Hyper Child ... Does That Mean ADD? & What Steps Should I Take?

My daughter is 8 years old. She repeated 1st grade last year due to having problems with Reading Com. It was a whole big problem with the school because I wanted her to be tested and they would not do it until they held her back and took the proper route. Which I have to say with my daughter going to summer school, and being held back really helped her. She has grown so much more in her education. But she still has a few more steps of her intervention to go through before the test her for a learning problem. This year her 2nd grade teacher is telling me my daughter is having a hard time staying focused, gets distracted very easy. We all thought she was getting bored with the work also, and the teacher said that could be it too. Now my daughter is not hyper, she is actually shy and queit. So we have decided to take her to the doctor and she was he has to say, they gave me these papers to fill out and also have my daughters teachers fill out. I am hoping when we go to the doc this week it ends up being nothing. But we will deal with whatever comes out way.

My nephew is the same way and his mother changed his diet and he's a different boy, I suggest you look into the diet thing, since she said something about food allegies and artifical ingredients as well as artificial colors affect a child with this condition.

I was told that ADD/ADHD is a medical condition and can only be diagnosed by a doctor. The schools can (and should) evaluate him to see if he has a learning disorder which might be contributing to his behavior. Good luck!

You mention that the issues are present both at school and at home, so clearly there is something that needs addressing. You're totally doing the right thing by getting the ball rolling and also reaching out for support - good for you!!

You have a wonderful opportunity here to create a support team for your child. As the greatest advocate for your child...I say be a team player! (I speak as a teacher, not as a parent of a child with potential needs)

You job here is to become strong teammate and ally that will work to build a web of support for your child. There should be no fear or shame in your part in letting the school know that, while you support their efforts, you really do not know a whole lot about the process but you are willing to listen and learn and be proactive in whatever it is you need to do in order to best help your son.

Your first step, if you haven't done so already, is to try to set up a team meeting with the people who will be evaluating your son. This should be an educational session for yourself to find out what kind of testing will they be doing, what the test results mean, and how will those results be applied to potential programming, treatment, etc. Ask lots of questions.

In the meantime, you should definitely contact your pediatrician to get his/her professional input on this. Let him/her know what is going on in school (as far as the testing) and also tell him/her about the anecdotal evidence (stories, particular instances you've witnessed), and ask for his/her advice. Again, you're working to build your team, your network of support.

At this point, I wouldn't worry about the school masking real issues. The testing is fairly thorough and will identify a variety of issues if they are present. Again, this goes back to asking lots and lots of questions and educating yourself about the process.

The more available you can be as a parent, the more involved you can be, and the better you can work with the team at school...the more positive of a response you will have. Go in with an open mind, all with the intent of helping your son.

Good luck to you!

S. -

The school is doing their part to investigate what is going on and what they may be able to do to help him learn - not only are they looking at ADD/ADHD but possibly any other learning disorder as well. My 10 year old was diagnosed with ADHD at age 4 -and I went the medical route to have that diagnosed. We saw a neuropsychologist and underwent 3 days - very intensive days - of testing. They also give you questionairres to fill out at home; for daycare and/or school to complete as well. I have extensive experience with ADD/ADHD thru family as well as thru work so I struggled with his diagnosis for years. We did not put my son on medications until mid-way thru 1st grade when he was falling further and further behind especially in reading. His neurologist said - maybe it's time to explore this possibility - let's give it a try - even temporarily. So we did. He was put on Focalin XR - which is a form of Ritalin. About a week after he started - he and I were doing homework together - and he looked at me and said "mom - I can finally pay attention and learn something!" OMG! You could have beaten me over the head for failing to do it sooner. If he had diabetes - I would have no problem with meds - but this I couldn't see or understand what he felt - so I had trouble medicating him for it. After that - I never felt guilty or horrible about giving him the meds. He is now in 5th grade - at or above grade level for most things - and has a true love of reading - which I never thought I'd see! He had been placed on IEP's starting in 1st grade and I'm glad to say - he met or exceeded the goals by the end of last year- and is now only being monitored. IEP's are not negative things - and the truth is - most of us -given the opportunity for additional assistance in school - would have done even better than we did - so it helped him to succeed. You may hear that the meds "zone" them out or that they need higher and higher dosages to maintain the same focus - and at least in my son's case - that is not true. He's still a very active 10 year old and the only side effect that we see - is a decrease in his appetite. So I pump a good breakfast in him - give him the meds - pack all kinds of things in his lunch - which he generally only picks at - but once he's home from school - he eats from snack to bedtime. He's been on the same morning dose of med since the very beginning and we added the lowest dose again at lunch during 3rd grade - otherwise - he hasn't changed doses since.

So make an appointment to see your pediatrician or family doctor - get him/her in the loop right away. Some will feel comfortable making the diagnosis - however ask about seeing a neuropsychologist. Their testing is intensive - and it put my mind at ease in regards to the validity of the diagnosis as well as looking at other things.

Good luck

S., please do not let the school "take charge". Your job is to advocate for your child. I would think your first visit would be with the pediatrician to discuss the issue and get his/her recommendation for specialist visits and tests. Schools often seem to be too much in a hurry to "diagnose" and medicate for their own convenience, unfortunately. Does your son's school offer alternate classrooms for high energy kids? Is there another school in your area that is better equipped to meet his needs? I am sure this is a really hard thing to deal with. I hope you find a solution that works for you and your child. Good luck.

