Dev. pediatrician. added Inattentive type ADHD and possible BiPolar (BP)-not otherwise specified

allhaileris

Crumbling Family Rock
We finally got a prescription to medications, she's going to start taking guanfacine/tenex. It sounds like this is one of the lower side effects drugs, which is good. The actual assesment said she had ADHD, predominantly inattentive type, ODD, development math disorder, developmental expressive writing disorder, Pervasive developmental disorders and that her other symptoms put her at risk of having BiPolar (BP)-not otherwise specified (I guess this is like Bipolar Lite). No stimulant right now, but we might start giving her a tad of coffee in the mornings as I've seen her calm down when she sneaks the coffee at Trader Joes.

We don't have anybody diagnosed with Bipolar Disorder in our families, but my Dad is adopted and husband's family is out of the picture so it's kind of hard to really know. My mom has wondered if my sister has it.

Thanks for everybody that replied to my post asking about medications. It's was super helpful to be able to lookup some of that stuff beforehand.

I think I have a good idea of what to do about the ADHD, there is so much out there these days, but not so sure about the possible Bipolar stuff. I'd love to hear anybody's tales in this area. What to keep an eye out for, what to expect in the next few years as she goes through puberty, all that wonderfully fun stuff.
 

BusynMember

Well-Known Member
Be careful of the bipolar diagnosis. by the way, not otherwise specified means (not otherwise specified). Your child may end up on a ton of heavy medication when the "bipolar" may really be just the normal moodswings of the pervasive developmental disorder (which is another way of saying Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD)). This happens all the time. I'm so sorry my son spent three years on medications like Lithium and Risperdal and Zyprexa when the problem with just his Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) and his "moodswings" disappeared as he grew older.

I'm glad you have some idea of what is going on and hope you can address this in school. Does your precious little one have an IEP?
 

InsaneCdn

Well-Known Member
I'm with MWM... as soon as I see this:
Pervasive developmental disorders
... all the other "dxes" are just part of that.

Yes, there are cases of both Pervasive Developmental Disorder (PDD)/Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) plus BiPolar (BP)... but the proportion of Pervasive Developmental Disorder (PDD)/Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) people who also have BiPolar (BP) is very low.
 

TerryJ2

Well-Known Member
allhaileris, too bad you don't know any more about your family history on both sides. It always helps to have clues.
At this point, just keep an eye on it ... especially the medications ... and keep an open mind.
I hope that your difficult child is okay about taking medications. That's always been a battle for us. Finally, now, my son is okay with-taking medications, but it took yrs. (by the way, I finally found a very small omega 3, and it's krill oil.)
 

allhaileris

Crumbling Family Rock
I'm on the fence about the BiPolar (BP) diagnosis. I know the next few years will get tougher because of puberty, and I don't want to put her on anything heavy without knowing for sure she needs it. It's taken too long to even get to this point because of medicine resistance (mostly husband). But I do see the some little signs that I'm hoping are indeed Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD). I keep telling myself that the recent mood swings are just the beginning of hormones. First thing I did this morning was call the regional center to update them and get new intake arrangements.

Yes, we have an IEP. Her school is actually really good at getting her what she needs. Most of her needs we've been on top of, we just labeled in now.

Anybody here ever get equine (horse) therapy for their child either through the regional center or insurance? Her new doctor suggested that, and there are weird new health laws that are too ambiguous to really understand.
 
T

TeDo

Guest
difficult child 1 received horse therapy that was paid for through our county social worker from Human Services. Buddy has horse therapy that's paid for through his MA waiver funds. That program is also managed through her county. You might want to consider calling the mental health department of your local social services office. Ours is at the county level for this type of thing. Not sure about other states. It has been a godsend for both Q and my difficult child 1.
 
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