at the body language, determine if eye contact is being made, or is the child listening or shutting down. If a negative response is shown by the child, the teacher would need to provide the child with a pass to get some water. If upon return the child has not changed his/her disposition, then he/she would be sent to the counselor's office or a person he/she gets along with until composure is gained. Keep in mind that this it very important not to bring this situation to the attention of other students in that it could set the child with bipolar off in a negative manner.
   
• If child is getting into other students' space or talking off subject in class such as raising his or her hand and asking the teacher non-related questions about what is being taught, the teacher should respond in a specific way. For this, the teacher should not point out the behavior in front of classroom. Instead, the teacher should kindly redirect the child, using hand signals of 1 2 3. At the third strike, the child would be given a pass and told to meet his or her counselor in the office. At that time, the counselor can look at the situation and then redirect the child back to class after the correct steps of correction have been taken. With my son his counselor will tell him to take each class a moment at a time.

I think you get the idea. The more prepared you are and the better plan you have in place - the easier the school will be on your child.

About The Author

Stacey Adams supports her mother and child, both of whom have bipolar disorder. Stacey is a contributing writer for www.BipolarCentral.com.

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