evaluation results!

Nancy423

do I have to be the mom?
Boy, that 3 week wait went flying by!! We went to the office last week for a day and a half. difficult child surprised me by actually participating, talking, and interacting with- the doctor. I'm still floored by how he got her to do that......

As for the results, I was way off. This doctor doesn't like the "labeling" with codes but did give us what they would be (we asked). Says that we can label kids, but that doesnt' tell educators how to work with them.

And the problem areas are:
Severe cognitive processing delay
Severe expressive language delay
mood disorder (we need to watch for bipolar as she grows older)
anxiety disorder
ADHD, which incorporates her emotional delay

the good news,
1.she's progressing acedemically. she's testing at the same level (25%) now as she did in 4th grade when compared to peers her age at the time of testing. So in the last 2 years, she's progressed 2 years.
2. her IQ score isn't reflecting her true intelligence
3. he's sitting down with- school staff to go over the report, not just sending a written copy.
4. he's astounded that the cops were called last fall and will certainly recommend that they find another way to deal with her "episodes" IF she has any more. he thinks they're completely controllable by the actions the teachers have.
5. suggested that maybe trying stimulants again down the road because even tho she's not hyperactive, they'll stimulate her processing speed.
6. She's can't process spatial relationships and might see if going back into Occupational Therapist (OT) would benefit. Wondering if the 30 min/week is worth pulling her out of class or not - can't be sure.

He thinks that after all the testing the school has done, that they saw the below average results and IQ score and figured it's a losing battle. They dropped the Occupational Therapist (OT) too early and continued to think her "shut downs" as either a bid for attention or bid to get out of doing class work. He is more inclined to think her shut downs are due to anxiety. She didn't like guessing in case the answer wasn't right so she would shut down. And the teachers, seeing as she could do the work yesterday, would think she's manipulating them today. turns out that the processing delay sometimes rewires itself and it's harder to recall info from one day to the next. She also doesn't organize info the same way as we do. We joke that her "boxes" of stuff got mixed up. instead of a "box" filled with animal names and pictures, some of the names and/or pics would end up in another box so the delay is the time it takes for her to search the other "boxes" in the "attic" for the info. she has the info, just not organized for easy access. Sounds very much like her room....

So our thoughts on why she got violent last fall were right on the mark. She couldn't process the request by the teacher and jumped head first into the fight or flight mode. It's just the way she's wired.

I feel very good about what we went over and feel this right. Wanted to share.:D

As for me. I had chest pains last week and the doctor is sending me for a stress echo tomorrow. Such is my life
 

susiestar

Roll With It
WOW! Sounds like he really "gets" her! I know 25th isn't great, but she is at the same level as she was 2 yrs ago, so she really IS learning - and that IS great!

I hope the teachers are willing to work with her. It really sounds like the processing problems could really cause problems if the teachers are "old school". I am very glad he is actually going to the school, instead of having you try to explain it to the teachers.

Sorry about the chest pains. I hope the stress echo is good. If there are problems, here is to hoping they were caught early!
 

gcvmom

Here we go again!
Sounds like a great evaluation and now you are equipped with the information you need to ask for the right supports for her. I'm glad he's going to sit down with the school staff to explain all this. I wish our neuropsychologist had done that, but that's just the way it goes.

At least these sound like very "fixable" or at least addressable issues, now that you know what they are.

Now to get YOU squared away -- hope that the chest pains were only due to anxiety and not any heart-specific problems!
 

TerryJ2

Well-Known Member
That's great, Nancy! Very thorough, and he explained things well, too. He sounds like he's right on target.
This info will really help you. I know if helped us immensely when we got our difficult child's results. It answered so many questions and created immediate tools for us.

I hope you feel better!
 
B

bran155

Guest
It sounds like it went really well. Like Terry said, thorough! :)

Feel better.
 

Nancy423

do I have to be the mom?
Sorry about the chest pains. I hope the stress echo is good. If there are problems, here is to hoping they were caught early!
It's all good, doctor says heart looks perfect. found out my mother has a history of abnormal EKGs and did a few stress echo's.
 
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