Newbie/Anger Issues | ADHD Information

Are you seeing a child psychiatrist?  There could be more than adhd, my son may have cyclothymia and adhd.  Cyclothymia is a cyclic mood disorder, not as severe as bipolar.  If your current doctor is not helping, find a new one.  We found a good doc, and he is wonderful.

Jeremy started on Ritalin to get his dosage set up.  While his teachers and my hubby and I all saw marked improvement in his ability to concentrate, his mood swings were terrible!!!!    Don't get me wrong, he still has them and we are having to constantly try new ways to work through them.  He gets all worked up and has been known to bang his head, hit or kick.  After he settled in to a dosage that seemed to work for him, his doctor switched him over to Metadate because it's long lasting and has fewer side effects.  We still have to revisit dosage amounts from time to time, but we're happy with the results.  He also attends a very small school where his teachers and principle are really on top of things! He's getting good grades, loves his friends and school, and is in an after school program through his school, plays soccer and is a Cub Scout, as well. 

As for anger management, we took Jeremy to a child psychologist who evaluated him over a period of six appointments at different times of the day, etc.  She even had separate appointments with us to evaluate whether or not it was an environmental anger.  He was on his best behavior during each appointment, and was allowed to play with toys that interested him while she talked to him.  After all that, she said that she couldn't see anything wrong with him!!  Yet he still has problems controlling his anger, and often cries when he gets angry or believes he has been falsely accused of something - it's like the world has come to an end (we later found that this is part of the symptom.) 

Hang in there!  It does get better!  Ask the Doc about Metadate.  We did some research on different meds and have found that some of the "side effects" aren't worth the little relief you and your son get from them.  Everybody's system is different, and not everyone is going to react to their meds the same.  It's always a hit and miss until you find the right one.  In the meantime, !!!!

Welcome and it sounds like you have your hands full.  I am stressed just being a mom and working full time and running with my childs extras like dance.

As far as explosions sometimes there is not much one can do except when they occur I drag her to the car leave the situation.  If you are at someones home give him a time out somewhere quiet and tell him if he continues you will leave and be prepared to do just that.  Consistancy is the key.  My friends son used to lash out in anger at other kids too when he was younger and he has ADHD and Bi-polar and on meds he is like a different child.  So with the correct meds for him and right psychologist things will get better, hang in there.

 

Hi all,

I wanted to introduce myself... as I feel like I may be asking a lot of questions/advice for those of you on here who have been in my shoes, and dealt with similar issues... and found ways to work through them.

I am a single mother who works full time, goes to school full time, and have a 5 year old son who was FINALLY diagnosed as ADHD about a month ago. 

As I've read from others on here, I've always suspected that he was "different".  But not having grown up around other children, or been exposed to many children in my life... I always questioned my judgement as to what was considered "normal".

We are seeing a psychiatrist and a play therapist.  Conner was put on 5mg of Ritalin initially two times a day (morning and lunch) and has moved up to 3 times a day.  The first couple of weeks I was amazed at the difference in him... but the last week it seems like he is majorly regressing. We go in to discuss the medication on Tuesday.

In the meantime, I'm not being unrealistic, I know we're going to take two steps forward and one step back.  I know we're going to have bad days.  I know that progress does not happen overnight...  but I am SO frustrated and worn out.

What is really causing problems right now is Conner's inability to deal with his anger.  He just completely flies off the handle, is destructive and violent... and managed to even break a glass door yesterday at the after school program. He's hurt several children since school has started, and has also injured me. When he gets mad like that, there is no talking him down, no getting through the anger... he just has to have the time to bring himself back down.  The problem is that I can only go through so many after school programs kicking him out before I run out of options, ya know?  Thank God this one is letting him come back.

To get to the point, I'd like to hear what some of you all have learned to help your child deal with their angry outbursts in public situations.  At home it's easy to give him space, or physically restrain him until he gets it out... and we're consistently working on learning to use words to express his anger... but when you see an explosion coming on in public, what do you do? When he's in a classroom full of kids, and he starts going ballistic and punching all of them... how have teachers/others/you helped to get your child to learn to process the anger in non-violent ways?

And yes, I know what you are thinking... I have asked these questions of the therapists and physchologists... and just don't feel like I've gotten any productive feedback yet..  The principal and teachers have looked to ME for answers on how to deal with him... 

What worries me too, is that he shows no remorse or regret for hurting other children/people.

What a rant, I'm sorry it's so long.... It's just my son is a GOOD kid.  I know YOU guys know this, because you're here on this board... but to anyone who doesn't have an ADHD kid, you get tired of saying "You just don't understand". 

Thanks for listening,

Kim