So I took difficult child to an allergist/immunologist...

[Shari]

Absolute shot in the dark. This is the guy that I am switching too since I seriously dislike the ent who did my sinus surgery...I went to him the day after I got the evaluation report, and on a whim, took the report with me. He offered to see difficult child.
***
So we went today.
***
The appointment was at 2. We left at 5. He wasn't in there the whole time, but he was in and out the whole time. Did head and sinus xrays, allergy testing, and then my mom took difficult child and the doctor sat down with me and his nurse for 45 minutes.
***
He definitely agrees he's ADHD. He also disagrees that that is ALL we're dealing with. He sees traits associated with all sorts of stuff, and probably the most interesting statement he made was that he even sees narcissism. Why is this interesting? Because that's the only label that's ever been applied to bio dad. It was also suggested for difficult child 1. This doctor knows neither person nor that information. But interesting none-the-less.
***
This guy LISTENED to everything. He saw more than a lot of difficult child's docs have seen in the years he's been going. He sees, in some ways, a grown person stuck in a little body - a judgement that he made based on what he saw, not what I told him....but then when I told him about difficult child's development, it confirmed for him that difficult child's development has been all sorts of all over the charts. Immature in many ways, but physically, he's way ahead of the game.
***
He was concerned about Risperdal being our front line of defense. I explained the fiasco asking for behavior therapy instead of more medications, and since all of difficult child's current docs and and therapies are or would be thru the university, he put his nurse on to looking for a neuropsyche and team for an evaluation with a fresh set of eyes that my insurance will cover in Kansas City or St Louis at the Children's Hospital. He will have the xrays read (he beleives adnoids are enlarged) and put difficult child on a sleep pulsox for a couple of nights to see if its a problem, get him into an ent if it is. He was concerned about the frequent urination and wetting his pants on days that the behavior is so off, says that's not adhd stuff there (adhd doesn't make you pee) and the bowel movements in his sleep and in his pants the past couple weeks concern him enuf (and the fact a sleep eeg has never been done) that he wants the sleep eeg. He wants to see difficult child back in 3 months and plans to have him in to most, if not all, of these places before then.
***
He says he probably can not give me a magic pill or cure, but he'll do his best to help us fix as many things as we can to give difficult child the best shot at a future.
***
Absolutely nothing good may come of this, but the feeling of support and being heard right now is overwhelming.
***
PS - He's a DO instead of an MD.

 

[susiestar]

Shari,

I am so glad you found someone who listened and UNDERSTOOD. It sounds like this doctor is ready to find whatever help you need.

I think allergist/immunologist docs learn a lot more about the body and ALL the systems because an allergy to something can cause all sorts of different symptoms. Regardless of why this doctor is so knowledgeable, I am glad he is now on your team.

I hope he follows through. Remember that it is OK to remind him of what he said he wanted done.

 

[gcvmom]

Wow -- he sure seems to know a lot about a lot more than just allergy and immunology!

Sounds like you've found someone who will really champion your efforts to get difficult child treated in the best way possible!

 

[Wiped Out]

It's great to have someone in your corner! Sounds like he knows a lot!!

 

[neednewtechnique]

It really is interesting, because allergy/immunology doctors DO know a lot about behavior and things like that. I used to see an allergist twice a week when I was a child because I had such horrible airborne allergies that I could not function without constant monitoring and treatment of symptoms, plus allergy shots. Anyway, the point I was getting at is that with such frequent visits to the allergy doctor, we had all sorts of interesting information available to us, like the fact that although most allergies present themselves in rashes, swelling, breathing problems, etc.... some allergies present themselves by affecting moods and behavior patterns. Yes, it is true, when I was a kid, more than 1 cup of milk per day and I was like a child with a horrible case of CD. Now that I am older, I can handle a little more than one cup, but I still have to be very careful about how much I drink.

Strange how the body reacts to certain things, huh??

 

[smallworld]

Shari, I'm glad you feel listened to. But I'm going to play the devil's advocate: What training and experience does an allergist/immunologist have for dxing ADHD? ADHD stems from a neurological basis. It takes more than an observation to diagnosis it. It absolutely requires that the doctor dxing it ensures that the symptoms of inattention, impulsivity or hyperactivity are not caused by another mental or physical disorder. I'm glad this doctor is referring you for further evaluations because that's the only way you're going to get your answers.

 

[Shari]

I'm going to play the devil's advocate: What training and experience does an allergist/immunologist have for dxing ADHD? ADHD stems from a neurological basis.

Play away. The other sense/feeling I have is that this is absolutely insane to even go forward with. But I agree with your thought, SW. I don't think he has a lot of training in neuro disorders. What he does have is a realization that body systems work together, and one out of whack can cause problems elsewhere that would outwardly seem unrelated. And he has experience and reputation working that way, too, and with other docs collectively. As I said, its a shot in the dark, but I liked his attitude - "we'll see what things we can find TO fix, and hopefully we'll find enuf to make some differences".

I'm glad this doctor is referring you for further evaluations because that's the only way you're going to get your answers.

I think going forward the only care he will actually be overseeing is the adenoid/oxygen thing. The rest he's just finding people who are willing to look again at difficult child because he, too, feels adhd doesn't cover it. Agrees he has it, but feels strongly that its not all we're dealing with.

 

[Christy]

Sounds very thorough

Just wanted to share that when my son was on risperdal, he wet himself all the time. It seems like the sensation of having to urinate was dulled so if he was particularly hyper of very focused on something, he would wet himeself. Also constant bedwetting.

 

[smallworld]

Incontinence is a listed side effect of Risperdal.

 

[Shari]

It seems the nighttime bed-wetting started about the time we started the depakote. The other intermittent problem of frequently peeing and wetting himself has always been there.

 

[smallworld]

Depakote causes significant sedation. Maybe he's just sleeping more deeply. Hopefully, the sleep study will help you sort that out.

 

[Shari]

Normally they should. Partly why both were prescribed. We've never seen any sedating effects of either Depakote or Risperdal.
Benadryl doesn't touch him, either.

Just spoke with his behavior therapist - she's all for the new set of eyes, with caution (for me) that they may come up with nothing new.

Just reread the evaluation report, also, and one recommendation I missed prior was a psychologist. Is there benefit in adding a psychologist to the mix? (already has BT, in-home BT, and psychiatrist)