Lordy I'm angry.

Angry and frustrated.

All up I have 5 children... My eldest is fine. My second eldest, my son, has ADHD which also means learning problems, my next child is fine, then there is my 8 year old who has GHD (Growth Hormone Deficiency) and Cortisol Deficiency and now my 2 1/2 year old has problems as well - except these are DoCS induced.

The issues of my son and my 8 year old can't be pinned on me. DoCS tried - but doctors gave them nothing to blame me with. Regardless, these issues are not a result of shoddy parenting.

But my 2 1/2 year old... Jeez, DoCS take something and they break it. The new toy is broken now.

I lost custody of her when she was 3 1/2 months - an age too early for her to really be learning things given that infants at this age are not mobile... They just need to reach their first milestones - which she was doing.

I regained custody of her when she was 11 months old... But the damage was already done.

Babies learn more in the first year of their life than they will ever learn in their entire lifetime.

She couldn't crawl - but was crawling within 3 days of being home with me. She couldn't negotiate stairs, she had no first words - the list goes on. She also head-banged to the point where she developed a huge red lump on the back of her head.

I lost custody of her again 12 months later... But by this time she couldn't talk beyond baby garble which was so not like any of my other children. The same problems she came home with still existed. I couldn't fix all of them. I fixed a few.

Her head-banging had almost ceased. She was negotiating up and down stairs with no problems at all, she was rarely sick, her "eczema" was gone (excuse me, but that was CRADLE CAP!!!)

Now, 7 months later, she can't negotiate stairs at all. She can't even walk up a slide. She's dreadfully unbalanced on her feet and easily topples over (worse if she's tired). She can't sit alone and play for any period of time... Among other issues... And she is always so sick! Boy is she so sick. I've not known her to be healthy in all this time.

She's gone backwards.

I took her to DAT (Developmental Assessment Team) thismorning... She was so wobbly on her feet and so unable to negotiate around and through obstacles that the first thing they told me was that they want her to see a neurologist.

Bloody hell!

Then she settles and begins to engage in activities but the only real improvement in all this time is that she has better ability to focus solely on imaginary play (feeding dolly).

One improvement!

DAT tells me that this is how she always has been... I haven't got a clue, this was the first DAT appointment I've been able to go to... All the rest were for the carer.

So the CSO comes to pick her up from my house and I go on the attack.

I vent that my daughter has gone obviously backwards... I vent that there is no way she would be able to negotiate the stair cases at my old house if I was still living there... I vent that constantly being sick is not only affecting her immune system but is likely affecting her inner ear as well - which in turn would impact on her balance... I vent that the things she could do she can no longer do and that very little improvement has been made.

Did the CSO step up and own the fact that THEY did this to my child?

Hell no!!

yep they are experts at compounding anyone's problem.....

I am angry for you. The people in these so called child safety departments will never own up to being responsible for any problems that may occur, that would be them admitting that they are wrong.
It seems that these so called "child safety workers" are the people we as parents need to keep our children safe from.

Rainbow, you said it on your site, parental alienation, emotional issues stemming from this with physical outcomes, my children are suffereing from unexplained illnesses and medical physical issues they've never had in their lives with no reasons for it...it's got the Doctor's stumped that the Dept prevent taking them to any doctors because of this diagnosis from the Doct's not finding a reason for it...

Stress for a child is a hundred fold compared to that for an adult, it's well documented in recent 50 - 60's history...

I'm sorry Rainbow...your anger is justified and shared by all of us here. (Oh except for dictator Julie, she probably would be the only who wouldn't give a crap like a typical DChS worker).

I rang my solicitor straight away when I got home and filled her in. She's taken some lovely notes.

As per the reunification plan - I've done my bit.

But my solicitor and barrister are stoking the fire for other reasons. They have an agenda and every bit adds to it.

What gets me (and this riles me the most) is that even though DoCS know full well that they are the reason behind my child's delays - they want to fix it!!

They want to spend tax payer's money to engage all these people to fix the problems and they won't allow the problems to be fixed by simply returning my daughter home to me.

If my daughter was to come home - her health would improve almost immediately... This would lead to her balance improving as well as her immune system.

But trying to improve the other damage would be a slow old process - assuming that it can be improved.

The damage is already done and trying to improve a child who has early developmental delays could take years to bring the child back up to speed.

But what is ignored is the fact that these delays are caused by carers who do NOT raise and interact with a child the same way the natural parent would.

yes,
Rainbowchaser your last sentence is exactly what I was thinking as I was reading the above information.
No carer even if they are family will care for your own child like you would.
Mothers (I don't know about fathers as I am not one!) are so tuned into their children.
It's almost an innate instinct.

Yes - it's called hormones. LOL

Happens as soon as the infant is delivered and progresses as the bond grows.

I've gone through a gamut of frustration with my toddler.

Beginning with dreadful cradle cap... Boy, I'd never seen anything like it. Not only was is caked right over her scalp, but it was down her face and everywhere. I took the responsibility of clearing it up (they can forensically test the infant brush I used - I still have it!!) - but the carer at the time gloated that it was all her doing to clear it up.

Yeah - right... Whatever.

Then there was the emotional digging at herself my toddler did... If you think an infant can't self harm - think again!!!

Biting her hands and scratching at herself all over the place.

Her injuries on her feet and ankles and all the painful sores from scratching stopped her from learning to crawl.

Ha! Within 3 days of being home not only was her skin totally healed, but she was scooting right around the house with no drama at all.

now wasnt last night's news a laugh.....senior citizens starving and Anna Bligh enjoying giving a barbeque to some backpackers....most of whom didnt know who she was......I'm beginning to wonder if she does herself.....and pensioners a cuing in the street for handouts....shame shame shame

yeah, did you hear someone say she was the mayor of Cairns? Bit of a step backward hey ANNA?

yeah had a giggle myself, mind you she has certainly stirred up a hornets nest in townsville re the cops getting medals......what for intruding on the indigenous peoples lives....wow now arent they just heroes.......notshe even rewards them for this stuff......theres troubled times coming for the governing bodies of this country.......it is just unending.......am wondering what she's on......