6yo DD officially dxed ADHD, ODD, CD...ugh.

[graygables]

I still believe her to be bipolar (rapid cycling, sreaming rages to bubbly happy in minutes); she is *exactly* like my now 17yo (dxed BiP) was at her age. Anyway, the ped won't do anything but refer her to a neurodevelopmental center, which I have to call for to nail down the dx better.

So, can anyone offer advice on what I should push with the IEP team? She is e-schooled at home with a public virtual charter school, but still has to take state tests and such that I'm not allowed to proctor. Part of what started this whole thing is there are times she's up at 1 or 2 am working on schoolwork b/c she can't sleep and her brain has finally switched on. Since she's NOT doing poorly in school (b/c I'm willing to stay up and work with her), they aren't doing much, which is why I had to get the official Dx.

Also, does anyone have any ideas of coping without meds? DH is very anti-med, but he's not around them all day, either. I'd like to try some strategies (if I haven't already tried them all ) before rushing over to the pharmacy, although I'm ready to rush, I'll tell ya!

It's been a rough week, especially when my mother keeps telling me the only problem is that DD "is a brat, I could have told them that!"

 

[Forevryoung]

I am bipolar and I have been "forever" (always had symptoms)-

I wish that I had gotten medication a lot sooner than I did. I went on medication when I turned 16. The medication is litterally my lifesaver and I feel better when I take them. Don't just think about it for your sake, think about it for your DD's... It upsets me when I can function all night because I know that I am going to crash soon and be unable to get out of bed for days.

I know you asked for tips for dealing without meds but I just wanted to give you the "been there, done that and wish it had gone down differently" perspective. I have spent way too much time being exhausted by my rapid mood swings and trying to cope. I wish you luck, its not easy being our parents

 

[JenJen]

If she is BP she NEEDS to be on meds for her own safety. My kids have ADHD and one has aspergers and are on suppliments not medication but they do not have the rapid highs and lows you are discribing. I think trying alternate ways of managing a illness is the way to go first but if there is no improvemnet of the condition there is no reason to let the person suffer. If my son or daughter were not progressing behavior wise, emotionally, and intellectually then i would be at the pharmacy in a heart beat. It is about what is best for the child. You may want to get information over the net about alternative meds and talk to your doctor about it before you put her on these things becasue a lot of what is on the net is not true. IF there is no improvement I would get as much educational material as possible about the conditions she has and educate hubby a much as possible the pro's and con's of medications for such condtions. Good luck and if you have any questions you can PM me or ask here
JenJen

 

[riu girl]

graygables:
I just want to say that I am sorry that your mother is not supportive about your DD. I can't imagine where my mind would be right now without my moms (my best friend) support.
DH has been diagnosed (not until almost age 40) with bipolar, ADHD, depression, GAD. He hit a real mental low about two years ago and thats when all the dxs suddenly arose. He is just about med free now and should be free of meds in the next few months. I never believed the bipolar dx since he is HIGH ON LIFE all the time (thats what attracted me to him I guess, his non-conformist, happy about LIFE attitude). I agree with Jen Jen, if bipolar is the true dx, then meds are neccessary. If it is the other dxs, I would look at other therapies first before considering meds. DD8 ( a duplicate of her father) was diagnosed at 3 with ADHD and has had no meds as of yet. She is doing well, and is improving in all areas so I'm not really considerng meds at this time. She is HIGH on life, and yes, definately different then her peers. I have also tried for other dxs but all that keeps coming up is ADHD (with a few ASD and SID tendencies tossed in but not enough to say she is ASD or SID) and some anxiety. Whatever.

How life works with ADHD in our house:
We try to keep our house very structured (hard with DH sometimes but he works a lot so that is good). I keep DDs diet pretty basic and avoid preservatives, sugar, dyes. I keep discipline pretty consistent so she knows what is expected and wasn't isn't acceptable.
When school is out for two months in the summer I tutor her most days to keep consistency.
Several hours per day of fresh air/running around around outside. I find the more fresh air = better behaviours/sleep habits. We live in the country surrounded by a forest, deep ditches (to catch frogs and snakes etc) and a lake so lots to do outside. We have a VERY large veggie garden and she helps a lot with that.
I give her a kids multi vitamin with extra calcium and magnesium to calm her nervous system.
YOGA YOGA YOGA

I know this probably is strange mix of things to do but it works for us (most of the time, not always of course). Days when she has lacked sleep the night before (she has a hard time falling asleep at night) we see alot of typical ADHD behaviour, but when she sleeps well she generally pretty good.

Good luck and if you feel you don't have the right DX for your DD, don't give up.
Suzy V.

