Im new here and my question is this i have a 4 year old son that was born at 36 weeks 6 weeks early ,i am currently seeking help for him to determine ADHD??? can they really be this young and have it ? and is it true its common in premie babies?
Yes they can be that young, because they are born with it. The trouble is that it can be difficult to get a diagnosis at 4. Some doctors will begin to diagnosis at 4 (or younger), while others will still make you wait. So you have to push sometimes, but you should keep on pushing. Your concerns should be heard, and if they aren't, find a new doc.
If you feel there is a concern, then you are probably right. I think mothers are rarely off the mark on if there is something wrong or not. My only suggestion is to not assume it's any one thing, but definitely get him evaluated. Make sure it is someone competent in a wide range of childhood disorders, that will do a very thorough evaluation, not just hand you an AD/HD screener and make a diagnosis off that. That leaves to much room for misdiagnosis, as many childhood disorders have symptoms that could meet the AD/HD criteria.
I also suggest making a list of things you are concerned about. Don't go into great detail, or it may not get read, but just a simple format list of concerns. The doctor will ask for more information if they need it. List every single thing you can think of that has ever raised your eye brows. Behavior wise, physically, emotionally, any quirks, any language, development issues. Anything and everything. List them, and give the list to the doctor. Make sure they look it over so they can get a good idea of the WHOLE picture of your child, and you don't miss things that may be important.
Good luck!
IMO, you shouldn't seek help for a specific disorder because you don't know what he has. The label with young kids changes often as they grow older. Before you treat and medicate one disorder, have him tested for all of them, and don't give meds until you get more than one opinion that it's the right disorder. The best diagnosticians are NeuroPsycologists. Regular Psycologists are not very good at picking out the harder ADHD mimickers (we've had our share of them) and Psychiatrists are best for psychiatric disorders, such as early onset bipolar. They can miss neurological disorders, especially in very young kids. What kind of behaviors do you see? Any speech dealys? Weird behavior? Toe-walking? Raging? Sleeplessness? Hypernness alone doesn't mean ADHD. Good luck :)I knew something was wrong with my son by age 2. I was 23 and had a hard time keeping up with him. Bedtime was the worst. He would be up at 6 am and I would still be trying to get him to bed after midnight. I couldn't control him no matter what. We tried everything to get him to understand right from wrong. I finally took him to the doctor and said either give him the drugs or me. It affected my life in every way. We couldn't take him anywhere because of the way he acted. It wasn't like we let him get away with everything, we tried different forms of punnishment (I don't believe in hitting or spanking), like time outs, taking toys away, taking away movies and tv.
He is now 10 and will be in 5th grade. After trying many different medications, we finally found a combination that worked for him. He is doing much better in school and now enjoys life.
Please, for your sake and your son's, take him to a psychiatrist and have him tested. It will be a long road ahead. It won't be an instant cure, but once you find the right drug for him, you and he will be much happier. Please don't listen to those people who tell you that he will be a zombie on drugs. My son isn't, he still has tons of energy, it is just used to be a normal kid, not a kid that can't control himself. Don't wait until he starts school. It took my son a couple of years to catch up to the kids in his class because of attention and behavior problems. He still works with the AEA7 teacher everyday at school, and still struggles with some subjects.
Find a good doctor that will do more than just write you a prescription every month. We went through three before we found one that really wanted to help us. Write down all of your concerns before you go in. Trust me, you won't remember everything when you get there, all the information is pretty overwhelming.
I wish you and your son the best of luck. Life can be normal again. Just have patience.
my son is 4 and ADHD and several others here have 4 year old dxd as well.
like the others said you need to have him evaluated.here in britain they won't diagnosed 4 year olds as they think it is too young to know for sure and they won't medicate until 6.my they made an exeption with my son.
what concerns you?what kind of behavior?
carb has obviously never lived in a house with a 4yr old ADHD child!
I have twins, born at 36 weeks and one of them has ADD. I did not receive any meds for prematurity prior to the birth so that does not apply to our circumstance.
Hello! My youngest was also born at 36 weeks. Did you take terbutaline or brethine during your pregnancy to stop preterm labor? There is anecdotal evidence that these may lay the groundwork for adhd or autism. I took terbutaline and was given a course of three steroid shots to speed lung development, so I am very interested in other's experiences with this. Please feel free to pm me, if you'd like.
