My 5 year old may have ADHD; I need help | ADHD Information

Well, the doctor's office called to cancel Aiden's appointment today.  I will do some more research on this.  I am so glad that I found this webiste.  You are all very helpful.

our son is only 4

we are trying the therapies first and homeopathy,when he starts school then we will consider the meds if everything fails.

you are the one who decides what's best for your son,you know him best not the doctor

stick to your guns and insists on the tests you want done.

GOOD LUCK

Defitinely agree with a pediatrician or plain psycologist is not the one to diagnose a childhood disorder, be it ADHD or otherwise. THey just aren't that good at it and don't take much time. We've had many of them see our son for a half hour, snap their fingers, pull a dx. out of the air (the first was ADHD) and get out the prescription pad. Much better to see a NeuroPsych because they take a LOT of time with the kids and are careful because diagnosing anything. They can be wrong too--any professional can--but they try a LOT harder and do more things with the child.

It sounds like a pediatrician or a psychiatrist diagnosed just based on the criteria, and a neuro-psyche evaluation might suit your needs better. This involves complete testing, and will flush out any co-morbid conditons.

Wow that sounds alot like my son!  I had fertility issues too-I ended up with twin boys they are almost 8 years old.  One has ADHD and the other doesn't.  I loved it when the schools, psychologsts, social workers etc tried to blame Erik's behavior on poor parenting but his twin has no adhd or behavior problems.

It took Eriks kindergarten teacher only 2 days to call us!  He also developed tics and we went off concerta and tried some other stims that didn't work well and they wanted him to go on strattera but I knew we would never make  the 3-4 weeks it takes to see if the med works -he was bouncing off the walls-so I put him back on concerta and the dr added tenex (a blood pressure med) that helps with tics and impusivity.  working great!

good luck

Children's hopsitals, in addition to university hospitals, generally have neuropsychologists on staff.  You might have to drive a distance to find one, but it's worth it.Where do I find a neuropsychologist?  Are they in the phone book.  I don't think that I have seen one of those in there before.

Check out your local University Hospital.... you might also check with your insurance and see if there is one covered under your plan.

You may also want to check out the Alternatives to Medication part of this board.....

Good luck!

 

 

There is a children's hospital pretty close to me.  I used to drive there once a week for my son's OT.  I will call them and see what they have.

If he is diagnosed as ADD/ADHD, the last thing you want is to 'hide' it from the school. School Evaluations do NOT cover ADD - they can only give an indication. IF he is ADD/ADHD, then by letting the school know they can put a plan into place to help him. Otherwise, it can take a few months before things are done. You can always request an evaluation to determine if he needs special ed.

My son will be five at the end of the month.  He was diagnosed with Sensory Integration Dysfunction at 3 years old.  Last week we met with an ADHD "specialist" at my son's doctor's office.  He asked some questions and came to the conclusion that he has ADHD and to make an appointment with my son's doctor to discuss treatment.  We have an appointment tomorrow at four.  I don't know what to do.  I want to make sure that everything is ruled out before we do meds.  I know that will be the first things that comes from the doctors mouth probably.  I have a list of things to have the doctor test for.  What if she won't do them though?  I want to put off meds as long as I can.  The specialist said that he has a mild case of it.  If it is just mild, then would he need meds??  I want to do what is best, but I don't know what that is.  What are some of the things that you all have done about ADHD??  Please HELP!!

Even if you get a diagnosis of ADD/ADHD, as far as I know the first line of treatment is behavior modification and therapy. Once you get a diagnosis of ADD/ADHD, then it is much easier to get the school to put in place some sort of behavior modification or other intervention kind of plan.  Just because there is a diagnosis of ADD/ADHD, doesn't mean you have to medicate. You may come to that down the road after trying other things, but certainly at 5 years old I would DEFINITELY try other things first, unless the child is hurting himself or others.

Good Luck

nekochan38882.7316319444

Hi 

my son is 5 with ADHD and just started on meds he needs to be. but It doesn't stop there .we will receive behavioral therapy along with medication.so for you ,you may sought out  behavioral therapy  and go from there and see what happens .for some kids thats enough and they don't need meds.and then when he enters school don't mention anything about the ADHD and wait and see if they talk to you about him needing to be screened for ADHD.

just a thought always get a 2nd opinion

good Luck

ok, ask as many questions as you can think about.  here's a list to get you started.

These are just a few that i have asked. You should make a list and bring it with you. I always ask my son's teachers if they have a pressing question and ask the grand parents if they have any questions for the doc too.

how many children does the dr see for adhd.

how the dr screens for adhd or other l.d.'s

what kind of opinion the dr has on adhd (lot's of dr's don't like to med younger children)

how many times the dr wants to see your child a month (meaning does the dr want to drain the pocket book), or just get up to a maintance dose and then only ever 3 or 4 months.

how the dr deals with emergencies (can you call the dr if there is a problem of will they just tell you to go to the er, my son's dr let's us call him at home with any problems)

how long does it take to get in for a follow up, you don't want to wait for several months.

how does the doctor deal with refills, do you have to go in to pick up a rx or will they do refills on one script, does the dr charge you to pick up a script for refill.

how long has the dr been in practice and how long the dr has been in practice with children

what kind of training qualifies them to work with children.

how long he has been in practice. 

what doctor fills in or takes his calls while the dr is no on call.

will the on call dr make you go to the er or can you call the dr yourself.



hope this helps. I always go overboard with the questions to ask. Remember, you are choosing the doctor, the doctor doesn't choose you. You will be employing this doctor to give your child medications if necessary, so you can ask the dr anything you want until you are satisfied. Be sure to take notes and ask follow up questions you might have. And remember, you are just as smart as the doctor, you just chose a different career path.

Hello,

First, I would take a deep breath and remember that diagnosis takes much more than a few minutes of a "specialist's" time.  It should be a several hour testing process and perhaps several meetings with a psych who is qualified to diagnose the problem.  Any ethical dr. isn't going to just jump right in to meds.  If she does, perhaps you'd better take a break and get another opinion. Don't let anyone rush you into anything. Just because she writes you the script doesn't mean you have to fill it or give it.

You might check out the Alternatives board at this site.  It has many good suggestions about things to try rather than meds.

Treatment of ADHD is a process, not a race. If you feel you are being rushed, then you are and you are not being given the time to make decisions that are best for your family. Good luck to you.

No meds do not have to be the first choice like someone else said behavior mod first meds are last resort.  Who diagnosed him? Does he have speech delays/problems or serious issues with eye contact or peer interaction? There are many things that mimic ADHD and without a NeuroPsych, or another specialist (not just in ADHD, but in ALL disorders) you could well get the wrong dx. If so, it may be a disorder that doesn't need meds. Be careful. Our first dx. was also ADHD, and our son turned out to have autistic spectrum disorder and does best off meds. The two mimic each other and some feel ADHD is on the Spectrum. If there are lots of rages and behaviors, also it could be other things. ADHD doesn't include long term rages. Good luck :)OlderMom38882.8171412037