In other news -
Mar. 9th, 2009 10:55 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
kyburgYeah, the panic is setting in. Kept waking up last night thinking that 1) something was overheating, 2) something fell over and the like.
Reading yet another 'parenting your permanently broken adoptee' book just before bed - maybe not such a good idea.
And Jim is now sick. GOOD TIMES.
Reading yet another 'parenting your permanently broken adoptee' book just before bed - maybe not such a good idea.
And Jim is now sick. GOOD TIMES.
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
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Date: 2009-03-09 06:24 pm (UTC)And I love the Avatar thingy. Sarah's really into that now and it helped her at Chinese school the other day when the teacher had a cartoon that featured both water and fire elements.
Our family day is in two weeks, I remember this time as being really annoying. But it's just a distant memory now, and it will be soon for you as well.
Sending good thoughts your way...
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Date: 2009-03-09 06:51 pm (UTC)Seriously.
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Date: 2009-03-09 06:57 pm (UTC)I can't wait to read posts from when you return home.
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Date: 2009-03-09 07:40 pm (UTC)I can't wait to see the first photos of the family!
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Date: 2009-03-09 09:55 pm (UTC)My Mere's Sissy is a professional MSW type who handles international adoptions, with a clinic in Alabama. I will pass on her work stuff and at worst case, she may be able to refer you to a clinic there if you need any help.
Most of the messier psych 'permanently broken' situations that I've heard of are more a result of long institutionalization and minimal sh!ts being given about the kid, or serious brain damage in utero from drugs or alcohol. From what I've seen, ain't the case here.
(I've seen CAT scans that would curl your hair of kids with serious brain damage of that sort, where their scans look like a rural stop sign that the locals have been using for shotgun practice. Very scary, and nigh-on impossible to fix.)
Probably, your first job back here is to get the health issues evaluated. Remembering, of course, that any old GP isn't going to see odd stuff from abroad or special-needs issues (medical or otherwise) or non-standard-US-conditions. We spent practically all of Mere's first week at home either in the doctor's office, at the hospital or recovering from the above.
The hardest thing to wrap one's head around is that folks even in Taiwan will see Americans as incredibly rich and medical care as incredibly spiffy. Without trying to be negligent, they may pass over stuff as being beyond their resources to really deal with and on to the docs in the US. And don't assume that the medical records are more than a suggestion as to what was done to or for the kid. Re-verify **everything**, over here.
Make sure your insurance will cover you and the kid over there, if you can, before you go. Probably too late at this point, but...
Infant amnesia: take lots of pictures, lots of notes in Taiwan. Your child, almost certainly, given a few years, won't remember beans about Taiwan or his life there aside of subconcious shadows. They'll lose whatever Chinese they had quicker than you can imagine. You are the person responsible for recording what you can about their past life Before You, and in the case of an international adoptee like this, that Big Empty Hole is something that will come up sooner or later. And that will be impossible to fill, but do whatever you can.
no subject
Date: 2009-03-09 10:10 pm (UTC)He has Chinese school already lined up. We'll go too. (After trying it out, I might actually get good enough at Chinese to fake it. Who knew?)
Youll be fine
Date: 2009-03-10 12:06 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-03-10 12:25 am (UTC)