Mama Raygun
New Member
hey, I just wandered onto this site while surfing for help with my son. I have a 6 yr old who was diagnosed ADHD this year and it's been a frustrating couple of months! It's nice to see Im not alone!
New and overwhelmed!
- Thread starter Mama Raygun
- Start date
T
TeDo
Guest
Tell us more about yourself, your son, his specific behaviors, any medications, any situations you are struggling with, services you do have for him and things that he still has trouble with. We're glad you found us. The "years of experience" here are nect to none.
Hound dog
Nana's are Beautiful
Welcome to the board Mama Raygun.
Feel free to look around. Lots of info here. Don't be afraid to ask questions, ect.
Number one question I have for you..........does your little guy have an IEP at school, if not, then you'll want to get on that asap. Feel free to fill us in on background, treatment ect as it helps us help you.
You've landed in the best possible place.
Feel free to look around. Lots of info here. Don't be afraid to ask questions, ect.
Number one question I have for you..........does your little guy have an IEP at school, if not, then you'll want to get on that asap. Feel free to fill us in on background, treatment ect as it helps us help you.
You've landed in the best possible place.
buddy
New Member
Hello, I said hi to you last night and my internet shut down as I hit post... have had some bad luck with that lately so I will try again! Love the puppy avatar...
sounds like you have an energetic kiddo... will be fun to get to know you and hear how things are going. Is he in school?
sounds like you have an energetic kiddo... will be fun to get to know you and hear how things are going. Is he in school?
Mama Raygun
New Member
Thanks for the welcomes! My son is 6 and recently diagnosed ADHD. He didn't really have many issues until he started 1st grade this sept. Don't get me wrong Jesse has always been a wild child and sort of defiant, but he did well in daycare and full day kindergarten last year. This year the teacher called me 3 hrs into the first day and the calls just kept coming. Jesse is very disruptive in class, can't or won't follow directions, pay attention ect... He's easily frustrated and cries often. He can be very defiant with teachers, principles ect...and academically he is behind the other kids. He just seems to not have any self control when he's in any stimulating environment. He's hyper, yells stuff out, interrupts, grabs, is constantly fidgeting or picking his fingers(usually until they bleed) I started him in therapy and his pediatrician started him on metadate . Also he's in a program once a week at school learning to control his emotions. There has been some improvement, not as many calls from school, better behavior charts from his teacher ect... But he still struggles alot! His therapist recommends more intense treatment so we have an appointment. for the wrap around program on mon. Also I plan to schedule an appointment w an actual psychiatrist because every time I call his doctor with concerns she just ups his dose, she hasn't even seen him since Oct. when she diagnosed him. Anyway that's a brief version of life right now. I just hope to learn from everyone here's experience , I want to do everything possible to help him!
T
TeDo
Guest
First, I would highly suggest you find a neuropsychologist to do testing. I would also highly recommend you find a Child Psychiatrist to manage any medications. Your pediatrician might be great but you need someone that specializes in children's mental health.
The usual grades for increased behaviors are typically 1st grade, around 4th-5th grade, and then again around 9th grade. These are the grades when there are bigger "shifts" in the expectations at school. It could also be that Metadate isn't the right medication or isn't at the right dosage. You REALLY need to have a psychiatrist manage the medications.
Please read the books The Explosive Child and Lost At School, both by Ross Greene as well as What Your Explosive Child Is Trying To Tell You by Dr. Doug Riley. Their basic premise is that kids do well if they CAN (not if they want to) and look at what might REALLY be going on and how to figure it out.
Has your son been evaluated by an Occupational Therapist(Occupational Therapist (OT)) and a speech therapist (Speech Language Pathologist (SLP))......NOT school ones. It sounds like their may be some things gong on that they might be able to help you figure out and deal with.
I am so glad you found us. This place is AWESOME and the years of experience are more than you will find anywhere. Welcome!
The usual grades for increased behaviors are typically 1st grade, around 4th-5th grade, and then again around 9th grade. These are the grades when there are bigger "shifts" in the expectations at school. It could also be that Metadate isn't the right medication or isn't at the right dosage. You REALLY need to have a psychiatrist manage the medications.
Please read the books The Explosive Child and Lost At School, both by Ross Greene as well as What Your Explosive Child Is Trying To Tell You by Dr. Doug Riley. Their basic premise is that kids do well if they CAN (not if they want to) and look at what might REALLY be going on and how to figure it out.
Has your son been evaluated by an Occupational Therapist(Occupational Therapist (OT)) and a speech therapist (Speech Language Pathologist (SLP))......NOT school ones. It sounds like their may be some things gong on that they might be able to help you figure out and deal with.
I am so glad you found us. This place is AWESOME and the years of experience are more than you will find anywhere. Welcome!
Running short on time tonight, so just scanned the post and responses, so forgive me if I overlap with others...
