My first piece of advice-- read as much as you can about ADHD. It will be the best thing you can do for both of you (your son and you).
Tell the doctor about the accidents. Watch to see if the accidents occurence stops after school is out. If it does, then you know it is definitely stress related. Also check with the teacher to see if he is being allowed to go to the bathroom when needs to. My son started having accidents at school when he was in the 4th grade. It turned out the teacher would not let him go to the bathroom when he asked outside of their regular bathroom break time. He didn't try to go when he didn't think he needed to. I was very upset when I found out why it was happening. I pulled him out of public school soon afterwards and started homeschooling him.
Another reason your son might be hording food is that the meds tend to supress their appetite during the day and they get very hungry after the meds have worn off. We eat dinner late because the meds spress my son's appetite so much. He isn't hungry until 7:00 pm.
Is he getting enough protein? I become ravenous when I do get enough protein during the day. It is very hard to satisfy my hunger when I get into that state. Try giving him a smoothie with protein powder or a protein bar in the afternoon. Try giving him some protein before bed, like a turkey sandwich on whole wheat.
About the punishment--three weeks is pretty excessive for a 6 year old. He will forget about the reason and just be confused. Take something important away, like TV or computer time for a day or two. Restriction tends to turn into parent punishment and three weeks is a long time to punish yourself.
You and your husband need to be a united front on discipline. If you do not, that will open up a whole new set of problems later on. These children are very intelligent and will figure out how to work the two of you.
I agree that he may be hoarding because once the meds wear off he is hungry. My son was constipated by is meds and the ped said the stool pushes on his bladder much like a pregnant woman with a baby sitting on her bladder. It makes him pee even when he doesn't feel he has to go. If I stay on top of giving him fiber then he has less of a problem. I am learning a lot from all of you, My son as well who is 4 has many accidents sometimes its standing right in front of the toilet, I have noticed from observing my son that he waits to long then he does a little jig all the way up the stairs and for the most part doesn't make it. I give my son a before bed time snack before he goes to bed.having accidents is very common with adhd and may be a side effect of the medication. You have to get very regulated as to reminding about going to the bathroom. They 'forget' to go.
The food hoarding is another common symptom of adhd. It is actually a way for the kids to self medicate. Think about the foods that are hoarded, even the corn. They are all simple sugars. The brain runs on glucose. ...sugar.
Our pedneuro suggested simple carbs before bedtime...graham crackers, etc. I can't say that it has helped. We still get periodic binges of food hoarding....and I agree ..there is a relationship with anxiety or stress.
My 6 year old's good friend same age no ADHD, quite vivacious, mature girl had a terrible time adjusting to Kindergarten at the beginning of the year, she started having accidents at night often and occasionally during the day, they changed classrooms to a less strict teacher and went half days and voila, it stopped as quickly as it started. It was all anxiety driven. I would also speak to the doctor. Food hoarding seems quite common in our kids. My daughter didnt hoard food, but did go thorugh a phase where she did hoarding of other things.
I also dont think a three week punishment makes sense. He has long forgotten what the punishment is for. I prefer firmer punishments for shorter periods. I tend to take more away form my daughter for less time, like no tv or electronics for two days rather than just taking one away for a whole week, and she is 13.
Ok, well, here goes. I don't have all the answers for this one, just some opinions. My son is 13 and he is NOT allowed to have food or drink in his room. He ALWAYS sneaks it in anyway. (He likes being there, and doesn't like sitting at the table to eat or drink.)My 6 1/2 yo DD does not have ADHD. She is fairly well adjusted, but very sensitive.
She was dry for 4 years at night, and now she's wetting the bed every night and having daytime accidents every week, or so. I've had her checked medically (you should do the same), but it's nothing. I've done further research, and I've learned this is quite common when children start grade 1.
As for the food, he may just want to eat elsewhere and he knows he'll get in trouble for doing it. I will occasionally hear my DD run from the kitchen to the stairs and every time she has food. She wants to eat it watching TV and I insist that eating happens at the table.
I think this is normal stuff. Get the doctor to make sure their isn't a medical reason for the accidents - could be a kidney infection, etc. But, for the food, continue to make sure that he knows it isn't acceptable and give reasonable discipline - 3 week grouding would never be acceptable for a 7 yo. What about making him clean the carpet and the bedding, etc because you don't want any crumbs left that would attract bugs? If you make it more unappealing to get caught than to do the action, it will stop.
The food hoarding is sometimes anxiety driven, and somewhat common in kids with ADHD. The accidents may also be anxiety driven, I wou speak to his Prescribing Psych about these thins.
I totally agree that 3 weeks for a 7yo is a bit over the top, and kids with ADHD do not understand that type of punishment anyway.
I have a 6 year old boy. He is so wonderful, but man have I been having a hard time with him lately.