butterfly31972
Member
Does risperdal help with impulse control?
After a long reprieve, we are back in therapy for some issues we are experiencing in the third grade. My son has been diagnosed as having Intermittent Explosive Disorder. We had some episodes of stealing along with some other impulse control issues. He stole from the school and because I know you guys have dealt with the schools, I would like to share this email I have previously sent out to the teacher and CC'ed to the assistant principal concerning an issue we had with him last month. Here we go:
While I can clearly understand the seriousness of Sammy wandering around the school, playing and bragging of his behaviors, I have to question the validity of the information you received as it has been fed to you from another 8 year old child.
Sammy came home to me with a very different and equally serious story. He was agitated and upset, insisting that he is being punished for doing something he simply didn't do, at least not intentionally.
Sammy has been in therapy for some time and has been taught that when feeling anxious or enraged, he needs to find a place to quiet down. His being in the bathroom was where he chose to calm himself, after wandering the school in search of his class. He tells me that he didn't hear (or fully understand) where Heather tell (told) him where to go. He did know that you would be in "A" lab.
Please understand that while every parent wants to think the best of their child, I'm more than aware of the challenges that Sammy has faced & continues to struggle with. However, I also know when my child is sincere in his concerns or putting on a show. What I saw the past two days was no show.
Even this morning, Sammy vehemently denies this wrong-doing. He told my husband, his father, "Dad, I really didn't do it." He stated: "Dad, I went into the bathroom because I had to go, and then I stayed in there longer because I was trying to calm myself down because I was so upset." My husband returned to me from taking our sons to the bus stop, broken-hearted, telling me this news. Just so you know, Sammy will not vehemently deny any behaviors at school. I have him medicated in order to be able to better gain controI of his behavior and emotions in a classroom situation. The one curse of the ADHD medicine is that he is not able to act as quickly and vehemently as he would off the medications. This is my one on-going concern about the medicine, and the psychiatrist and also the therapist are working closely with Sammy and I in order to teach Sammy how to "speak-up" when issues like this arise. One example is when he was being bullied in the first grade. We had to teach him that it was permissable to "tattle" if he was being bullied; but not for something petty.
I have simply explained to Sammy that the repercussions that he is receiving today of detention, while a direct result of his walking around the building unnecessarily (He should have gone to the office), are also possibly an indirect result of his stealing two weeks ago. I further explained to him that this will be an ongoing issue for awhile in the classroom due to lack of trust as a result of his stealing. I asked him myself, "Would you trust someone who stole?" He very heavy-heartedly said, "NO."
I have made a plan with Sammy in order to handle situations like this. He now knows that if he does not know exactly where to go, he needs to go straight to the office and tell them what is going on and he will not get in trouble for doing so. There are to be no pit-stops on the way! He has to ask permission before even such a simple thing as pottying in order to not have this happen again to him. He seems to understand this. Please let me know if this plan is acceptable to you.
Any slight that Sammy receives, whether real or perceived, he takes harder than most. He was taught at a very early age (from birth to 17 months), thanks to his biological parents and the five foster homes he was in for four months, that adults are not to be trusted. The last foster home he was in was shut down and all the children were placed in suitable foster homes - thereby we became Sammy's foster parents and eventually adopted parents! My husband and I, while fostering and adopting him, have worked very diligently to teach Sammy that there are trustworthy adults to be found. My husband and I feel that you are a part of that small circle that we are allowing to help "mold" this child.
I can't help but stress to you that while your source is one 8 year old child, mine is another. Both are equally able to tell of what they perceived to be true honesty and come out with two different set of circumstances in a similar story. There is no reliable way to know the absolute truth in this and as a result, I take exception to Samuel being written up for this incident.
I want it to be noted that I've not forgotten that Sammy has stolen, and that these are incredibly serious issues. But one incident has nothing to do with the other. If Sammy were not still denying this incident, I would not be sending this email today. I am quite taken aback by his vehement denial of this accusation. He has never taken a denial this far before; though, I understand that there is a possibility that he has decided to do so for the first time with this incident.
Sammy has no idea that this incident has us in a quandary. We have totally backed you up throughout this whole incident. Please know this to be true. It is integral to Sammy's ability to be able to trust other adults that my husband and I present a united front with the school, his teachers and administrators.
There is a fine line to be walked when dealing with a child who has both behavioral and self esteem issues & I think this is something that the school must keep in mind when dealing with any child.
I'd be happy to sit down and discuss this further if need be.
Thank you so much!
Sincerely,
Ever since I sent this email out to the teacher, she has been giving me a wide berth. Then I later find that she "looped up" with her class from last year and only my son and a few other children are new in her class. I was wondering why he felt out of place as he usually has a few friends to play with and enjoy being around. Now I know.
He has stolen twice in the last month and received detention for those offenses. One was a pack of lead for lead pencils which he knew he could've asked for more and I would've provided it; but he just had to have it and after asking his friend if he could have it and being denied, he decided to take it. UGH! In the same week, he took a school library book from another classmate and took it home to read. Very upsetting! After that, he had an incident in which he could not find his class and went on a "trip" from computer lab to computer lab to find his classroom. The teacher was furious when he finally found them and accused him of running around the school and bragging about his behavior. This is the incident that prompted the email.
The teacher never responded and the assistant principal discussed it with me after the detention. I told him what had happened and said to him that he may possibly want to make himself familiar with his file and learn about my son and his history. I also stated that my son had never been in trouble with the school before since we started medicating him in Kindergarten and that his current behavior is a reflection of the fact that Sammy's medications are not working as well or needing adjusting and that they would do well to remember that in the future.
Also, my husband was also with me in the meeting and sat there like a bump on a log and said "absolutely NOTHING!!" I can;t believe I always have to do this stuff myself!! IEP's and otherwise.
