I'm not even sure where to start. My son is 7, 8 in August. He's been on Adderall, then Ritalin, now Concerta. All were prescribed by the pediatrician. Kindergarten was a nightmare until we finally got the meds. The rest of the year was OK. First grade went OK. Second grade was OK until Christmas. Since Christmas he's been in OCS (On Campus Suspension) more than 15 days total. It's almost 1 or 2 days every week. His discipline folder that comes home every day is covered with so many notes that the teachers have to write in the margins. The most common are "Won't do any work", and " arguing"or "talking back" to the teacher." Here and there are comments that he hurt another student or that he argued with another student. Thing is, he's really a good kid at home. We've been seeing a Psychologist for a month now and she suggested that we see a Psychiatrist because she saw some anxiety, depression also. She mentioned that she thinks if we can take care of the anxiety that she thinks he will be able to perform better in class. He just seems to be consumed with sadness and anger at school. He tells me,"I don't write good, mom", "I can't read good", "I'm a bad kid". It just breaks my heart!!!
The worst thing he does in school is flat-out, refuse to do any work. He'll sit at his desk and do absolutely nothing all day. Then he gets home and he has 6 or 7 papers of work that need to be done and we go back and forth for 3 or 4 hours to get him to finish the work. It's work that has to be done or he'll fail!!
I'm just at the end of my rope. I called all of the Psychiatrists on our insurance and the shortest wait period is 6 weeks!!! There's only 3 weeks of school left!! I made an appointment with the pediatrician for Friday (earliest I could get) to hopefully get a months worth of anxiety meds to get us through the end of the school year. I'm not really interested in them during the summer because I don't have this problem with him. He's just talking about kids making fun of him and calling him names at school.
AAARRRGGGHHHH!!!!! i'M JUST SO SPENT!!!! I DON'T KNOW WHAT TO DO!!!
There is usually a waiting period for good help. I'm wondering if you've considered a NeuroPsych.What sort of things set your son off? Does he have trouble starting his work without somebody beside him? How was his early development? How does he socialize? Are mood disorders or substance abuse on either side of the family tree? I'd be very careful to hang all this on anxiety.
Have you thought about an IEP to help him in school? Do you think he's refusing because he's "bad" or because it's hard for him, even though he's bright? Most pediatricians are not the best diagnostitians of childhood disorders. Ours wont' even make an attempt at it and will refer patients to NeuroPsychs or Psychiatrists, depending on whether he feels it's a neurological problem or a psychiatric one. We got our answer from a NeuroPsych who did very intensive testing. Just talking to a child and his/her parents or filling out a few sheets usually is not enough to figure out "why." I wouldn't worry so much about the next three weeks and "failure." He isn't failing--the school is missing the boat with him and is failing him and with the right type of IEP he'll have to be passed, homework or no homework, and he'll get help during school. I do recommend an evaluation first by a private professional, then the school will have to test, but you have ammunition to bring to them. If there are any LD's a NeuroPsych will catch them. If it's ADHD alone the NeuroPsych will nail it. If it's more than just ADHD, he can nail it too. Psychiatrists are not as good at nailing LD and ADHD problems because it's not their field. We learned the hard way that professionals are very narrowly specialized these days. I hope you consider a NeuroPsych to rule out everything, and wish you luck.
OlderMom38852.7706944444That sounds like he has a low self esteem to me and so sad and being so young. Can the school psychologist talk to him or the school social worker talk with him until the 6 weeks? Has anyone tried lots of positives with him, pointing out the positive things he is doing? What is his teacher like? that can be part of it does she give up on him or really and truly try and the other kids pick up on vibes so if the teacher has a negative attitude so will the kids. I wish you the best hang in there.Welcome! A good psychiatrist will often have a waiting list, but I'd definitely make the appointment and go, even if school is out. You need the knowledge and skill of a child psychiatrist in a situation where mood issues are involved.
Concerta itself could be the problem. Side effects, especially over time, include anxiety and depression. My 13-year-old son suffered both anxiety and depression on stimulants and asked to be taken off of them. You might want to ask the ped about stopping the Concerta to see if his anxiety and depression resolve.
BTW, SSRIs are generally prescribed for anxiety. They can't just be taken for a month and then stopped; they generally take a month to reach effectiveness. They need to be taken day in, day out, unlike stimulants. So you're not really looking at a quick fix here.