Newbie here...and going crazy!

[cortneyscarbs]

Ok I am totally new to this. And seriously, I think I am going crazy! lol My difficult child was diagnosis as ODD just yesterday, and finally things are starting to make sense. We couldn't figure out why she was hitting kids at school, and picking on my easy child, lying about anything.... I was really starting to think that her behavior was somehow my fault. (I recently left my dex while she was living with her grandmother, and when she came home there was a new man, a new baby on the way, a move, and a new school.) But now I know different. At least now I know that her constant behavior issues have a real cause, this is somewhat helping me today when trying to deal with her..but my main concern is she knows exactly how to push my buttons. I was wondering if anyone had any tips on keeping your cool? Weblinks, books, anything would be really helpful! Also I have read that new parenting approaches can be helpful, but I am not sure where to look...I am soooooooo glad I found this site late last night! Thank you all in advance!

 

[BusynMember]

Hi and welcome. You have a lot of company. You may want to purchase the book "The Explosive Child" by Ross Greene.
I'm going to ask a few questions that will help us help you. First of all, I'd say the majority of us do not believe that ODD travels alone. With your history of bipolar disorder, I think you need to keep an eye on your child for possible early onset bipolar, which has a large ODD component and can look a lot like uber-ADHD too. I have a link for early onset bipolar if you want to check it out. I also have an online test for autistic spectrum disorder. whenever there is a speech delay and defiance it is a good idea to look into that even if a therapist may have missed it (which is common). Frankly, from my own experience with my son, your child sounds a lot like he may be on the spectrum.

http://www.childbrain.com/pddassess.html (Pervasive Developmental Disorder (PDD) test)

I don't know what type of professional you've seen so far, but I recommend a neuropsychologist. They do far more intensive evaluations than even psychiatrists and are much more thorough than any sort of therapist. They pick up things that others miss.


You found great people who want to help you.

 

[Jena]

hi

I just wanted to jump in and welcome you!! Therapy is also a really good idea, I don't know if your doing that yet... Book that was suggested is a great book!

Welcome once again..there are alot of good ppl here, and great support and going insane is a pre requisite so you'll fit in perfectly lol.......

 

[cortneyscarbs]

Actually, bipolar was my first thought! I was kinda surprised when she was labeled odd instead... Thank you for the links, I will check them out asap. We always knew there was a very good chance C would end up with issues, between mine and my dex's history, not including the rest of the fam hist. They were actually worried about autism when she was 3, but then they labeled adhd... Autism does run in the family. 2 out of 3 of my sister in law's kids are, and my easy child is under close watch ....We took her to a phsyciatrist (sorry spelling is my weakness) But I will def check on a nuero too! Her doctor has started her on adderall xr, and we are going to start behavior training (although I dont exactly know what this is yet), personal and family therapy.

 

[Calgon_Take_Me_Away]

Just wanted to chime in to welcome you!

 

[BusynMember]

Actually, if she has any bipolar tendencies, Adderrall will probably make her worse. I wish you luck, but hope you get her a neuropsychologist evaluation (this is NOT the same as a neurology evaluation). With so much in the family, I really doubt that ODD is the major problem. It rarely is.

 

[KTMom91]

Adding my welcome!

 

[trinityroyal]

Adding my welcome too.

I agree with MWM that ODD is likely a symptom of your child not having the right interventions for her, rather than a standalone diagnosis. Bipolar AND Autism spectrum can both present with ODD, and a lot of lookalike behaviours to ADHD.

I too recommend a neuropsychologist evaluation or a DevPed evaluation.

So glad you found us, but sorry that you had to.
Trinity