Need help with my son | ADHD Information

ShortneyPoo

Your post brought back memories. My son started walking before he was 8 months old and only walked about one week before he learned to run. He was so different from his sister from birth.

If had to do it over I would, I would have pushed to medicate my son. I went to the doctor and we got hold of bad psychologist. We were told he was just a difficult child. We all suffered for another 3 years until his pediatrician diagnosed him during an office visit. The whole family suffers when the child is not treated.

But remember medication isn't the only answer, it is part of a puzzle. Get some behaviour coumseling to help you and him learn coping skills.

It may take a while to figure out meds. Each child is different and their response can be varied. My son tolerated meds well, we just had to adjust the doses.

Hang in there! I just finished writing a long response about my almost 4-year-old and our path to diagnosis, so I'll copy it here for you:

My son Maddox is going to be four next week and sounds a lot like your son. He was crazy hyper since the minute he learned to walk (then run...) and, against everything we believed in, we had to buy a leash for him or he'd run into traffic, get lost or get hurt. He NEVER stayed in the stroller and when he was restrained he'd just scream. The tantrums were awful, the impulse control wasn't there, and he was generally irritating to live with. (Contrast to my other son who is SO well behaved that his teacher wishes we could clone him! We used to think it was our stellar parenting skills...) NO discipline methods worked on him and it was embarrassing to take him in public.

Every six months from the time he was a year-and-a-half, I went to the pediatrician and told her something was "off". She kept telling me he was "high energy" and within the range of "normal" toddler behavior. I got incredibly frustrated. We went to a family therapist about 8 months ago and the first words out of his mouth were, "Have you had him evaluated? He sure seems hyperactive to me..." That's where my path to diagnosis really started. I got on the internet and started researching ADHD and was completely convinced that he was a severe case.

Since my health insurance requires a referral to see a mental health professional, I started keeping a journal. I diligently logged everything he ate, his sleep patterns (or lack-of-sleep patterns), and every incident or tantrum throughout the day - what caused it, how long it lasted, etc. I did this for three months and then went back to the pediatrician armed with my "proof" that I don't have a "normal" child. She looked through the journal and immediately got me referred to a pediatric behavioral psychiatrist. (THANK GOD!!!)

It's been a slow process, but we did decide to medicate him and life has gotten SOOOOO much better! He's on dexadrine 2x per day (which lasts 4 hours) and takes risperdal at night. His sleeping has improved a little, but his behavior during the day is almost that of a normal child. When I tell people now that he's ADHD, they think I'm nuts. But you should see him unmedicated... It's REAL obvious...

 

I recommend you try to see a pediatric psychiatrist, rather than your regular pediatrician. Pediatricians are not equipped to diagnose ADHD and should not be prescribing behavioral meds. You need somebody who will continually monitor his progress and help you find the right medication for your son's needs.

I also recommend reading "The Explosive Child" - it really helped me understand WHY regular discipline methods don't work for my child and gave me some skills to deal with him differently.

Hang in there! I know exactly what you're going through. This age is just HARD.

My child was/is just like CrazyMadsMom. We knew from about 10 months (when he learned to walk) that he was "high maintenance". He unbuckled himself from the stroller and ran out of a store and down the sidewalk. Not one person came to my rescue. He was so impusive. He wouldn't stay in his carseat. He would constantly get out and stand up. Very, very defiant!! People hated to see him coming at church. Your right, rewards and punishments did not help our son either. We were struggling. We told our ped. the problems that we were having, and he referred us to a ped. psych. I agree also that the the ped. is great, but you do need to have someone else to monitor his meds. We chose to medicate our son at 4. We would have earlier if we had know that it was an option. He is on Dexedrine and Clonidine with Risperdal at night. We will be changing to Vyvanse next month at his 6th birthday. I know exactly how you feel. I'm living it. Call your ped. and ask for a referral. Also, why must you wait until 4? If he is as severe case as you say, you need help today. Don't give up. You are headed in the right direction. You will be in my prayers.

"Our Children are Precious in His Sight"

I'm not sure why we have to wait until he's four.  The ped said that they don't like to medicate until they are 4.  I am calling him on Monday to get an appt. ASAP.  This weekend has been the worst by far.  Yesterday, I cried in the bedroom while he was napping because I was so frustrated.  I know that things will get better but right now I can't see the light at the end of the tunnel.