There is more going on than ADHD.
While a comprehensive evaluation is probably called for, there are two other evaluations that you should get before the comprehensive. Before... because the comprehensive doesn't usually run these, but if they have been done, the comprehensive evaluator will make use of the results. Which gives you double-value for the evaluations...
1) Occupational Therapist (OT) evaluation for sensory and motor skills issues. Occupational Therapist (OT) cannot do dxes, but will provide detailed report, AND has therapies that help.
2) Speech Language Pathologist (SLP) evaluation for auditory issues - at 6, he's on the edge of "too young", especially if ADHD has been diagnosed and is not under control. However, APDs really do look exactly like ADHD in the classroom. Especially ADHD-inattentive. APDs can range from classical Central Auditory Processing Disorder (CAPD) where they have problems processing spoken language, to other more subtle APDs such as auditory figure ground, where hearing and language processing are normal but they can't filter out the background noise, so do not follow spoken instructions in noisy environments like a classroom.
For the record, both motor skills issues and auditory processing issues are highly co-morbid with ADHD. And that's on top of the fact that APDs can be mis-diagnosed as ADHD.
There is more going on than ADHD.
While a comprehensive evaluation is probably called for, there are two other evaluations that you should get before the comprehensive. Before... because the comprehensive doesn't usually run these, but if they have been done, the comprehensive evaluator will make use of the results. Which gives you double-value for the evaluations...
1) Occupational Therapist (OT) evaluation for sensory and motor skills issues. Occupational Therapist (OT) cannot do dxes, but will provide detailed report, AND has therapies that help.
2) Speech Language Pathologist (SLP) evaluation for auditory issues - at 6, he's on the edge of "too young", especially if ADHD has been diagnosed and is not under control. However, APDs really do look exactly like ADHD in the classroom. Especially ADHD-inattentive. APDs can range from classical Central Auditory Processing Disorder (CAPD) where they have problems processing spoken language, to other more subtle APDs such as auditory figure ground, where hearing and language processing are normal but they can't filter out the background noise, so do not follow spoken instructions in noisy environments like a classroom.
For the record, both motor skills issues and auditory processing issues are highly co-morbid with ADHD. And that's on top of the fact that APDs can be mis-diagnosed as ADHD.
tiredmommy
Well-Known Member
Hello and welcome. I must point out that we are not health care professionals but parents that are raising our own challenging children. You must take what you can use and leave the rest. Many of us have had to deal with overlapping diagnoses and often things change as our children age. We aren't qualified to offer diagnoses but many of may offer some useful insights into what's going on with your little guy.
How does he do at home? Does he have any friends? Are those friendships typical? What is school doing to address his academic issues?
I must point out that we are not health care professionals but parents that are raising our own challenging children. You must take what you can use and leave the rest. Many of us have had to deal with overlapping diagnoses and often things change as our children age. We aren't qualified to offer diagnoses but many of may offer some useful insights into what's going on with your little guy.How does he do at home? Does he have any friends? Are those friendships typical? What is school doing to address his academic issues?
DammitJanet
Well-Known Member
I want to echo Tiredmommy. None of us here are doctors, or if anyone here is, they cannot diagnose your child over the internet on this website. Claiming to profess that your child has any specific diagnosis that you have or havent received by a medical professional by someone on the internet is practicing medicine without a license.
We are simply parents who have been down this road before. We will gladly tell you about what we have done and what has worked and what hasnt. We cant tell you what your child should be diagnosed with or what medications your doctor should give him. That is between you and your doctor. We can certainly tell you our experiences.
Welcome to our board. For the most part you will meet some wonderful people here. Many of us have been doing this since our kids were tiny tots and now those little ones have little ones of their own.
We are simply parents who have been down this road before. We will gladly tell you about what we have done and what has worked and what hasnt. We cant tell you what your child should be diagnosed with or what medications your doctor should give him. That is between you and your doctor. We can certainly tell you our experiences.
Welcome to our board. For the most part you will meet some wonderful people here. Many of us have been doing this since our kids were tiny tots and now those little ones have little ones of their own.
TerryJ2
Well-Known Member
Welcome Mamaraygun (funny name, by the way! ).
So glad you found us.
Your son really sounds like he has sensory issues and is having meltdowns with-all the activity in school. I agree, have him diagnosed by a professional and see what else is going on. ADHD is quite often not a total diagnosis. It's an adjective. And that means it's the tip of the iceberg.
Let us know what you do, and again, welcome.
).So glad you found us.
Your son really sounds like he has sensory issues and is having meltdowns with-all the activity in school. I agree, have him diagnosed by a professional and see what else is going on. ADHD is quite often not a total diagnosis. It's an adjective. And that means it's the tip of the iceberg.
Let us know what you do, and again, welcome.
