Crystal...We wasted three years with a psychiatrist (who had a good rep) who insisted my son had childhood bipolar. Since childhood bipolar was a brand new disorder at the time, I hadn't had the time to study it and decide for myself if I thought it was even a valid diagnosis for a child. I thought my son was on the autism spectrum, but I went along with him because, after all, he was a doctor and smarter than me (cough). For three years he was put on medication such as lithium, risperdal, depakote, seroquel and zyprexa and he had many horrible reactions. He gained tons of weight. It zoned him out, but it didn't help him. I kept questioning the diagnosis too because my son did not have mood swings. He just overreacted to certain typical Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) situations and was socially clueless.-
One weekend I went to visit some online bipolar kid friends and one of the mothers asked me if Sonic was autistic. Then it hit me. It was obvious to others, but not to psychiatrist. I decided to take him to a neuropsychologist who had no attachment to t his psychiatrist. He diagnosed him with Pervasive Developmental Disorder (PDD)-not otherwise specified, which made a lot of sense as he had had the typical speech delay, stims, social problems, etc. He had never had wild moodswings. He is eighteen years old now and obviously not bipolar. He only takes a small dose of Vyvanse and does not even have rebound crankiness. I digress...
When I approached psychiatrist with the neuropsychologist's diagnosis and the observations of my friends, he said, "Sonic can not have autism because he can go from one room to another and not have a meltdown." I stared at him. He knew less about Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) than I did. It shocked me. I never went back. Our pediatrician helped wean Sonic off of his Lithium and Seroquel.
I wasted three years with this man. My poor son was put through the ringer with him. My new motto is: "If it doesn't feel right, it's not! Move on!"
I wish you tons of luck. Keep us updated.
If I didn't see your location I would think we went to the same psychiatrist who also insisted difficult child 2 is not Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) cos he has eye contact!!!