Schooling advice

[anonymous]

My 16-year old stepdaughter has CF and has been home schooled since part way through last year. Her health hasn't been too bad, although she was recently in the hospital for almost 5 weeks with MRSA. She has announced to her mom, dad & me that she doesn't care about school any more, there's no point, and she's going to quit when she's 18. She doesn't believe she'll ever be able to keep a job due to frequent illness & hospital visits, so she's just going to collect disability and do nothing.She's too healthy to sit around watching TV all day, and she's making me nuts! I want her to at least finish high school, you never know what medical breakthroughs are around the corner. Any advice?

 

[anonymous]

Well she is a teenager and it is her job to make you nuts. I to have a step-daughter with CF she is 23 new and she felt the same way for most of her life and I couldn't believe that she felt that way because finishing high school seemed like something that everyone should do point blank. To me it was not something to even think about it's just what kids do. Long story short she didn't finish high school but we made her stay in school until she was 18 at that point she droped out for many reasons one of them being we puched her way to hard. Now I look back and think I wished that I had heard her out because I have not clue what it's like to live with CF everyday. So I went to books and people that had CF to talk about it and they told me to try to live one day like she did. They said to breath with a straw in my mouth and thats some what. What it's like to live and breath like her do everyday things like run up and down stairs a few time and then add in that she would be coughing really bad by then and feel like she was going to fall over. I did many things like that to put my self in her place. Still today when I just don't understand something that what I do and most of the time it helps. She is now unmarried but have 2 of the kids ever and the happiest I have ever seen her. That is also something that she told me later in life through out most of her life she wanted to have a baby and she was so worried that is she pushed her body to hard that she would be to sick to ever have a baby. With CF she has more on her plate the you or I could ever think of.Also has anyone talked to you about MRSA? Because my daughter didn't get MRSA untill about a month ago and she has been SO much sicker. With that in mind listen to her because she and her body is going though a lot right now. Sadly there are not a lot of medical breakthroughs right now and with MRSA for lungs, liver and kiddneys are being put though the ringer right now. Chances are not good for CF and MRSA people and I used to tell my daughter that as well. I know think that must have made her feel like I wasn't validing her feelings CF is a BIG thing and it's not like having a cold.God BlessPlease write back tell me how it goes with you step-daughter. good luck!!