Be as thorough and as patient as you can be with the diagnosis process. Trust your professionals, but trust your "mom-stincts" more. There is no rush to judgement. Good luck.
Hi, our now 4 year old was diagnosed at age 3. I did not pursue a diagnosis to "label" my child -- I pursued a diagnosis b/c he was CLEARLY different from his peers and needed the help (I did too, as his primary caregiver!). We had a STRONG family history of ADHD and my husband had just been diagnosed himself. I am absolutely so grateful that we pursued a diagnosis early. We chose not to medicate but have had much success with a supplement program and his behavior has become much more manageable. It also helped me to learn about "triggers" that would possibly set him off. We are able to go to his pre-school teachers and discuss issues much more easily b/c we understand hiim so much better now! Good luck to you and welcome.no not all 4 year olds need to be watched like a hawk,i could go in the kitchen to make a cup of tea when my daughter was that age without worrying that she would just bolt out of the front door and disappear or i could go to the toilet without worrying that she decided to jump out of the second floor window.
add that to the no sleep,social problems,speech delay ,problems processing simple instructions and obssessive behavior,it is not the normal behavior of a 4 year old.
behavioral therapy,parenting classes melatonin and homeopathy are what we are trying with him.they need an extra teacher for him at nursery to deal with him as they find him a challenge.
[QUOTE=carbohydrate] [QUOTE=scotmama]it can affect them at 4 year olds more than you think.CARBOHYDRATE
imagine a 4 year old with no sense of danger because of his impulsive side.he jumps out of windows,runs away on the road,climbs on roofs,thinks knifes and lighters are fun ,dives in any kind of water body(swimming pool or ponds).
his mind is always going 100 miles an hour ,he can't cope with a lot of kids playing around him and he only sleeps a couple of hours at the time being up nearly 14 hours a day.
AND YOU ARE TRYING TO TELL ME IT DOES NOT AFFECT A 4 YEAR OLD?
if i hadn't be watching him like a hawk he would have been seriously injured or dead by now
On the dx side of it.i fought it all the way for both him and myself(impulsive inattentive ADD)until they mentionned ADHD to me i had no real idea what it was.
[/QUOTE]
You just described what sounds like any 4 year old child to me..... At least thats my opinion after working in a day care center over the summers in the past. Guess what, no one has any "real" idea on what ADD/ADHD is. Dont 4 year olds need to be watched like hawks to begin with? Why do people feel like they have to have a medical diagnosis for everything? I have a little cousin who until about the age of 5-6 did things like that. I remember he loved getting into the knives, jumping /falling down stairs, hitting his head HARD on things because he would slip and fall all the time (just as you said he was always going 100mph) It just took him a little longer to figure some things out and a some extra parenting. He is fine now and brilliant and in my opinion he was always fine. That was just the little guys personality and it required a little more attention than some of the other children. Not every child is the same, some require more than others.
My 2 cents, take it for what its worth and good luck to you.
Be patient. [/QUOTE]
Forgive my rudeness but there is no other way to put this but you really have no idea what your talking about. Give these parents some credit, they know when something isn't right.
My sister has two children and both were raised in a healthy two parent home. The eldest (son) was just your typical 4 year old being a very busy and inquisitive child and of course you have to watch 4 yr. olds like a hawk. He is now a student who just finished highschool with no problems. The daughter on the other hand was totally different and not just a difference in personality. Everyone in the family KNEW my neice was different. The moment she could walk was the last time my sister could ever feel safe to leave her alone for even one nano-second and even now at 11 yrs. old.
You have no idea what my sister has gone through with this child. The days she called me weeping her heart out because she didn't know what to with her daughter. The days she felt she just couldn't go on. Keep in mind this is a Mom who had the experience of raising one son using typical discipline effectively. With my neice, no punishment worked! My neice is so impulsive she is a danger to herself and still is, EVEN TO THIS DAY at 11 yrs.old!
You are so wrong CARBOHYDRATE! A parent knows even at 4 years old when something is different with their child.
[QUOTE=CARBOHYDRATE]Why? I cant imagine why at this point in your childs life it would matter.
Of course it matters. The earlier you know what ails your child the better for putting in place strategies to help them. Early intervention is always better. If your child could not see well would you get them glasses? If your child had cancer wouldn't you seek out the best treatment? If a child was deaf wouldn't you yourself start learning and teaching sign language? It's a no-brainer.
