Hi
My husband is a truck driver as well. When my son was smaller, his teacher use to joke and say " If we could just set up his classroom in his dad's truck, we'd be all set."
In the summer and on other school holidays my son always goes in the truck. We actually use it as a reward for him !!
.IMac38944.5502662037I think it's great she took the whole day in stride. That's a great sign of adaptability and problem solving. I was thinking along with the others that also stated that the novelty of the day, the unexpected, the adrenaline of having the problem, may have helped her to be focused, when she is normally not so? A change of pace is good. When my son and I have days like this, when it all blows apart, he gets this way too, and really steps up to the plate, it is really wonderful to see. He's more on the innattentive side too. But it's a neat thing to see how they come up to the plate and see their skills at work, and how she was working on cominig up with solutions! It must have been sort of a gift of a day, in a way. My ADHD son probably would have dealt with that scenario fine. When there's an important situation that adults are trying to deal with he minds his Ps and Qs. He might have gotten a bit whiney at the end.What an interesting discussion.
Most 'crisis' situation result in the body's production of excess chemicals...seritonin maybe?? Adrenalin for sure. I wonder if there is a connection? When I get stressed, I tend to get very hyper and energized. I am not ADHD. I wonder, then, if the physiological effects of Adrenaline on an ADHD person is anything like the effect of a stimulant (ie. Adderall, Ritalin)?
An alternative theory is that the situation was novel/unique, which is typically something that ADHDers thrive on.
My ADHD son loves to troubleshoot and problem solve - especially anything mechanical. The boy has an engineer's mind...which I find a bit out of character for an easily bored/frustrated child. It's really sweet and pretty impressive to see these children's minds at work in this regard. Its one of the personality characteristics that make ADHD people great entrepeneurs.
My 10yo daughter is like this. When presented with a problem situation, she spends her energy trying to solve it (this is a suprising change from her usual bordom response). She can also show interest in some school subjects (math, PE, art and computers) as long as they are challenging and not too repetative. I used to second guess the potential for ADHD because she would have a relatively good week at school and/or at home, but this would never last. When changing a treatment or trying a new treatment, I reserve final judgment for a couple weeks, in case she is having a "good" period. [QUOTE]You can't ask if your child behaves one day--and expect us to know if she has ADHD. [/QUOTE]I'd have to agree as well. While hyperactivity can certainly be part of AD/HD and seems to be the hallmark sign, the thing we all imagine in our heads when we hear AD/HD, it is not actually seen in all children. Some are just hyperactive, some are just inattentive, and some are both. There does not have to be hyperactivity present, to meet the criteria for AD/HD.
It's actually very common for girls to go undiagnosed because they generally are not hyper, and even if they are, they tend to find other ways to deal with their activity levels. As my doctor said, "boys tend to make enemies from their energy, girls tend to stuff it". Although it's a bit of a blanket statement, it does tend to be true.
My 10 year old has three close friends, all with ADHD. None of them are particular behavior problems--their problems involve school and inattention and bit of being too bossy. In fact, extreme behavioral issues is probably far more than ADHD. The kids I know with ADHD can and have handled situations like your daughter did, and even worse (one a funeral, the other the death of her dog by a hit car). They were more emotional than other kids, but they recovered well--parents were proud! There is no one way a child with a disability will act at any given time. ADHD is always there, but it can be everything from jumping around to inattention. If you have a very moody child, who is great one day and rages violently the next--I know you're having trouble with the ADHD dx.--but that's not really the way ADHD is. That's more like some other stuff. ADHD is not a lifetime sentence for a horrible life. Many very successful people have it. You can't ask if your child behaves one day--and expect us to know if she has ADHD. The best way to know what's wrong with the child, and I think parents know, in their guts, if something is wrong, is to see a NeuroPsych. We had lousy luck with regular Psycologists. None of them figured my son out right. Every Mom wonders "is my kid normal?" on a good day. I see my son on certain days and think, "Wow. He can't be on the autism spectrum. No way." But he is. It just seems he is more "autistic" certain days, and that's the norm for all childhood disorders. I do highly recommend a second opinion after this one. ADHD is almost always the first diagnosis a child gets, very often not the last, and ADHD meds only work for ADHD. THey can make other disorders worse. I wish you luck with your daughter. I hope her psycologist knows how to administer the gamut of tests--most of them DON'T. Sounds like you have a neat little girl. What about your daughter makes you think something's up? MomWI38924.2394328704Maybe you all are getting sick of me since I'm sure it sounds like I am fighting the possibility of the ADHD diagnosis... well I might be a little bit, but I just want to know for sure, ya know?
When we are faced with an "emergency" situation, my son is usually very well behaved, I think because the sense of emergency puts him on high alert, so to speak. It's like a challenge for the adults, so he wants to see how it gets handled. Also, my son seems to be able to handle grim situations well for the same reason, I think. He was very well behaved at my dad's funeral, even falling asleep at the church, which was a blessing since I think closing the casket would have freaked him out.