Hello, I say no this is not normal teenage behavior. It's also not your fault. I've spent the entire 45 years of my daughter's life torturing myself over her mental illness. What did I do wrong? What did I not do that I should have done?

She was confrontational, lied about everything, firmly believed that nothing that happened to her was the result of her own actions, physically violent with me. She was destructive, throwing things through windows and smashing them in the middle of the winter.

40 years ago there was the firm belief that ANY problem with the child was ALL the mother's fault. I must have abused and neglected her, there was no other reasons. They refused to entertain the concept that she might have a mental disorder. Even that fact that 2 of her father's siblings had schizophrenia was not taken to account. Now she's 45 years old and as sick as she ever was. Still violent, abuses drugs, been in jail, involuntarily hospitalized many times.

After that horror story, let me share some good news. Doctors actually believe now that a child can be suffering from mental illness. Gather a strong support team. Get her into therapy now! I don't care if she doesn't want to go. She's a child and it's not her decision to make. Move heaven and earth to help her and get help for yourself. You will need it to cope with what lays ahead. Don't bother listening to people who tell you she's a normal teenager. They don't understand what you are going through. Try not to fall into the trap of believing it's your fault. IT IS NOT YOUR FAULT!

My heart goes out to you