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I agree that OP should go to her pediatrician but input from those in the same boat can be helpful. I'm happy someone who chose not to medicate posted here too. We should have varying viewpoints.
While parenting my son with ADHD is definitely difficult and trying, we do enjoy him. He is funny as hell, SWEET (seriously has the biggest heart of anyone I've known aside from his father) and he's very creative. You take the bad with the good.
I do agree overall with your post though. Support is so important when you have a child with any type of "difference" from the NT kids. How old is your son, if I may ask?
Your description of "outside the norm" is a good one. I remember questioning the psychiatrist who diagnosed my son. "How are you sure this is a disorder and not just bad behavior?" She answered: "One difference is the presence of choice. The other is the 'behavior' presenting itself in a myriad of situations with different people over an extended period of time."
My kid has some great qualities. I was having one of many bad moments.
Right. I was just addressing a previous poster's assertion that teachers WANT kids with diagnoses because it somehow makes their job easier. It doesn't.
A diagnosis won’t make their jobs easier, an IEP does.
There are doctors and teachers willing to make a determination. Be it true,real or fictiius. As a parent and being around kids I couldn't tell an add,from an ocd condition. It's kids being kids in the sense they are filled with wonderment so will bounce from New wonder to another. I think some parents just feel at ease labeling it.
My grandson has been given so many drugs and diagnosis that were untrue,but his mom just had to find 'something' wrong with him. That kids mom is a hot mess. Thank goodness she is out of our lives. Good luck op I'm sure someone will label him and provide him with years of hardships .
May sound crazy but there is evidence that an on proportion (maybe like 30% or so) kids who had their adenoids/tonsils removed experienced a much lesser level of ADHD symptoms 6months to a year later. We found out when my wife took our boy to an ENT and his adenoids were so enlarged that they couldn’t get the tube down his nose. We were doing research on the surgery and came across that info. I’m not suggesting, just throwing out information.
Interesting, I'll look into that. He broke his nose when he was 3. I wonder if the ENT would have told me they were enlarged at that time if they were. 7 minute surgery cost $6900!!! That's also about the time his behavior changed... now I'm going down the rabbit hole...
There are doctors and teachers willing to make a determination. Be it true,real or fictiius. As a parent and being around kids I couldn't tell an add,from an ocd condition. It's kids being kids in the sense they are filled with wonderment so will bounce from New wonder to another. I think some parents just feel at ease labeling it.
My grandson has been given so many drugs and diagnosis that were untrue,but his mom just had to find 'something' wrong with him. That kids mom is a hot mess. Thank goodness she is out of our lives. Good luck op I'm sure someone will label him and provide him with years of hardships .
Yeah, that’s it. My kid and those like him are just filled with so much wonderment. Much more so than most other kids. It should be celebrated! I’ll let the principal know that next time she calls.
Late to the party, but I may be able to help. Not trying to pull rank, but I am a physician assistant who works in psychiatry, and have treated many adolescents and adults with ADHD. I could write a dissertation on the topic, but let me just make some salient points.
1) ADHD is a real disorder, not an imagined one. It has to do with focus primarily, caused by a lack of certain neurotransmitters (norepinephrine and dopamine) in certain portions of the brain.
2) ADHD = attention deficit hyperactive disorder. DSM 5 (diagnostic and statistical manual, 5th edition) classifies it into the following subtypes:
a) ADHD, primarily inattentive presentation
b) ADHD, primarily hyperactive presentation
c) ADHD, combined presentation
Note: all hyperactivity is not necessarily from ADHD, and the lack of hyperactivity doesn't mean an adolescent doesn't have ADHD. Hyperfocus does not "rule in" or "rule out" a diagnosis of ADHD. Male adolescents with ADHD can hyperfocus on video games for hours . . . but they can't focus on their school work and stay on task.
3) For diagnosis and possible treatment, go see a psychiatrist. PERIOD. They will have you fill out an "ADHD rating scale", which will screen for symptoms of ADHD (hyperactivity, inattention, impulsivity).
4) ADHD does not necessarily "go away" with age. I have diagnosed and treated adults in their 30s, 40s, and 50s who were never diagnosed as children. It is a serious disorder that is "usually" effectively treated if accurately diagnosed.
5) We don't "medicate" kids or believe every kids needs a pill. If the ADHD rating scale and a personal interview of child and parents creates a clinical suspicion that the child most likely has ADHD, then I will discuss treatment. Appropriate medications at an optimal dose do not change the personality of the child (i.e., they don't make your child a zombie). They don't "hotrod" his brain -- they do enable him to stay focused and not be so easily distracted.
6) Treatment consists of medications. Counselling is not very effective in helping with ADHD (counselling is very helpful for treating depression and anxiety). Naturopathy and alternative medicine don't work for ADHD.
7) Based on my clinical judgment and experience, I will select a medication, educate the parents and child on how to run a medication trial, in which the dose is "titrated to effect" until clear clinical benefit is evident (or abandon trial of side effects develop). This usually takes about one week, two at most. Continuation on the medication is only justified if clear clinical benefit is evident to child and/or parents. You may also witness increased frustration tolerance, and improved conversations with your child.
My kid has some great qualities. I was having one of many bad moments.
I totally understand. Really I do. When I typed that my son was painting quietly at the table next to me. Ask me again tomorrow morning when he freaks out about having to brush his teeth. Again. After 12 years of having to do so every single day and night.
A diagnosis won’t make their jobs easier, an IEP does.
Depends on how you look at it. For many teachers, IEPs make their job more difficult and a lot more work because of the accommodations that have to be made for each child. And many times our children aren't the only ones in a class with an IEP. Its a lot of work for one person to do.
Yeah, that’s it. My kid and those like him are just filled with so much wonderment. Much more so than most other kids. It should be celebrated! I’ll let the principal know that next time she calls.
LOL
I'm going to tell myself that the next time he loses his you-know-what because I simply said it was time for homework.
"He's just full of wonder."
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