Please get him into the doctor soon for an evaluation. Randy is right about keeping a journal. It is one thing to say his behaviour has been bad. It is another to have a record of the behaviours. You may even see trends in the behaviour. Record what he is eating too. You never know, it could be food related. The doctors treat you differently when you keep these types of records. You are treated more as a partner than just the parent of patient.
I hope you are seeing a psychiarist or an ADHD specialist. Pediatricians are good doctors but they just don't have the expertise to deal with anything more than simple ADHD. (And there aren't very many simple cases.) A psychiatrist has more experience prescribing the types of medication your son may need. My son takes Lamictal as a mood stabilizer for his anger issues. I had to go to the Ped to get a refill (my son's doctor was out of the country). The Ped was reluctant to refill the prescription, but he did.
Also, you only get 15 minutes with the Ped. My son's psychiatrist takes as much time as we need. We are now down to short appointments, since he is stable on his meds. We did the pediatricain for years, until he hit puberty and things became more complicated and I did not think the ped could manage it anymore. When I went in about sleep issues, they just wanted to talk about behaviour modification, not any type of medication. We had been trying the behaviour modification, but that wasn't working.
His anger is frustration that he does know how to express any other way. My son has been and still is very destructive. I have holes in the walls and he has cut up more things that I want to remember. He has a loveseat in his room that has been shredded, I refuse to replace it. I make him cover it with a blanket. When you ask them why, they will say, "I don't know." And, honestly them do not really know why, that impulsivity just takes over.
I forgot to mention, learn the lingo. The doctors treat you different when you speak to them with their terminology. They take you more seriously.
Advice from my PCP-- become an expert on any condition you have. Doctors can not be an expert on everthing. This is the best way to protect yourself and your loved ones.
I forgot to tell you welcome. Remember no question is trivial or silly if you do know the answer. Please ask anything, someone will help you. this site has helped me maintain my sanity. You can vent here if you need to, we all need a shoulder sometimes. We understand, how we understand.
reruho39634.3516898148Welcome! Like others said, it seems time to reassess the meds. Your dr. will decide what's best, of course, but it seems he might need a traditional stimulant to treat the ADHD. Since impulsivity is such an issue, Stratterra (the non-stimulant) is probably not the best route to go b/c that works better on attention issues than impulsivity. That's my lay opinion. Your dr. will decide what's best. However, if the dr. recommends Stratterra, make sure you ask whether that would be ample to address the impulsivity or if a stimulant might be a better way to go. A good dr. won't mind you asking questions as long as you make it clear that you know the final decision belongs to the dr.
As a pp said, read up a lot on the Internet to learn more about the different meds that treat ADHD, and then you can have a good discussion w/ your dr. where you both are working together to help your child.
Hi, I am new to this site and really need some advice and to know that I am not alone. I have a 6 year old with a bad case of ADHD. I had to take him out of kindergarten last year due to him being sent home everyday and not being nice to teachers or other children. I am resending him to school this year to a new school and I am so worried, I want him to do well and make friends. But my main concern right is that he is scratching his face with his fingernails when he gets mad. He has scratches all over his face and black marks under his eyes from not sleeping at night. He is taking Catapres 4 times a day and it worked well in the beginning but now only makes him catnap during the day and calms him to a certain degree but it doesn't last for very long. Today for the first time he tried pushing his 10 month old sister with his foot because I ask him to get off the computer because he was getting angry at a game he was playing. What should I do??Any possibilities of bipolar?Hello and welcome to the forum. You will get a lot of support here. It sounds as though your son's meds need to be re-evaluated. Can you make an appointment with your child's doctor? Keep a log of his behaviors and the time of day they occur. Bring it with you to his doctor. Hopefully, a different med will help your son. He should not be scratching his face. Also- if he has trouble sleeping, your doctor may be able to prescribe something for that. We use Melatonin which is over the counter and natural. You can get it in a pharmacy.
Plus- it may be helpful for you to look into behavior therapy for your son to help him change some of his negative behaviors.
Good luck and please keep us informed.
Randy
Hi and welcome!
I agree with RandyJim that his meds probably need to be addressed. Is this the only med he's taken? Not many people get by with Clonidine only. Most take it in conjunction with their stimulant. I'm wondering why the the Clonidine only? Who does he see for a doctor? Is it a psychiatrist? I'm just wondering. The lashing out and scratching himself is probably due to frustration.
When my youngest was not treated or not getting full effectiveness, her frustration and anxiety would increase and she would scratch her arms when angry. As the others have said, have the meds reevaluated. Is the doc a psychiatrist of pediatrician?I'm really confused on why they only have your son on Clonodine. Our dd takes clonodine at night to help with sleeping and anxiety. I agree with the other posters that I would get to the dr ASAP and ask about a stimulant.
It sounds to me like the scratching is an anxiety issue. Our dd is a chewer. When she gets stressed out or anything she chews on her clothes. At one point all of her shirts had teeth marks, were all stretched out, and she had even chewed off a couple of sleeves. I would definitely get this addressed with his dr.
Research, research, research. Make yourself an expert. Remember you are the only advocate for your child and the more information you have the better the treatment your son will get.
Welcome to the board and I hope that you find the answers and support here that you are looking for!!