New to this Board! Mom needs Help! | ADHD Information

You mentioned that she had a really rocky past...is she in any type of counseling? Has she been seen by a child psychologist?  The stealing, lying, and eating could be impulsive behaviors and symptoms of ADHD or possibly effects from her past?  Sorry about all of the questions just tying to zero in!

Good for you for loving her and caring enough to look for help for her!

she has already been diagnosed with ADHD,  I'm not sure about the ODD, I have to check into that, she is taking medication and she is getting counsleling.  They just increased her Vyvanse recently, when she was at school she was doing ok in the morning but by the afternoon rolled around she was constantly disrupting the class, hard to stay focused,  lying about her homework, the list goes on and on,  she charged at school, causing a huge fine, spending smelly pencils instead of her breakfast and lunch, she would only take the snacks, and yes she did take her lunch some days but I would get a call telling me that she would be playing with it and when she got home she would be stariving.   she now will forget about eating, not usually breakfast but  if she gets to playing, she can't stop,  i have limited her sugar because she will eat or drink anything in sight that is sweet,  I have to hide everything, and her dad and I have sat down with her explained to her that having something sweet is one thing, she can put away 3 bowls of cereal a day but gorging is another.  there is fruit but she would rather not eat.  ive been told by others that she could be bypolar, one said she's not, because she's not depressed  and the medication the doctor wanted to put her on was dangerous, i didn't like the side effects i read about it, teen suicide, so no she's not on anything like that and I wont put her on it.  She is a loving bright smart child.  I don't know for sure but I'm sure that she didn't have any boundaries before.  but she does with us  this is going to be a long process and i guess im just looking for a friend who might be going through something like this.

What was the med that was dangerous?

Have you had a complete evaluation by a pediatric nuerologist? I understand that there are outside personal issues from her past that you are addressing but what about the mental health aspect?

DO you believe that this is adhd related or her past related, like seperation anxiety, not able to trust people, attachment disorder, etc? Sorry for all the questions, I just want to help.

You and your family are awesome people. Don't you get down on yourselves, there is hellp out there, we just have to find where we need it. It is also understandable that your son is struggling with this. HE is a teen and doesn't like what is happening to his parents, but once you get her where you need to, then things will get better all around.

Again, has she been evaluated for adhd, ocd, depression, etc? A pediatric neuropcyhologist would be the best. That is where you need to begin, unless it has been done privatley, not throught the school.

 

Hello, My name is Karen and I'm from Tx, have two children. 16 and 10 yrs old.  My daughter who's 10, well she's not our biological daughter, she's been with us for 5 yrs now, has a really rocky past which I'm not going to go into all of that.  she is getting the help that she needs and is on medicaion and has been for a long time.  Reason I'm here is because I'm looking for support and adivice because I don't know what to do. Sometimes I feel like I'm the cause, she doesn't listen to me, out of control,  she knows that her dad and I love her very much,  our son 16  and her has a strained relationship, he can't stand her. I just want us to be a family She constanstly lies and steals when ever she can,  have to hide all the sweets because she will eat it all,    She cries, gets angry if she don't get her way,  most of thetime I go to the store by myself because of the embarrasment.  I don't know if she knows the difference between right and wrong, she says sorry thinks that will make it better.  Husband and I have been at odds becasuse of this.  Everyone she has been with has given up on her and we fought so hard for her when noone would,  we tell her that we love her and sometimes I feel like that is not enough.  I wish to God I was her real mom and maybe this wouldn't be so hard I don't know.   I'm not looking for pity or anything,   I just need some help.  I've tried new reutines  , a chart, but it's hard to watch her 24 hrs.  Anything you could do to help would be great.  Sorry so long, had to vent.

I am a father of 9 year old twins who both suffer from ADHD.  One son in particular is exhibiting some of the same behaviors as your daughter.  All sweets must be locked away as he will secretly eat anything he can get his hands on so longs as it is high in sugar.  We had to put a door alarm on his bedroom door to keep him from sneaking out of his room at night to eat candy and watch TV.  With the alarm, that behavior seems to have stopped at home, but on a trip to the beach last week, we would find empty candy wrappers in his room each morning.  He has also started stealing from retail stores recently.  We find small toys that he can easily fit into his pockets a day or two after a trip to a store.  The only thing that my wife and I know to do is make him return to the store and explain himself to the manager and pay for the item out of his allowance.
At this point his mother and I only hope that his brain develops to the point that he understands that everyone has to follow rules and those rules are not meant to punish people.