Duke University actually has an ADHD Clinic. If you haven't tried them yet..You should. There is a line so you may have to wait awhile. They are terrific. My middle son attended. It was great I learned. My Ex learned. The Doctors really take the time to sit down with you and talk about these issues. Very scientific.
I will look into that. Today was rough, Chris was on Black today, (FYI thats really bad) He is begging me to give him his meds tommorow. What to do? Do i give him a very small dose like 5mg and see if it helps him? Or do I not give him any at all. It breaks my heart that he is having such a hard time.
i have to say that sounds like a decision that shouldn't be made without a professional's advice. i'd be very careful....
IMHO i would not give him anything. Again, IMHO he is experiencing emotions and feelings that, as i so crassly pointed out previously, he does not remember having and is not sure how to handle them so he is scared and confused. I think that is quite natural. The point i was trying to make last time was that since he had been on the meds since he as 5, he has not grown up feeling things like what you might call "normal" kids feel since the meds are regulating his feelings, emotions, how he acts and so forth. Till my dieing breath i will maintain that ADD is a made up condition that parents, teachers and so on have concocted, maybe not on purpose but still, to find a non-threatening way of dealing with kids that act a tad differently than others. Again, this is just my opinion and my opinion only. That being said, personally i am quite happy for your son in that he is learning new feelings, emotions and whatnot. Its what life is. I dont believe we are meant to go through life medicated like the way ADD diagnosed kids and adults are. I spent 6 months on anti-depressants when i wanted to get a divorce from my wife but i could not bring myself to do it because it would have hurt my son and i would rather cut off my left one...than hurt my son. So for a while i was a pretty miserable case. The pills helped the depression but they made me a zombie to where i didnt feel a thing...good or bad. Nothing bothered me and nothing made me happy. So i quit the pills, cold turkey. If you look up Paxil and Wellbutrin, any site will tell you to never ever quit cold turkey. You have to ween yourself off them over a period of several weeks. I decided to quit anyway. For 2 weeks i felt like i had the worst case of the flu that i could imagine. I even found a website that had a message board where i documented daily how i felt and what was going on. It was quite a hit actually and it generated quite an amount of responses...mostly thanking me for posting what was going on. Little after 2 weeks the "flu" went away and i started feeling a lot better. Maybe 3 weeks later i was back to my normal crass self and will never go back on those or any type of mind/mood/emotion altering pills again. INMO if you let your son "sweat" it out he will eventually "get over it", so to speak and actually start to enjoy what he is feeling. Of course, i am not a doctor and do not play one on tv.
My mom went through the same thing after her divorce. The Dr wrote her a script for Paxil. She was experiencing a great deal of stress anxiety related to the marriage. Paxil was the new drug, so away she went. Following the divorce, she decided to quit Paxil. In short, her new Dr warned that even with weening the 2 week Paxil flu would result.... did it ever. She frequently lost her balance, became nauseous, experienced dizzy spells, and fell a few times. In addition, she would hear "snapping" whenever she took a step. She equated the sound to that of an electric current. A professor once questioned my class. He asked, "Why if a woman is abused do Dr's choose to medicate? Shouldn't we be medicating the abuser? So, we take the victim into a shelter, dope her up with anti-depressants, and send her home. Doesn't that just make her more apt to tolerate a beating? Why do medical professionals feel the need to treat the symptom? Because the abuser refuses to comply?" There was more to the lecture, but I think you get the idea. Therapists often choose to treat the symptom. Used to be, people we allowed to experience emotion. Anymore, society has the idea that we're supposed to be all "Kum Ba Ya" with everyone. Regardless of what we feel (sad, happy, angry, etc) how we choose to act and react is whats really important. So... how are we supposed to LEARN to handle these emotions if we are taught we shouldn't have them. One of my favorite quotes: Urgayle: Pain is your friend, your ally, it will tell you when you are seriously injured, it will keep you awake and angry, and remind you to finish the job and get the hell home. But you know the best thing about pain? Jordan: Don't know! Urgayle: It lets you know you're not dead yet! G.I. Jane Which raises another question... If we have a pain in our body (leg, chest, back, etc.), Dr's will test and test in order to find the cause. However, if we have the slightest bit of perceived negative emotion, they're the first to scribe an anti-depressant? If ya think about it, mental health as we know it is a pretty young field. Until Freud, the mentally ill were pretty much cast aside. That being so, psychoanalysis and the associated pharmacology are relatively new fields early to mid 1900's). This especially so if we compare mental health with general medicine... Da Vinci was dissecting bodies by 1500.
Grinder, I've got to agree and disagree with you on this one. I do agree with the fact that too many children are diagnosed with this "cure all" problem. I remember having it as a child and back then they didn't know why I couldn't pay attention. I worked very hard and made decent grades. I worked much harder in college and made really good grades. It seems the older I've got the harder it is for me to stay focused on one thing and complete it, without being distracted and starting a new project. I finally gave in to what the Dr.'s have told me for a while that I have Adult ADD. The only thing my medicine does is keep my focuses on my work. As far as emotions, etc. I'm just like I was before my meds. Everything is basically the same with me as before, except I can now stay focused on something long enough to not loose interest in it and actually complete it. Of course, I do think the medications totally affect children and adults differently.
I know this discussion can go on for days...But it comes down to how much you educate yourself on this condition. It is not a behavioral problem. It is a chemical imbalance in the brain. There are certain types of food and drink you HAVE to keep them from . They have an adverse affect on these kids. One of the big ones is Red40. It is an additive to foods and drinks. It is like heroin to a adhd kid. Any colored juices will have Red40. Jello has it. Do a search on red40. Just my opinion.
