Well, this really could just be a child with ADHD, with an emphasis on Impulsiveness. The 30% rule is that unmedicated ADHD children are up to 30% behind peers in emotinal/social maturity. Yes, it gets better. I believe many doctors don't diagnose bi-polar until much older, but you can check on the American Academy of Pediatrics website. Focus Factor and Attentive Child both have amino acids, which is tricky stuff. My son had VERY bad reactions to both of these. They made him very emotional, easily frustrated, etc. You could very well be creating some of these symptoms with these supplements. Why not try backing off those completely and trying Omega-3 and perhaps magnesium instead. Visit the alternatives board.
Also, I'd take every single movie with violence in it, including movies like Shrek, and eliminate that visual input.
NoTellin39423.9071064815My son will turn 5 in February and has had ADHD symptoms since 2. We had him diagnosed when he was 3. We tried adderall for awhile and it made him terribly worse. We decided to try Focus Factor instead and now Attentive Child. These have helped. However, he has a really hard time dealing with his emotions and expressing himself. Sometimes I wish I had a screamer, but instead I have a violent child at times. He was very violent in the past with biting, hitting, kicking, etc. He has improved with age, but now at preschool he is starting to throw chairs and kick the teacher. On two separate occasions, he was told to put something away and didn't listen. So when he realized he was in trouble and had to pay consequences, on time he just threw chairs (almost hit a child), and second time he threw blocks at teacher and tried to kick her. He will eventually calm down. When he was younger, it was very hard to calm him down so at least that has improved.
My question is: Are other ADHD children emotionally delayed in regard to their expression of emotion? It's as if he is completely engrossed in his anger (frustration) and calming down never enters his mind. I really do believe he has no way of stopping himself at times. He just flips out. He just hasn't learned how to control himself. We tell him over and over to use his words, but he hits first and asks questions later. LOL He fights back immediately and then later thinks about what happened. He says he will use his words next time, but most of the time he doesn't. I just don't think he's developed. Does anyone know of ways to help him develop it? Or is this something that will improve with age?
Yes, it is very common especially in kids with a co-morbid disorder. With a diagnosis made at age 3 the chances of there being something else, or possibly a misdiagnosis are high, I would maybe see the psych to discuss the behaviors you are seeing.A co-morbid disorder? Is that like ODD, etc.? What kind of disorders are you thinking?
Thanks for your input.
Your son's symptoms are very similar to early-onset bipolar disorder, which is often misdiagnosed as ADHD. Being diagnosed with ADHD at 2 or 3 is extremely rare. I would talk to a psychiatrist if I were you...rhondacty
My son also. He is very sensitive to other kids. He gets offended easily when they say they don't want to play. I think some of it is that they don't want to play what he wants to. He then relates that to: they don't want to be my friend. That makes him very isolated sometimes I think. It's difficult because other children aren't always very nice.
[QUOTE=UnabletoCope]My son will turn 5 in February and has had ADHD symptoms since 2. We had him diagnosed when he was 3. We tried adderall for awhile and it made him terribly worse. We decided to try Focus Factor instead and now Attentive Child. These have helped. However, he has a really hard time dealing with his emotions and expressing himself. Sometimes I wish I had a screamer, but instead I have a violent child at times. He was very violent in the past with biting, hitting, kicking, etc. He has improved with age, but now at preschool he is starting to throw chairs and kick the teacher. On two separate occasions, he was told to put something away and didn't listen. So when he realized he was in trouble and had to pay consequences, on time he just threw chairs (almost hit a child), and second time he threw blocks at teacher and tried to kick her. He will eventually calm down. When he was younger, it was very hard to calm him down so at least that has improved.
My question is: Are other ADHD children emotionally delayed in regard to their expression of emotion? It's as if he is completely engrossed in his anger (frustration) and calming down never enters his mind. I really do believe he has no way of stopping himself at times. He just flips out. He just hasn't learned how to control himself. We tell him over and over to use his words, but he hits first and asks questions later. LOL He fights back immediately and then later thinks about what happened. He says he will use his words next time, but most of the time he doesn't. I just don't think he's developed. Does anyone know of ways to help him develop it? Or is this something that will improve with age?
