Laura’s Story
My nine year old son was diagnosed with Disruptive Mood Dysregulation Disorder in May of 2013, just one week after DMDD was officially recognized as a new psychiatric diagnosis. I remember my husband and I frantically searching for more information about DMDD and coming up empty handed. Not knowing anyone who had a child with the same diagnosis made our journey extremely challenging and lonely.
After our son stabilized, I decided to help others navigate this path. I founded DMDD.org in 2019 and created this website, where I put as much information as I could find about DMDD. Sadly, there was still very little information available at that time, so I decided to use my background in consumer research to change that. I started polling DMDD Facebook Groups, publishing the results, and blogging about my own experience.
Then the pandemic hit and our household, like many others, became a school, an office, and a mental health crisis center. I wasn’t able to keep up with the research and blogging while also helping our three kids apply to college (my DMDD son is one of triplets – more on that in my blog…).
I am happy to report that my son is now 19 years old, off medication (his decision, not ours), and doing really well at college. It has not been an easy road, and there were many times when we wondered if it would ever get better, but it did.
DMDD is not an easy journey, but I believe that if we help each other, the burden is lighter. Please join us.
Laura
Make A Donation
DMDD.org is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization funded entirely by private donations. If you are able to support us in our mission, please consider a donation. Even $25 goes a long way.
Our Mission
We are a lifeline for parents and caregivers who are navigating their way through this challenging diagnosis.
Strategic Focus
- We provide information and tools on our DMDD.org website, including educational resources, research results, and links to support groups.
- We conduct on-going research through our DMDD – Stronger Together program, providing aggregated responses to our members’ most pressing questions.
- We offer warm and compassionate support through our two Facebook Groups, newsletters, and social media posts.
How to benefit from DMDD.org
Explore the website
We invite you to review the DMDD diagnosis and treatment sections; learn how to advocate for your child in school; and browse our latest research.
Join our research effort
Join our DMDD – Stronger Together research community. By completing online surveys, you help deepen our understanding of DMDD.
Join our Facebook Groups
Our Facebook groups have over 8,000 members – parents and caregivers who will answer questions, share advice, and offer compassionate support. We will give you advice and when we don’t have any good advice, we will give you love, empathy and compassion.