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I'm at the end of my rope. My daughter (13, Year 8) hasn't been in school for three weeks. It started with anxiety about a friendship fallout and now even getting dressed for school leads to panic attacks.
School are sympathetic but there's talk of attendance officers and fines. CAMHS waiting list is months. I'm working and can't keep taking days off. I don't know what to do.
I'm so sorry. We were here two years ago. The thing that helped most was a reduced timetable - she went in for two lessons a day to begin with, then built up. Ask the school SENCo for a meeting, even if she has no diagnosis.
Thank you. I didn't realise a reduced timetable was an option.
Ask the GP for a letter documenting the anxiety. It helps a lot with the attendance side of things and shows the school you're actively seeking help.
Have a look at what support charities exist for school-based anxiety, some have parent support groups. Being around other parents going through it helped me feel less alone.
our son's school had a "school-based counsellor" which was much quicker than CAMHS. ask if they have one, sometimes they don't advertise it
Please also look after yourself. This is exhausting and it's easy to feel like you're failing. You're not. You're fighting for her.
Small update: meeting with SENCo next week, GP letter in hand, and school counsellor has seen her once already. She went in for one lesson today. One lesson! I cried in the car.
That's huge. One lesson is how it starts. Sending strength.
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