What is going on with my DD

[Bexily]

DD is 9, on Monday she woke up saying she felt sick and had tummy ache. I kept her at home but by 10am she was feeling better. She went to bed fine but then came down at about 9.15 saying she felt sick again, she finally fell asleep at about 10.30.

Tuesday comes and she woke up feeling sick again but since she felt better by mid morning Monday I told her she had to go to school. She ended up having a near panic attack in the playground saying "I can't, please, I can't" the classroom assistant noticed and came to speak to her and got her into school. At hometime she said she'd felt better mid morning again although she felt sick off and on throughout the day.

This morning, again she felt sick but had two bowls of cereal before school and went in fine. She bounded out of school this afternoon saying she still felt a little sick but seemed very happy.

She has just come to me saying she feels sick and has a tummy ache again. She doesn't look ill, she has plenty of colour and is eating normally. Her bowel habits haven't changed.

She has been very emotional lately and gets angry quickly. My mum died earlier in the year and I know she misses her.

She has started smelling of BO and her body is changing.

Could it be hormonal? We did talk to her last night and she said she's not happy but doesn't know why.

I am at a loss as what I can do to help her.

As above. Or a virus.

Sounds like anxiety and with a bereavement, physical changes and the general state of life, that's not very surprising.

TLC, being open to talking and gently seeing if she can articulate any concerns may help.

DS1 (9) had anxiety tummy aches through Feb/ March as all the Coronavirus stuff was building up. A couple of weeks at hime and just being pragmatic about what was going on in a low-key way helped to ease it.

The sick feeling that goes away once she knows she hadn't got school and returns at bedtime is a sure symptom of anxiety.

Most likely she is fighting off a virus so she’s feeling unwell/mildly sick.

If it is hormonal, my DDs did have episodes of phantom period symptoms for a few days (tummy ache, nausea, back ache) during the year before their periods actually started. Could be that.

But her not wanting to go into school raises another possibility of anxiety. Anxiety can make a person physically ill with tummy aches, head aches, nausea, breathlessness, etc.

I’d monitor and see if any pattern or link.

Anxiety, presents just like this in younger children. I would find out what is happening at school op, or it could be the transition back to school after the lockdown.

You can rule out allergies, illness etc by taking her to the dr to be sure. Illness does not tend to come and go. Food intolerance is a possibility. But given how worried she became about going back at lunch, my bets would be anxiety.

Thank you everybody.

It's awful knowing she's ill/struggling and there's nothing much I can do to help her. Lots of tlc of course is happening.

She has always loved school and said nothing has happened. I do wonder if it's a mix of Corona, grief and body changes.

@Ihaveyourback

Anxiety, presents just like this in younger children. I would find out what is happening at school op, or it could be the transition back to school after the lockdown.

You can rule out allergies, illness etc by taking her to the dr to be sure. Illness does not tend to come and go. Food intolerance is a possibility. But given how worried she became about going back at lunch, my bets would be anxiety.

I wondered lactose intolerance. Stomach issues and anxiety are really interlinked and hard to tell apart.

Sounds like anxiety. Maybe try breathing exercises?

Classic anxiety (but check with gp just to be sure).

Inform school, and if they are sympathetic, work alongside them to help your dd gradually face her fears in a gentle manner. Your dd needs a safe "person" and a "safe" place to go to at school when she is panicking. She also needs strategies to help her manage her anxiety such as breathing exercises and visualisation etc. Have a look at [[https://youngminds.org.uk/find-help/for-parents/parents-guide-to-support-a-z/parents-guide-to-support-anxiety/ Young Minds]] for advice. Not easy during the pandemic but it's worth trying to get on top of this as quickly as possible as it can escalate quite badly if not tackled now. Good luck.

I think anxiety too. My youngest has been like it this week. She is worrying about the virus. All her sport clubs have been cancelled so she knows school still being open must be a risk to the children and teachers. She felt safe at home during half term but had ‘tummy ache’ when it came to going back to school after the lockdown announcement which she eventually explained as more like butterflies. School have been brilliant so she has managed to go each day.

Both of my dds have had it too The impact of the lockdown is horrendous even on previously healthy, happy children. The impact on those struggling before is even worse.

I would take it very seriously and tackle it now, and get lots of support and help for her.

Sorry meant to put in my first post I've spoken to school and they're giving her support. I will ring the doctors tomorrow too, although she's not keen on me doing that but I've explained that I need to do everything I can to help her.

My step son had this around age 11. Ended up having treatment for worms and it disappeared. (Apparently easy to get from unwashed fruit/playing rugby in mud etc), although AFAIK, there wasn't any evidence of worms.

I woukd monitor what she is eating for a week or two. My dd had similar stomach ache off and on and felt sick - it turned out she had a dairy intolerance - she could eat a certain amount of dairy but when she ate over what her body could deal with, she had stomach aches and would feel sick. If this is an intolerance she may be worried going to school if she thinks she's going to have a stomach ache there or feel poorly.