To my knowledge, there are no lab test out there that identify or dispute a diagnosis for ADHD. The diagnosis for ADHD should include a full physical exam from your pediatrician that include blood test for any thyroid abnormalities that mimic ADHD and a psychiatric exam by an expert in this field. Only after six months of observation for the classic signs/symptoms of ADHD under supervision of the two above mentioned experts should a child be truely diagnosed with this disorder. There are so many other possible disorders that should be ruled out before placing any child on medications for ADHD such as tumors, thyroid dysfunction and the list goes on. If your child doesn't exhibit hyperactivity, complusive behavior and any of the other signs for ADHD during holidays, weekends or over summer vacation consider the enviroment he's in when he does, could be he's bored at school if it's the teacher that has you considering ADHD for your child and she misinterprets his boredom/inattention for ADHD. I would never, ever take just the word of a teacher, neighbor or even family for that matter when it comes to placing my child on these drugs. Many people love to act at being the expert "he acts exactly like my child did before we started using ADHD drugs", one of the first things they teach you in any health field career is that no two cases are the same and never, ever treat them as such. Never leave any rock unturned, please have him thoroughly checked out so that no other serious illness is missed. I had a patient years ago with a brain tumor, he was known at his daycare/preschool as the biggest trouble maker, mean little boy without the ability to listen or pay attention to the teachers. His parents thought they had a little boy with attention deficit disorder, when in reality he had a brain tumor. Once the tumor was removed he was the sweetest little boy you'd ever meet.
Just my 2 cents...my 8 yo has been diagnosed by his dr and by a shrink, and he's never been put on meds, and probably never will be. Now, his grades in school are excellent, and the only problem is his behavior. Not terrible, like bullying, or acting out, just that sometimes he speaks out of turn or can't sit still when told to do so, things like that. The biggest problem I have is getting him to sit and do his homework, so I've started splitting it up into 1/2 when he gets home from school, before he can get too distracted by tv, outside, etc, and 1/2 before bedtime, when the house is quieter. I do think he's "outgrowing" it, because he's calming down a little bit more. We never put him on meds because of the horror stories of kids attempting/committing suicide, becoming depressed, etc. I also have heard about the red40, but haven't looked into it too much. Now, I do think his ADHD is something real, from the time he was born, he was on the go, never stopping to nap, acting "wired" all day long, like the energizer bunny. But I don't think his is as bad as some either, because the OP (If I remember correctly) was telling what happened the other day in school when he didn't have his meds, and she mentioned things like him chewing his book, which my son would never do. He's really just hyper, but doesn't do things like that. So anyway, I see both sides to this, and hope everyone does good, and hope the OP's son gets the help/guidance he needs. I do think a support group or counselor would be able to help. Oh, one more thing. The shrink we spoke to told me that counseling can be very beneficial in kids with ADHD, but only when they're adolescents, when their brains are more apt to cooperate, for lack of better terms. So I don't know how old your son is, but maybe that's something to look into.
If you're referring to me, no, I don't have denial at all! Actually, my husband isn't convinced my son has it, but I've been telling him for years, even before he was diagnosed. But we're not going to put him on meds if he functions just fine without it, and he's doing great in school. He's a little hyper, but nothing we can't handle. If it ever were to become a major problem and he couldn't concentrate in school or get his work done, or was being a troublemaker, then we would think about alternatives. Like I said, I don't think his is as "severe" as others I've heard of, and I'm sure there are some out there that do better with the meds, but I also think there are plenty out there that don't need them that are on it, and that is sad.
What's sad is parents out there who think their children are darn near perfection which makes their parents perfect too. ADHD is not a behavioral problem. If a doctor told you that I would suggest getting a second opinion. Children with ADHD can't help not being able to be still, they can't help standing up when their leg twitches. Get over your stupid pride and get a second opinion. This is not about you but your kid.
???? I'm still not sure if you're referring to me, but if you are, I definitely don't think my child or myself is perfect! Far from it!
What is just as sad is parents who put their kids on meds at the first sign of them twitching or not being 100% quiet in class or having a bit more spunk than other kids.....because its the fashionable thing to do.
I agree that doctors are quick to medicate. My son has many issues, but I can tell the difference when he is doing something for attention, and when he truly cannot help it. In school I believe he tries, but he is so smart I think he is getting bored. He was able to learn a math lesson today without even being in the room!!!! He was sent out into the Hall for not behaving, and just from hearing the lesson, he had it memorized. I was amazed. He is so smart, he is simply having a few behavioral problems. He is going to see a Robyn Ezzel at Growing Child, she comes very highly recommended. Hopefully we get this worked out. I do have a child who is sensitive to Red Food dye. It makes him a little nuts, so we keep him off of it. I will look into that also.
suicidal?? I didn't read all the replies, but I'm shocked and highly concerned that ANY doctor would tell someone to wait a few days if a patient has exhibited suicidal activity. This might not be serious but the only way you will know is to talk to the doctor. From previous experience, don't let a nurse or receptionist push you aside. DEMAND a phone conversation immediately and get qualified advice NOW. And if THE DOCTOR refuses to talk with you, document it and immediately seek a doctor that cares about you. NO doctor should refuse to talk promptly about a possibly suicidal patient.
That was my thought exactly Clayton. I have sought the advice of another Doctor, that I think will be much better for my son and me. He is doing much better right now, I am sure there will be a few spells in there. I am just praying for the best. Hurry up May 5th. Sinco De Mayo!!! Cool, just realized that. That is my sons appt. with the new Doc. I will let ya'll know how it goes.
