can someone help me | ADHD Information

no they only said he had o.d.d but as i'm new to all this not sure how to handle this or what to do nextmy son was tested yesterday he hasn't got adhd he has odd thanks to everyone who answered aworriedmum40250.1298726852Did they discuss with you any underlying disorders?  I agree with ms.mom that ODD is usually a behavior resulting from another  "primary" disorder.  my son is being accessed next friday for adhd but i was wondering do they test for otherthings aswell because the more i read it sounds like he fits other things like odd.i'm not sure on what to expect from this accessment.Is the assessment being done by a pediatrician, psych, a counselor, the teachers? For my son, the initial assessment was a number of fill-in-the-bubble questionnaires. The teacher had to fill one out and I had to fill one out. Then the info is fed into a computer that shows where the weak areas are. We have since then filled out about three or four of these for the pediatrician, a counseling center, the school, etc.

Then, there were a number of written questions that followed along these same lines to give an idea of my son as an individual, because a computer can't really know the child. This was followed by personal meetings with the pediatrician.

As well as these written assessments, my son was observed by various school personnel in his classroom at various times of day/days of the week. This included the resource teacher, school psych, principal, VP, OT and even other teachers who had experience with ADHD. They jotted notes on their observations. Then all of this was used to develop a plan for intervention within the school.

In the meantime, the medical diagnosis was another ongoing process. That was done with a pediatrician who treats most of the kids with ADHD in our county. But, even now (four months later), we are on a waiting list to see a specialist, because the ped thinks there is more going on than just ADHD.

So, in answer to your question (finally), the initial assessment is only the start. Don't be too worried about what it tells you or doesn't tell you. You may have to rule out a lot of other things before you find the right answer(s). Good luck and welcome. We are all here for any and all questions and support you might need. A  school assesses for academic needs. They are not qualified to diagnose ADHD but they do target learning problems. What is most important is the reason for the learning problems. For an accurate diagnosis it would be in your child's best interest to have him assessed by either a neurologist or a child psychiatrist. Only by an accurate diagnosis can the child get the proper help. Interventions for a child with ADHD are very different than interventions for a child with a learning disability. ODD is very very difficult to diagnose and not only should be it be diagnosed by a specialist but ODD is actually a behavior as a result of a primary disorder, Its usually very common in those with bipolar disorder. A diagnosis is made based on distinctions, not similarities as may disorders have over  laping symptoms so what  "looks like" can be something entirely different. Good luck next Friday and please keep us posted. Welcome to the board.

MANY adhd'ers have co-morbids, OCD, anxiety, panic attacks, depression, bipolar, etc. are many of them.

My son has in addition to adhhhhhhd, sensory integration, speech delay, and anxiety.

Please let us know how things are after the evaluation.

We are here for you!!

Who did the assessment? The school?  a doctor?My son's school thought he had ODD and when he was tested by a
neuropsychologist he said that he didn't have ODD, he had
impulsive/hyperactive type ADHD and suggested a bunch of things we could
do to help him focus. When the school did the doctor's suggestions it was
like my son was a new kid.

It might be expensive, but it's worth it if you get to the bottom of the
problem - get a doctor to test him.he was  tested by a psychiatrist but she was more concerned that i went to parenting lesson to find ways to deal with him myself i have to go into his school to find out what they can do for him now.Sounds really dismissive to me. A "parenting class" unless it's specifically
designed to deal with your child's diagnosis won't help. Might make you
more patient, but other than that, it will just help you deal with the chaos,
it won't help him with his issues. When my son was at his worst it was
driving him crazy. I didn't care about peace at home, I wanted him to not
hate himself.

The Explosive Child spun my world around 180 degrees - for educating
yourself on how to handle a child who doesn't know how to deal with
their emotions, it's a great read.

I think you should prepare to hunker down and become an advocate for
your child. It's very common that people want to just pass the buck.
That's okay - then you know who not to waste energy on. This is a hard
path you're on, but you can do this, and your son will adore you for
helping him.

Best of luck with everything!

wow thanks managed to get my hands on the explosive child i'm half way through and figured out alot of things already i've had a few tearful moments just reading about all these wonderful kids, this book is a big suggestion to all parents.

thanks once again for recommending it so far we've had a whole weekend and were on day 4 at school with just a few hiccups this feels better.

I was pretty uncomfortable reading that book - it hit really close to home.
And I kept thinking, thank goodness I read this when my kid was 7 and
didn't wait until he was 17!

Hang in there - better days are coming!