ADD/ADHD certainly is not going to effect your childs health in anyway (unless you decide to medicate down the road). I am not discounting ADD/ADHD's existance but its no more than a group of genreal symptoms and behaviors summed up into a term. There is no scientific data suggesting a specific mechanism by which ADD/ADHD can even be defined or proven. Oh, here we go. No scientific data. Science is constantly discovering new things - new cancers, new treatments. Now use some common sense...we are talking the brain here. It isn't just a matter of taking a biopsy and putting it under a microscope. I don't think there is a person in the world who would say the brain is a peice of cake to figure out. I am in no place to tell you how to parent your child but shouldnt you be asking yourself why you want to diagnose your son/daughter with ADD/ADHD? Because she is a responsible parent who wants to help her child as early as she possibly can. I would say a parent is negligent if they knew their child had problems and did nothing. Start there, talk to Dr's do your own research. I do believe that is exactly what this parent is doing - her own research... how else did she end up on this board? Good luck to you. [/QUOTE]
Auntie38922.4277546296 [QUOTE=staced72]Im new here and my question is this i have a 4 year old son that was born at 36 weeks 6 weeks early ,i am currently seeking help for him to determine ADHD??? can they really be this young and have it ? and is it true its common in premie babies?
[/QUOTE]it can affect them at 4 year olds more than you think.CARBOHYDRATE
imagine a 4 year old with no sense of danger because of his impulsive side.he jumps out of windows,runs away on the road,climbs on roofs,thinks knifes and lighters are fun ,dives in any kind of water body(swimming pool or ponds).
his mind is always going 100 miles an hour ,he can't cope with a lot of kids playing around him and he only sleeps a couple of hours at the time being up nearly 14 hours a day.
AND YOU ARE TRYING TO TELL ME IT DOES NOT AFFECT A 4 YEAR OLD?
if i hadn't be watching him like a hawk he would have been seriously injured or dead by now
On the dx side of it.i fought it all the way for both him and myself(impulsive inattentive ADD)until they mentionned ADHD to me i had no real idea what it was.
scotmama38921.9703935185 [QUOTE=scotmama]it can affect them at 4 year olds more than you think.CARBOHYDRATE
imagine a 4 year old with no sense of danger because of his impulsive side.he jumps out of windows,runs away on the road,climbs on roofs,thinks knifes and lighters are fun ,dives in any kind of water body(swimming pool or ponds).
his mind is always going 100 miles an hour ,he can't cope with a lot of kids playing around him and he only sleeps a couple of hours at the time being up nearly 14 hours a day.
AND YOU ARE TRYING TO TELL ME IT DOES NOT AFFECT A 4 YEAR OLD?
if i hadn't be watching him like a hawk he would have been seriously injured or dead by now
On the dx side of it.i fought it all the way for both him and myself(impulsive inattentive ADD)until they mentionned ADHD to me i had no real idea what it was.
[/QUOTE]First of all, 36 weeks is only 4 weeks early. :)
My recently officially dx adhd 5.5 yr old was born at 34 weeks. He also has seizure disorder. Neither have contributed to his adhd. Hes been a challenge from day 1 and we are happy to finally have a diagnosis that makes sense.
I have the same questions at MomWI (Im in WI too). What behaviors in particular are concerning you?
At 5 my son has been in PT twice, been evaluated by BT3, been in Early Childhood for 2 years (special ed thru the public schools) and getting speech and OT (but hes seen their non MD child "psych" too), seen 2 neurolgists, had EEG's and MRI's, seen a developmental doc and private speech therpaist along with a MD child psych and now FINALLY a neuropsych who gave us a REAL diagnosis that MAKES SENSE!
Basically Im saying hes had lots of issues along the way and looking back, most are really due to his adhd. So yes, it is possible to have adhd at a young age.
welcome to this message board glad u found it......
well i also have a son that is 4 yrs.old and he has adhd it took alot of time to find out what it really was cause the docters aways said is wast his or that but he does have other problems too but i still love him for him and no one will ever take that from me... like others have said if you feel very strong on the whole adhd keep pushing the issue with his docs.. because u know ur son better than anyone else does sont take no for an answer......... hope this help need any advise im here just look me up...ttfn