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my daughter has the same problems with emotions. She will be 8 in Feb. She has problems with rejection and I think that has allot to do with it. She really takes what kids say , or how they act towards so personally it makes her lash out.
Thanks for the input. I'm not sure about bipolar, but I do think it is worth having him rechecked. He was initially diagnosed by a psychologist and then a psychiatrist. But he's older now and might be easier for them to spot other signs of a comorbid disorder.Probably a little late jumping in here, dealing with frustration and anger have been issues of my daughters off and on for many years. The issues have always been at home and never at school. She has the on the whole gamut of behaviors - hitting, kicking, throwing things, biting, etc. Thank goodness our TV remote is tough.
Looking back over the years, first grade was a tough year. 2nd grade was a good year. We thought she had outgrown her temper thing. Boy were we wrong. 3rd grade was AWFUL. I finally had enough and had a talk with a friend who is a social worker and also had a consultation with our ped. The pediatrician started asking questions and started putting the piece together. It was she who suggested we get an evaluation for ADHD. I had no idea she even fit the profile. The more I read, the more it fit. She was diagnosed at the end of 3rd grade.
She started med's right before 4th grade. She had a fabulous year. All the temper issues decreased and we had very little issue. It was like we had a totally different kid. The house was a much calmer place. She was happier and her self confidence grew. Her teacher and classroom environment made a huge difference. She was the best!
Starting 5th grade, the issues have comeback. We have changed med's and also increased dosages. This has helped a ton. We are also working with a behavioral therapist. This has been very helpful. After a rough few months, things are getting back under control.
During the past couple of months, I have been keeping a daily log. It has been really eye opening experience for me. I've learned a great deal about what triggers my daughters behavior issues, which days and times that are worse than others and my reaction to the situations. It's still a balancing act to avoid meltdowns but we are better able to predict them and lessen their effect.
Things will have their ups and downs. If things are getting out of control, seek professional help. It's made a huge difference for us - something I should have done years ago.
My son (9) had violent tantrums in the preschool years. We found a play therapist who he saw for several years, and we still go back to her when things get rough. One of the things she told us to help us understand why he lost control so quickly is that he was basically living in a cronically frustrated state. All it took was one little thing to push him over the edge. Couple that with lack of impulse control and an inability to calm himself under the best of circumstances and we had a preschooler who would scream, hit, throw, kick, etc. at the drop of a hat for anywhere from 20 minutes to 2 hours.
A couple of things that I found helpful were documenting the behavior in detail; what set him off, what happened before, who was there and how did they react, what he did and how he eventually calmed down. It's ok to step in and help him to calm himself. With my son I found I had to time it just right though or it would make him more angry. Often you will begin to see a pattern or a trigger that can be avoided.
Sit down with the preschool teachers and come up with a plan for dealing with the behavior. Obviously he needs to be removed from the room so he doesn't hurt anyone. Decide on how that will happen- will they ask him to walk out with them, take his hand, or carry him?
After an incident like you described it can be helpful to talk about what you (the adult) do when you're "so angry the words won't come out." Some things that work well are telling them you clench your teeth and stomp your feet real hard- then show him (he'll calm down much faster if you make him laugh). Or grabbing a pillow and bang, bang, bang, banging it.
We like to to tell our kids to use their words, and it's a good thing to teach, but it's a hard thing to do. Kids with adhd have the maturity lag to deal with, and then you have kids like my son who have a hard time organizing their thoughts enough to tell you things when they aren't angry, much less when they're seeing red.
Just a note about Bi- Polar- It's a very difficult disorder to diagnose in teens/ adults, which is typically when it is diagnosed. My step- sister has bi-polar, and it took many years for them to properly diagnose her. It's a very serious disorder that most will not even consider diagnosing in a younger child because there can be so many other reasons that will cause children to act in a similar manner. It never hurts to check for co- morbids, but there are a lot of similarities at this age between a child with ADHD and a child who will go on to be diagnosed with bi- polar. If he's not already seeing a therapist, I would start there.