My daughter, Isabella, didn’t want to come into this world. She loved my womb: soft, dimly lit, and comfortable. Who knew what was “out there”??

She was fine just chilling inside of me. Every contraction her heart-rate slowed, as if she were resisting the pressure to join us. Pressed up against my spine (yep, it hurt…a lot), she curled up and lay there, okay where she was.

The world was a big shock to Isabella. She came out screaming, fussy, and a light sleeper. Isabella was jaundiced and had colic for the first bit of her life: a brawling, screaming, bundle of flesh lay in my arms crying at the top of her lungs for 6 hours a night. It didn’t help my post-partum depression, that’s for sure.

And the love for her- it was nearly crushing. It was definitely all-encompassing. I’d never felt such a deep-soul love and attraction to anything in all of my life. It consumed me.

As Isabella grew older, I noticed that my stories of her didn’t exactly blend with those of other parents. Parents would ask if I had the same stories and I would just laugh politely and say, “Oh yah, totally”, which was a lie. Isabella was a different kid, from day 1.

I could tell she was very special- but in what way? Hopefully, we thought, she is just quirky- typical but quirky! That would be perfect. Her quirkiness turned in to long days and sleepless nights with Isabella. From day 1 she was a horrible sleeper- something that sleep training and a billion methods didn’t seem to correct.

She was emotional, impulsive, moody, active, and scattered. Isabella didn’t seem to bond with her peers, preferring to talk to adults. She worried about everything- including the future of our Earth. This devout love for animals, bugs, and all things nature, started in kindergarten. In Grades 1 & 2 I was called to the school when she punched kids for harming bugs or trees.

Finally, after the same parent-teacher interview for 6 years- “Isabella seems defiant and unable to finish her work in class. Maybe it’s because she is a perfectionist. She worries about whether others are following the rules and often has intense panic attacks at school.”- we decided to pay the money to have her privately tested.

Isabella proved to be a complex case since 3 sessions of testing turned into 7 long sessions. I’ve heard all girls are very hard to diagnose because girls are more intensely wired to want to fit in- masking symptoms comes more naturally to females (from what I’ve read). Not only that, but bipolar disorder, ADHD, ASD and a few other mental diagnoses mimic each other’s symptoms. It’s like untangling a spider’s web!

Eventually, both the psychologist and Josh and I were confident with the diagnosis. Isabella has been diagnosed with “Moderate Combined-Type ADHD” and “Giftedness”. You can read more about what that means on the post, “An Open Letter to Friends About Our Daughter’s ADHD & Giftedness Diagnosis“.

Isabella will be an amazing University student. She loves asking the hard questions, thinking critically, solving complex problems and deep diving into research. She’s bright, funny, and one of those “unicorns” that seem good at nearly everything. The flip side is that she is often anxious, overly self-critical, and has trouble connecting with people. And you know what? We love every single piece of the puzzle that makes up our wonderful daughter, Isabella! She’s complex and amazing and we are so proud.

It’s lovely to introduce her to you. 🙂