Where we are at now

[ML]

So after several visits with the psychiatrist and an evaluation at the autism research clinic, we were told ds has anxiety and adhd. We tried prozac and celexa for the anxiety but it only activated him and made him more aggressive. I would LOVE to try medicating his adhd (severe) but I'm afraid of that too. Though we haven't gotten a mood disorder diagnosis, that's possible too.

We have lousy insurance. They have limited services for counseling and mental health in general. I am sure that if I pushed the psychiatrist for a ms and ap he would say "sure let's try it". But I am just so scared of all the side effects. How do I know if these medications will be worse than the "disease"?

More and more I wonder how he didn't receive a diagnosis of high functioning aspergers. I think he is just so on the cusp that it's easy to miss. But his anxiety and social fears are HUGE. Lately, he's become more of a behavior problem. Only at home (I guess I should be grateful). He's just awful. Constantly pushing buttons and saying hurtful things to me and his stepdad.

I'm nervous with him going into third grade. The expectations will be so much more significant. I can't imagine him sustaining focus and attention for homework demands. I'm already dreading the nightly battles of getting him to complete assignments. Ugh.

Another struggle is that he totally uses food to comfort himself and he's getting pretty chubby. I'm afraid it will be just one more reason for him to be "different". It's a tough one. I've hidden the sugar even.

I'm just really wanting to get to know all of you better and thought I'd take this chance to talk about my difficult child.

MicheleL

 

[Janna]

It's very unfortunate that so many of the diagnosis share so many similarities. When they are young, it really is sometimes so hard to tell.

My son has a diagnosis of Bipolar, but also carries an outrule of Pervasive Developmental Disorder (PDD)-not otherwise specified, which is on the Autism Spectrum. I have had him studied and looked at by more people than I can count on two hands, including a neuropsychologist who was supposedly skilled in Autism.

So, Dylan's diagnosis has been:

psychiatrist #1 - ADHD
psychiatrist #2 - ADHD/ODD
psychiatrist #3 - Mood Disorder, not otherwise specified/ADHD/ODD
psychiatrist #4 - ADHD/ODD/Intermittent Explosive Disorder (POSSIBLE Bipolar Disorder, not otherwise specified)
psychiatrist #5 - Pervasive Developmental Disorder (PDD)-not otherwise specified (NO mention of ADHD, ODD, or ANY mood disorder hahahahahaha)
psychiatrist #6 - Bipolar, not otherwise specified - Pervasive Developmental Disorder (PDD)-not otherwise specified, ADHD (he was also ODD from this doctor, but later had it removed because the ODD symptoms disappeared when we treated the Bipolar)

My point is, none of them really knew. Even now, nobody knows for sure if Dylan is Autistic. None of those 6 psychiatrists were the neuropsychologist. Know what he said to me? "I don't know what to make of the Bipolar". LMAO! HUH?????????????????? I dunno either, but isn't it soooooooooo strange the BIPOLAR medications WORKED? Ugh. He's so clearly Bipolar now it's not even funny. Kid is clearly manic.

I guess my point is, you probably won't have any real answers from one guy. We kinda took all the years worth of stuff and are where we are. As Dylan gets older, we see things more clearly, like the manic episodes I was talking about. He is pretty socially clueless, which is why he has the Pervasive Developmental Disorder (PDD)-not otherwise specified thing on. He had some obsessions with spinning things, etc, when he was smaller, but all that is gone.

And to tell you the truth, no matter what your difficult child's diagnosis is, you want to treat the symptoms. I feel more at peace having the diagnosis'es, but in all honesty, if the medications had made life easier, wouldn't have mattered what his diagnosis is.

So, regarding the medications, I say this to you. I have a MySpace site that is dedicated to Childhood Bipolar. I have teenagers on there, unmedicated, not medicated properly, that are Bipolar, not diagnosed, still trialing medications. They are suicidal, cutters, burners. Up and down and up and down, with no relief. My son, at only 4 years old, rammed his head through a picture window and shattered it to a million pieces. I wouldn't have cared WHAT medicine he was on, to fix that.

There are as many side effects with some of the mood stabilizers as there are with the antipsychotics and the stimulants. ALL medication has side effects. My son is on the Lithium, and really, the benefits outweigh the couple of stupid side effects any day. So, he pees the bed. He wears diapers. So, he has to drink more water. SO? His manic episodes and rages are almost nil.

I'll take that any day.

 

[ML]

Thank you soo much for responding to my post.

Your situation was a no brainer re medications. I wouldn't have hesitated either.

The one sliver lining is that in January this insurance goes away and I will have a chance to get with a good psychiatrist and therapist. That's been a lot of our problem. I need a doctor who suggests protocols rather than asking me what I want to do. Kaiser is known for being the bottom of the line in terms of mental health.

Again, thanks for being there and answering my post.

Hugs,

MicheleL

 

[BusynMember]

I have a son with Pervasive Developmental Disorder (PDD)-not otherwise specified who was misdiagnosed with bipolar.They kept missing the High-Functioning Autism (HFA). Did your son have any speech delays or repetitive behaviors? Social problems? Here's an online test for any sort of autism, including Aspergers. If you think he may have it, don't give up because the treatment is important and way different than bipolar. Here's the link for the test, and there's another link about Aspergers. Beware that no Aspies fit every single symptom. Also, AS can be co-morbid with bipolar.

http://www.childbrain.com/pddassess.html
http://www.aspergersyndrome.org/

 

[Sunlight]

hi michele. hope you get some help for your son. try to enjoy summer and not worry about the future. school will be here soon enough.

can you get him to go swimming? walking? biking?
the simplest diet is move more eat less.
I find I can eat all I want if I move more.