After a long reprieve, we are back in therapy for some issues we are experiencing in the third grade. My son has been diagnosed as having Intermittent Explosive Disorder. We had some episodes of stealing along with some other impulse control issues. He stole from the school and because I know you guys have dealt with the schools, I would like to share this email I have previously sent out to the teacher and CC'ed to the assistant principal concerning an issue we had with him last month. Here we go:
While I can clearly understand the seriousness of Sammy wandering around the school, playing and bragging of his behaviors, I have to question the validity of the information you received as it has been fed to you from another 8 year old child.
Sammy came home to me with a very different and equally serious story. He was agitated and upset, insisting that he is being punished for doing something he simply didn't do, at least not intentionally.
Sammy has been in therapy for some time and has been taught that when feeling anxious or enraged, he needs to find a place to quiet down. His being in the bathroom was where he chose to calm himself, after wandering the school in search of his class. He tells me that he didn't hear (or fully understand) where Heather tell (told) him where to go. He did know that you would be in "A" lab.
Please understand that while every parent wants to think the best of their child, I'm more than aware of the challenges that Sammy has faced & continues to struggle with. However, I also know when my child is sincere in his concerns or putting on a show. What I saw the past two days was no show.
Even this morning, Sammy vehemently denies this wrong-doing. He told my husband, his father, "Dad, I really didn't do it." He stated: "Dad, I went into the bathroom because I had to go, and then I stayed in there longer because I was trying to calm myself down because I was so upset." My husband returned to me from taking our sons to the bus stop, broken-hearted, telling me this news. Just so you know, Sammy will not vehemently deny any behaviors at school. I have him medicated in order to be able to better gain controI of his behavior and emotions in a classroom situation. The one curse of the ADHD medicine is that he is not able to act as quickly and vehemently as he would off the medications. This is my one on-going concern about the medicine, and the psychiatrist and also the therapist are working closely with Sammy and I in order to teach Sammy how to "speak-up" when issues like this arise. One example is when he was being bullied in the first grade. We had to teach him that it was permissable to "tattle" if he was being bullied; but not for something petty.
I have simply explained to Sammy that the repercussions that he is receiving today of detention, while a direct result of his walking around the building unnecessarily (He should have gone to the office), are also possibly an indirect result of his stealing two weeks ago. I further explained to him that this will be an ongoing issue for awhile in the classroom due to lack of trust as a result of his stealing. I asked him myself, "Would you trust someone who stole?" He very heavy-heartedly said, "NO."
I have made a plan with Sammy in order to handle situations like this. He now knows that if he does not know exactly where to go, he needs to go straight to the office and tell them what is going on and he will not get in trouble for doing so. There are to be no pit-stops on the way! He has to ask permission before even such a simple thing as pottying in order to not have this happen again to him. He seems to understand this. Please let me know if this plan is acceptable to you.
Any slight that Sammy receives, whether real or perceived, he takes harder than most. He was taught at a very early age (from birth to 17 months), thanks to his biological parents and the five foster homes he was in for four months, that adults are not to be trusted. The last foster home he was in was shut down and all the children were placed in suitable foster homes - thereby we became Sammy's foster parents and eventually adopted parents! My husband and I, while fostering and adopting him, have worked very diligently to teach Sammy that there are trustworthy adults to be found. My husband and I feel that you are a part of that small circle that we are allowing to help "mold" this child.
I can't help but stress to you that while your source is one 8 year old child, mine is another. Both are equally able to tell of what they perceived to be true honesty and come out with two different set of circumstances in a similar story. There is no reliable way to know the absolute truth in this and as a result, I take exception to Samuel being written up for this incident.
I want it to be noted that I've not forgotten that Sammy has stolen, and that these are incredibly serious issues. But one incident has nothing to do with the other. If Sammy were not still denying this incident, I would not be sending this email today. I am quite taken aback by his vehement denial of this accusation. He has never taken a denial this far before; though, I understand that there is a possibility that he has decided to do so for the first time with this incident.
Sammy has no idea that this incident has us in a quandary. We have totally backed you up throughout this whole incident. Please know this to be true. It is integral to Sammy's ability to be able to trust other adults that my husband and I present a united front with the school, his teachers and administrators.
There is a fine line to be walked when dealing with a child who has both behavioral and self esteem issues & I think this is something that the school must keep in mind when dealing with any child.
I'd be happy to sit down and discuss this further if need be.
Thank you so much!
Sincerely,
Ever since I sent this email out to the teacher, she has been giving me a wide berth. Then I later find that she "looped up" with her class from last year and only my son and a few other children are new in her class. I was wondering why he felt out of place as he usually has a few friends to play with and enjoy being around. Now I know.
He has stolen twice in the last month and received detention for those offenses. One was a pack of lead for lead pencils which he knew he could've asked for more and I would've provided it; but he just had to have it and after asking his friend if he could have it and being denied, he decided to take it. UGH! In the same week, he took a school library book from another classmate and took it home to read. Very upsetting! After that, he had an incident in which he could not find his class and went on a "trip" from computer lab to computer lab to find his classroom. The teacher was furious when he finally found them and accused him of running around the school and bragging about his behavior. This is the incident that prompted the email.
The teacher never responded and the assistant principal discussed it with me after the detention. I told him what had happened and said to him that he may possibly want to make himself familiar with his file and learn about my son and his history. I also stated that my son had never been in trouble with the school before since we started medicating him in Kindergarten and that his current behavior is a reflection of the fact that Sammy's medications are not working as well or needing adjusting and that they would do well to remember that in the future.
Also, my husband was also with me in the meeting and sat there like a bump on a log and said "absolutely NOTHING!!" I can;t believe I always have to do this stuff myself!! IEP's and otherwise.