Pulled back in

Thursday and Sunday night Rosie didn't sleep. Yet, she managed to stay up and be as energized as a kid who consumed pots of coffee until 8 p.m. the following night. This is a warning sign. It can be an early symptom of bipolar disorder. So we were relieved when we didn't have a 10-year old waking us up on regular intervals Monday night. Bipolar disorder wouldn't be bad, and in fact, knowing what is causing her mood swings would be a relief.

So I was confiding in a coworker about this Tuesday and he responded by saying, "maybe she's going through the change." I couldn't breathe momentarily. I laughed it off. She's only 10, I said. I tried to ignore the thought until Wednesday morning when just before we had to get to the bus stop Rosie called out from the bathroom, "Mom, there's blood."

"What?" I asked, "Did you cut yourself?" as I walked into the bathroom. Nope, she showed me her underwear and sure enough, there it was...the start of her period...staring me right in the face. I think a quasi smile froze on my face, "oh," I said as I swiveled around to hide my horror and find some sort of kotex that would fit a 10-year-old.

Then I swiveled back, "do you think you have a urinary tract infection?" (They do cause bleeding and i was admittedly grasping at straws.) "No." She said. "OK," I said, turning back around to get the panty liner. "Mom, why are you freaking out?" She said. Damn, I thought I was hiding my freaky moment.

So we talked about it, and after I thought I did an OK job describing periods, she said, "I don't want a period." I know, sweetie, I said, but we can't give it back, and it's a good part of life. I'm still not great with the motherly responses.

Since then I've kind of adjusted to the news. Somewhat. However, I did have a chuckle over the entire experience.