Courntey,

I can feel your pain. I, too, have sat down at the end of the day and cried. Well, more than just once. It's sad to say, but when we started our journey, I didn't like my son very much. I loved him, but couldn't hardly stand to be around him because he caused so much chaos. Things have improved, but we have a ways to go. He has gone from a child who wouldn't cooperate in pre-K to a little man who will go into 1st grade in the fall. We are proud of him. I know that he doesn't choose to be the way that he is, and sometimes it's very hard to remember that. Keep your head up. Anytime you need to vent, you know where to find us. Good luck with the ped. tomorrow. Keep up updated.

"Our Children are Precious in His Sight"

I totally feel you. Trent was the exact same way. I always chalked it up to him being born with a clubfoot so he was confined to casts and braces his first 2 yrs of life. By the time he was 2 I was calling every single place I could trying to find him a daycare that he could go to in hopes that it would help him. It did, but he just let loose on us when he got home. He was the exact same way, you couldn't keep him buckled in his car seat, his stroller nothing. He almost got ran over when he was 2 by a teenager girl who had just gotten her license. She ran a stop sign and we were leaving my moms and he ran out in the road. If i hadn't grabbed his arm and yanked him backwards, she would have hit him no doubt in my mind. Then he went to pre-k the following year when he was 3/4 then kindergarten this year. Pre-k wasn't bad. She just said he was a very strong willed child. But then after his concussion he got increasingly worse. He couldn't contain himself no matter how hard he tried. Dr's all tell me it was just a coincidence that the concussion had absolutely nothing to do with it or any of his other issues. I still to this day don't believe it.

Anyway, I didn't medicate when he was younger, but that was my choice. Instead I just went insane. If you have the option and it works. I say go for it. Otherwise in the end you will be miserable and your child will be miserable and your family will be miserable. Good luck and I hope you are able to get something done soon. Lots of hugs. I know I could have used them from the ages 2-5.

[QUOTE=avamomof4]

He is on Dexedrine and Clonidine with Risperdal at night.

"Our Children are Precious in His Sight"

[/QUOTE]

hi, I don't mean to make you scared or anything like that. And I understand that every child is different. With that said I can not read your post and not say anything. My son jd is 8, he was taking a stimulant, clonidine and risperidal, like your child. Until 2 days ago when he started having chest pain. His physch preformed an ekg and it came back abnormal. He is In the childrens hospital where we live. The drs believe it was his med combo. I have done a lot of research since hearing this and I can not believe how much info I found. Where was all this info when the drs prescribed his meds, why didn't they know this. Now we have to wait and see over the the next week to find out how much damage was done. So if you guys would please have your dr evaluate your child and atleast preform an ekg on him. My son was on this combo for 2 yrs. I now feel so guilty for telling others how well his meds worked and suggesting clonidine to help theirs kids sleep. I hope every child is safe. Hopefully I didn't scare you but made you aware. Please keep me posted or pm me.

lethy proud mom,

I posted to you on another thread. What questions do I ask my Dr., and what syptoms should we look for?  This is scary. 

Hi Lethy Proud Mom - I agree with Avamomof4... this is very scary! Please tell us what to look for, what questions to ask and how to protect our kiddos. My son was on Dexadrine/day and Clonidine/night and our doctor suggested weaning him off the Clonidine and taking a few days off before starting the Risperdal at night. Does this approach make sense? Because I'm so darned happy with the results so far that I hesitate to make any changes unless it's a safety issue.

I hope and pray that everything turns out okay with JD! Hang in there!

I am at my wits end with my nearly 4 yr old son.  His behavior is slowly spiralled out of control in the last year.  My husband, his sister and their mother all have diagnosed ADHD.  Once he entered HeadStart it became evident that we have a problem.  His behavior is so erratic.  He totally ignores us when we talk to him and sometimes he is just defiant.  We have tried rewards and punishments but nothing seems to work.  I am so tired of feeling like I can't discipline my own child.  We talked to our pediatrician and he suggested that we come back next month after his birthday and start him on meds.  I REALLY didn't want to do that but now I must admit that I am willing to do what I need to do to get this under control.

What else can I do?  I'm just at a loss really.

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