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serenitynow

New Member
Hi -- I just found this site today. Probably because we had another bad morning getting my 8yo difficult child ready for the bus (finally had to drive). After testing by school and outside docs, we started him on patch in August -- made him nuts. Tried 3 others -- one did nothing, one had other bad effect, last made him pack on a lot of weight (14lbs on small kid) in short time. He's on nothing now, and will be meeting with Dr. next week to find our next step. Meanwhile, we're having a hard time keeping it together here - one minute he's agreeable, next he's typical ODD. Thanks for reading.
 

totoro

Mom? What's a difficult child?
Hi and welcome... sorry you have to be here. But this a great place to be for support! You should probably post once more with as much background info as possible, it really makes it easier on everyone. Then you won't feel overwhelmed when asked multiple questions and we can ask appropriate questions!!!

Like what is your family history as far as diorders/substance abuse etc.? What is his diagnosis? What type of Doctors has he seen and what type of evaluations has he had. Has he been to a Psychiatrist or just a Psychologist if either? What medications has he been on? What are is symptoms? When did they start?

Have you read the "Explosive Child" Ross Greene? If no, it is highly recommended!!!

Sorry things are rough, we unfortunately know how you feel, if you answer some of these questions it can help us ask you some more and give you some advice....

Hang in there and take a deep breath welcome!
 

BusynMember

Well-Known Member
Hi and welcome. A few questions: Can you post a signature, like the one I have below? ODD tends to be a behavior that is attached to other disorders. not a stand alone diagnosis. Most of the kids here have ODD behaviors, but for different reasons--bipolar and Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) are two possibilities. Who diagnosed him? Has he seen a psychiatrist (with the MD) or a neuropsychologist? Has he ever had a Multi-Disciplinary Evaluation? Has he ever been on anything besides stimulants? Stimulants can make mood disordered kids even worse. Often they are misdiagnosed with ADHD. What are his symptoms? Any delays, especially social skills/speech? Any mood disorders, substance abuse, autism or anything else in relatives? Welcome! Ok, I see your update. Risperdal is a good medication for anger/rages. If your kid has a mood problem, Risperdal usually needs a mood stabilizer with it in order to help. If your kid has Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD), he needs school interventions (he has red flags for high functioning autism too). My son was diagnosed bipolar. It was wrong. He is Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) and doing great now that we know.
 

serenitynow

New Member

He was diagnosis with ADHD first (sorry I didn't mention that). He was diagnosed by a child psychiatrist (as well as the school psychologist). Yes, he had a multi-disciplinary evaluation. Tested IQ very high, some Occupational Therapist (OT) issues (gets Occupational Therapist (OT) 2x wk), and definite focusing issues. He also has sensory issues - mainly with noise -- not full-blown Sensory Integration Disorder (SID). As a result, he does not take music class or eat in the caf. at school, and is fine with this. The school has been phenominal in responding to his needs -- much better than anyone else I've spoken with. Along with weekly sessions with-the school psychologist, he goes to group for ADD kids 1x/wk to improve his social skills and sees a psychotherapist 1x/wk also. Psychiatrist does not think he's bi-polar, but says he's a "diagnosis in progress," as there are several quirks to his behavior. From everything I've read on childhood bi-polar, and I've read tons, I don't think he fits this diagnosis either. He was speech delayed due to ear fluid, went through birth-to-3 program, and has been evaluation. yearly by speech patholigist, who says he is age-appropriate. As his speech is pretty good, he doesn't qualify school for services. We could go outside for them, but there's only so much we can expect him to put up with right now. Risperdal made him wet his bed - Dr. said rare side-effect, but she had seen it in 2 other cases where it makes them sleep very deeply and lose control. Took him off it and the wetting (which he'd never done before the medication) immediately stopped. Guess that's it - yikes. How do I add signature - the box is checked...
 

Janna

New Member
Hi and adding my welcome in, too!

Ditto on the ODD behaviors speech LOL! I won't repeat, but really do agree that most of the time, those behaviors are stemming from something else.

Like Midwest Mom's son, my son is Autistic and Bipolar. Once we treated the Bipolar properly, and I did some behavioral modifications in home, the ODD behaviors all completely vanished (no lie!). And this was a kid that raged 3 hours at a time.

I hope you find some insight, advice and support here. This place has been a saviour for me.

Janna
 

busywend

Well-Known Member
Welcome!

Sounds like you are trying to find the right medication - this can take some time and patience for sure. Get friendly with your Pharmacist. Seriously, have a consult and let him/her know you are trying new medications for your child and wonder if you could call him direct with questions. Most will love to do this.
 
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