New to this - Son has ADHD | ADHD Information

HELLO AND WELCOME.

My son is also ADHD and he is 4,he is not medicated.you could try to get him an IEP which would give him extra help at school.(individual educational program)also a psychologist or neurologist could be a good idea to have him properly diagnosed in case he has other underlying problems,we have an homeopath and therapists(massage and movement)and a behavioral therapist also,but here we don't pay for this and meds so if you are a single mum,it could be difficult execpt the IEP.

Jaderock -

My son hasn't started on any meds as of yet. We are going to his pedi tomorrow morning to see what he will prescribe. Jon was sent home due to the violent outbursts that he has. He's had the screaming/tantrum/fit before there and they have handled it and redirected him to help him "calm down".

Yesterday became very emotional for me - He held a pencil to his neck (not actually pressing into) and said "die die die". Of course, the school contacted me, since they have to by law, and let me know of this. Then his behavior got worse. I picked him up from school and we discussed it. He lost out on some fun things and had to do stuff that he doesn't necessarily like, with me (ie clean). I am hoping that getting him on meds, will straighten his act out, and if we have to try multiple different things, then we will. Whatever will help my son.

I'm just wondering which medicines I should ask for...I don't know anything about ADHD and all the information that I've gotten via internet has been round about and not really pointing to any direct meds. I've heard of ritalin and adderall, but what else is there!?!?!?! AGH! I'm sooooo overwhelmed with this!

Michelle, my son is not being medicated for his emotional problem but were are seeing a psychologist for it. He is on focalin XR (10mg) and focalin (5mg) for his hyper-activness. Like jaderock54 stated above it can take a while to find the right dosage of meds. As for the marble system, I have learned, it has to be enforced all of the time, when my son goes with others, I let them know about the system I am using and expect them to follow it.

Vanessa

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HELLO AND WELCOME.

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He does have an IEP, he's been to the neurologist, and a psychologist. We are going to his Pedi tomorrow morning for a Rx. I got information from my co-worker on a therapist that mainly treats children. I contacted her and I'm waiting for a call back . .00 for an hour session...no insurance needed? Supposedly this is what was told to me by my co-worker. I'm not sure if it's different or not, but I'm going to find out tonight when she returns my call. I'm happy because she works with one of the school districts, but it's not in my state. I'm in NJ and she is in Newtown, Pa. 20minute drive so thats not bad.

THanks!!!

I'm new to this discussion board and I'm hoping I'll get insight on this. My son, who is 5.5 years old, was just diagnosed with ADHD. I have NO clue how to handle this. We went to a psychologist and she has recommended medication. She continued to say that it's not neccessarily ADHD but emotional. Either way, he is ADHD.

Any how - I'm at a complete loss for what I'm supposed to do. I've brought him to doctors, he is in a special needs class (specifically children with ADHD and behavior/emotional problems), he gets extra attention at home, etc. What else am I supposed to do? Where am I supposed to go to? What other doctors do I have to see?

I've been asked to pick him up on 3 occasions for his outbursts and I'm afraid I might loose my job. My boss understands, but I'm not sure if it is enough to keep my job. I love my son and I love my job.

Oh - just for the record - I'm a single mom. My son's father and I have not been together for 5.5 years. He wasn't a major part of Jon's life until a few years ago. There's alot more history behind all of this, but I don't think I should go into full details.

Any insight and/or options are greatly appreciated! Please help! I'm at wits end!!!

Michelle
Jon's Mommy

Welcome to the board. Im fairly new as well and a young single mom. I know exactly how you feel. I also have a 5 y/o that was diagnosed in feb(at 4.5). It took me a while to admit to my family and friends that my son was diagnosed with ADHD. They all had told me he was the way he was because I spoiled him to much and did not know how to disipline him.

I did start med right away because my son was on the verge of being asked to leave the school. Since he has been on meds his behavior has greatly improved. I have also started the marble system and that has help with his outbursts because if he doesnt listen the first time he has to take a marble out and does not like to do that because then he doesnt have enough marbles to do the things he really likes to do (i.e. stay at grandmas house or go to the movies). Im sorry, I cant be more help, Im still pretty new at all of this.

Vanessa

Thanks Vanessa. I really appreciate your input. I hope you don't mind me asking, but what medication(s) is your son taking? My son's Pedi is probably going to deny the prozac (for emotional problems) and recommend something else. If I go in with a hand ful of information on meds, I can probably persuade him into something.

I am seriously at wits end. I printed out the Marble system and I will be getting the stuff tonight (hopefully) to begin this tomorrow or if not monday (since he's with his dad during the weekends).

Thanks again for the input.

Michelle
Jon's Mommy

Hi and welcome,

It is a lot to take in at once when they've just been diagnosed, but you've come to great place for support and info.

