best. QOL. evah.

Nowadays, it seems as if children's mental health is climbing onto the medical radar, and spreading until it gunks up the wipers. As it should - too many kids, saith my not at all educated self, are left to struggle with depression and mental illness. People should find these kids and help them, and no, I'm not going to swear to add emphasis to the statement. They just should.

With that, of course, comes the QOL form - the quality of life form.

Is your child happy? sad? in trouble at school? do they talk about anxiety? do they say that they feel down? do you think that they are anxious? do you think that they are happy? sad? in trouble at school? 

I have an amazing urge to write it depends all over these things, but I do appreciate their significance. Mental illness happens to all kids - the ones with the chronic diagnoses are simply best poised to get screened over and over. Which is perhaps unfair. Still, I do appreciate the pop of studies by people are realizing that hello? chronic illness is actually an additional thing to ask of a kid. And that kids' response to illness is unpredictable. QOL studies - and I'm too tired to go find you links, but look up QOL and pediatric cancer, resilience, etc on pubmed and read carefully. Especially, read the bit about how parents tend to rate their kids as unhappier than the kids say they are.

I love the bit where the researchers think carefully about how to prove that the kids aren't lying. Or so extraordinarily socially adept that they know to say that they're just fine, as the Eldest did, when asked by doctors doing their morning rounds.

How are you feeling this morning, kiddo?
The Eldest summoned a big smile and bright eyes. Oh, just fine.
Hey, said the doc du jour, that's great!
Yes, said the Eldest with a degree of satisfaction. So? Can I go home now?


Truly, the doctor should not have been surprised. Happily for him, he joined the rest of us in laughing our asses off while the Eldest looked on, somewhat hurt.

And thus, the QOL.

Which is how the Man and I found ourselves looking at the following question: Does your child get into more trouble at home than his sibling?


And our answer: You should meet the sibling.