 

[jpeltier]

Wow-what a time you're having! MY DD is 11 and is ADD. We have her on Concerta. I noticed 2 years ago that she (we) was putting in a lot of effort with only so so results.Her teachers had not noticed because they said she was quiet and sweet. Since starting the meds,which we give her only during the school year, there has been a tremendous change for the better.

About the BP: Maybe give the concerta a chance first as many ADD children can exhibit almost BP behavior,especially the manic part. My brother is BP so when Marie began to manifest some hyper behavior, I was worried. However, with the concerta, that behavior has been modifed to a huge degree.

I hope you don't mind me keeping you and your family in my prayers.

 

[SueM in MN]

Sending pixie dust since I have no advice.

 

[Poohnatic]

A very wise pharmacist(who got me through a high risk pregnancy) once said to me, when I was having a problem accepting that my son would be on meds.

"If your son was a diabetic, would you deny him insulin?"
"If he was epileptic, would you deny him seziure medicines?"

I answered no to both and she explained that he has a medical need, beyond his control, and the medicines would help him to be the best person he could be.

The same can be said for your DD. Meds may help her to have a better life.

Personally, I've felt my 9yo is rapid cycling bipolar, but there aren't enough markers for it. current psychiatrist is monitoring it, as he feels that I have valid concerns (those rapid mood swings).

Good luck to you and DD.

Good luck.

 

[barkley]

i truly feel for anyone who is living with this type of situation. over 5 years ago my son (then just shy of 3) was exhibiting behaviour that i knew in my heart was not normal. i knew that this little guy was not just an overactive little boy. When i approached my pediatrician (a fantastic woman) about my concerns i took a list of what i observed, and also what i felt could be possible causes ( in addition to being WAY TOO ACTIVE he would insist that the t.v. hurt his ears when it was barely audible to us, he would be exhausted but toss and turn for hours trying to go to sleep...). i insisted that we test his hearing, do allergy and blood work testing and secure those results before we looked at any diagnosis like a.d.h.d (i had worked for years in health and social services and seen far too many children misdiagnosed). long story short-my son did/does have adhd (pediatrician said it was youngest child in her experience to be diagnosed as such) BUT we also learned through the pre testing that he has extreemly sensitive hearing as well as milk allergies.

before we entertained putting him on any meds. for the adhd we eliminated all milk products from his diet-this resulted in some improvement in his symptoms. we tried out different ideas to help him with sound (taught him to watch t.v. or videos with the mute button on "partial mute", got him a pair of hunter's ear covers-like headphones-he takes them to the movies, keeps a pair at school for when the classroom get too loud). we also tried a medication "imipramine" which while not a sleeping pill allowed him to relax enough to fall asleep (this was discontinued after about a year because he was able to regulate his own sleep cycles). ultimatly he was put onto a medication for adhd (dextrostat).

this medication changed his life-he could calm himself, focus, and more importantly interact appropriatly with other children. he has been on and off this medication for 5 years (most recently he was off for 14 months-2 summer breaks and one full school year). we have found that true to the doctors words-we may see changes in his ability to cope depending on what is going on with him physicaly-he is back on right now because we noticed that with a large growth spurt this summer he was having a harder time focusing. he has been back in school for 2 weeks and is doing his best work ever (of course we are fortunate to have found a small christian school with only 9 kids k-3 and 2 teachers/the smaller class size and personal attention make all the difference in the world )

my suggestion is to keep a detailed log of testing/results, what meds tried and when (along with any side effects), and take it to every appointment you go to. it also helps tremendously if you can have ONE "master doctor" who oversees all the medications (if a psychiatrist wants to prescribe meds they can just as easily call the peditrician to make out the perscription) in this way you can prevent negative drug interactions. i would also suggest tryng to get an appointment with a neuropsychiatrist. i base this on my own medical circumstances wherein i was undergoing multiple physical and psychologial symptoms, getting conflicting diagnosis from doctors, psychiatrists...the neuropsychiatrist ordered neurological tests, reviewed the information, interviewed me and was able to comingle all of the pertinant information for a diagnosis.

re. the i.e.p.-can you request an observed learning situation. such as having one of the iep team member come out at what THEY deem to be the normal schooling hours so they can observe your child and exactly what you/she encounter? i know that when my son was diagnosed adhd a large portion of the diagnosis came from teacher observations (because sometimes a child will behave dramaticly different in a learning situation with a non parent). in any case, bundle all of your daughters accurate medical and diagnostic testing to date-make a cover sheet with the major points highlighted, and provide that to the team as well.

best wishes