You don't say whether or not you've started him on meds, either way, it can take a while to find the right med and dosage but it's been worth it in our experience.

Another thing to try is a reward system (check out Ogram's Marble Thread at the top of the board). Lots of praise and rewards really help, even when he's acting hellish, try to find one little thing that he's done good to praise him for.

As far as the school goes, what kind of outbursts is he having? Are they violent or is he just screaming and being disruptive? Teachers of special needs/emotionally distrurbed children are trained and should be able to deal with outbursts. I would understand sending him home for violence, but if it's just screaming they should be able to handle that. Ask them what their policy is for sending children home and what they're plan is for dealing with these outbursts(they should have one). A friend of mine works with emotionally disturbed middle schoolers and they have written plans for all their kids, as well as a special room (empty but covered in gym mats so they don't hurt themselves) where they take the kids to calm down when they seem to be in danger of hurting themselves or others. They rarely have to send these kids home because they handle them so well- and they're a magnet special needs program so they have the worst kids in the county.

Does your son see a therapist on an ongoing basis? We've had great results with our 8 yr old with a combo of play therapy, meds, and the marble system. The therapist has really helped us sort out which issues stem from ADD and which are emotional/anxiety. She also got us using 123 Magic (a great book) for discipline and that worked wonders, especially initially.

Hope you find some of this helpful and look around the forums- there's tons of info here.

For my child,

If the adderall is not working then your child should not stay on it....many children do not do well with this particular stimulant med ( my son takes Adderall and it is good for him---we tried others). If you are unsure , then I suggest you keep a chart of the behaviors and see if they improve, also get daily feedback from the teachers until you figure this out, ....several of the drug companies have progress sheets...you can go to concerta home page and down load one. It is important that you express your concerns with your son's doctor, he/she can adjust the meds until you get something that you are happy with. It took us almost a year and a half to figure out the best meds for my son with the fewest side effects.

Good luck

Hi Jonathan's mom, I also have a 5.5 year old son with adhd and his name is Tyler.
Tyler has had a pretty extreme case of adhd since last year, the begining of 4-k and it has worsened since then. We started Tyler on Adderall XR almost two weeks ago. I can't express in words how hard that decision was to make and how much harder it is to keep! My heart feels like it is slowly being torn apart. Some where inside of me I'm not even sure where feels like I have made the wrong decision in giving Tyler this money making,easy way out of a drug! But at the same time I know he really needs something and I don't know what else to do! I have lost two children already to very tradgic accedents, then I was blessed with Tyler. Almost every second of my life I worrry my self sick thinking about what could happen what could go wrong with Tyler. I have started a medication for post-tramatic disorder and anxiety at the same time Tyler started Adderall XR. I honestly do not know if giving Tyler this medican is the right thing to do or not and mostly I feel that it isn't and as badly as I want to help Tyler just the thought of something terrible happening to him because of the Adderall is becoming un bearable.I don't want to take him off of it and possibly prevent him from truly benifiting from it, all because of my fear of losing him. My baby is my everything and I am his. Know one has ever loved and needed me the way Tyler does. I don't know if other mom's have experianced this kind of love but Tyler is uniqely one of a kind. My baby tells me that I am beautiful, that he loves me with all of his heart soul and that he love me to pieces. Tyler and I pray every day together, and when I go to bed I pray and beg God to help me keep Tyler safe and to help me do the right thing. I feel what you are going through and I understand. Maybe you and I can help each other for or beautiful and precious baby's. I hope to hear from you soon!
Welcome! I'm also new to this. My daughter was recently diagnosed with ADHD, possibly other things too. Our ped. reccomended we take her pyschologist to discuss this further. I can't really give much advise since I too am always seeking advise on how to deal and what to do. It's a rough road but it helps to know that you are not alone!

some parents have been really happy with the daytrana patch,you should look it up.

welcome...i'm also new to all of this. i took my dd to the pediatrician just this week and she suggested strattera. next week we are having a psychologist do the actual ADHD testing and then decide on the best med, etc. i have an adhd coach in mind if we decide to go that way as well. i also bought easy child software this past month, but have yet to get that up and ready to go. i've been so consumed reading everything that i can here in my spare time and debating which med i think would be best for my dd, etc. i've read quite a few success stories on metadate, concerta, adderal, and focalin. i also joined CHADD and am trying to read everything that they have sent me as well. my daughter's conference at school is later this month...eeeccckkkk! i'm not sure how i'll handle the feedback, her grades have definitely slipped this fall:(

anyways...welcome!
shelley

Just rememebr guys that no matter how much u learn about all the meds, the meds can have different reactions with different kids. unfortuneatly that was what we had. we started my son on the one that had the lest amount of side affects, and they had great success with youger kids as my son was only 4, but we ended having to change it as it turned my son into a zombie. so now he is on ritalin and we dont have a problem.

Angel