Hi S.,
I am in the same boat you are in... I had my first parent teacher conference and she told me the same thing about my son. Again, I don't notice things because I see it every day- the can't sit still, constant talking, up at 6am no matter what, not being able to control the volume of his voice, the constant interrupting, and he can't keep his hands to himself. Until his teacher brought it up, I thought I just had to teach him self control and discipline through time outs and praise- which weren't working.

I took him to his pediatrician last week and have an appointment to have him evaluated by a clinical psychologist. The school is remaining pretty hand off and letting me make my own decisions, and I have done a lot of research online and all I've read points to ADD. Now, I am just waiting for the results of the other doctor's observations and evaluations and I will take it from there.

You're not alone... and it is frustrating and confusing not knowing what is going on with your son. But if he can be helped, you will be happier and so will he- that's how I see it. Positive change all around is the goal and if the treatment doesn't work... then change it! You aren't obligated to only one, keep your options open and Good Luck!

ADD/ADHD is a very broad diagnosis, and it is very subjective. You can take a child to 4 different pediatricians/teachers/school psychologists and get 4 different answers.

IMO it is best to get a wide range of opinions and explore all your options. I went through this 4 years ago with my daughter. We had her examined by both the pediatrician and the school district, by the teachers, psychologists, and speech pathologist.

I also did a lot of research on ways to approach ADHD. I could tell you extensively our story and how we came about treating her problems, but in a nutshell, we discovered that nutrition played a HUGE role in her symptoms. The pediatrician's first response was to write a script for Adderall or Ritalin, but ultimately we had her nutrient levels tested by an MD specializing in biochemistry and she is now doing remarkably well in both behavior and academics, by following a special diet and through nutrient therapy.
If you would like to know more, you are welcome to message me and I can give you more info.
Best wishes!

ADD/ADHD is a medical diagnosis, so the school psychologist and nurse will not be able to make that diagnosis. Most likely, the school is gathering information and, if warranted, will recommend you take your son to the pediatrician for further evaluation or referral. If I were you, I'd call the school psychologist or school social worker and ask for their guidance.

I like what MR had to say. I'll just add a few points -

Wrightslaw.com has lots of good information on IDEA (the federal law that governs the IEP stuff) and the IEP process. My experience with our school's resource team has been very, very positive, but it never hurts to understand more about the process. Here's an article from wrightslaw that might be helpful: http://www.wrightslaw.com/howey/iep.special.factors.htm

The school team won't make a medical diagnosis, I don't think. They may suggest ideas for things you may want to check out, and may even offer referrals to doctors or other resources.

Also, I'm not sure if your school is considering some sort of RTI (response to intervention) type of program or a formal IEP, but there are definite advantages to going with a less formal program at this age. Our son (who has ADHD and is "gifted") did not get an IEP until the end of 2nd grade, and since IEP is for 3 years that will cover him until he is ready to leave grade school. Not that it's a huge deal, because the IEP is revisited every year, but I do think there's a limitation on how often a school district is required to pay for the testing (I think it might be every 3 years.) So that's something to think about too. If your son is not yet reading, for example, the tests may be more limited in what they can tell you about his abilities (just throwing that out there as a question to ask - I'm not sure)

If you can, reach out to parents who may have their children in special education or see if your area has a special education association or advocacy group. I know you don't think of it as "special education," but you'd be surprised what is under that umbrella under the law. Those parents will be familiar with the resource team at your school and how the district tends to work with these types of requests. (Warning: you may also run into parents with a chip on their shoulder, so don't let that discourage you.)

Best wishes to you! We went through all this a year and a half ago (but after private evaluation) and it was really confusing. Being able to find out from other parents how the process worked was SO helpful to me. And as it turned out our school was fabulous, too.

Actually, this link may be helpful to you. I don't think this stuff was online when I needed it - or I didn't know to look for it - and of course it is a different district (same Federal laws, though, for IEPs). But take a look, and see if your district has something similar too. http://www.op97.k12.il.us/sped/index.html

S., he's your son, so you should be the person running the show. Your not a spectator in this. While my son was in 1st grade his teacher suggested he may have ADHD. My school system can do diagnostics, etc. I didn't use the school becuase I wanted one the best doctors in the Chicago area to do an extensive evaluation of my son. I wasn't under any obligation to have the school participate in this process. In fact, I've never involved the school. I found my own local doctor who specializes in ADHD medicines for children. I love my school district, but I cannot have people I don't think are the highest qualified making a medical diagnoses about my son. Good luck

Hi! As a pediatric nurse and a mom, my first question would be if you have a regular family doctor.If so, I would STRONGLY urge you to set up an appointment soon. If insurance (or lack of it) is a problem, you should go through the emergency room at Stroger Hospital. Yes, you should be prepared to wait there...it IS the busiest hospital in the city. A good doctor will first examine your little man to rule out any medical issues, and then probably refer you to any needed specialist. If the school staff is right, you want a team of people that are working together to help your son. Let me know what happens.

My 7 year old was diagnosed with ADHD last year in Kindergarten. I had her referred to Neuro Psycologist and also a developmental pediatrician. They bothd diagnosed her the same way. I would call your ped and and ask their opinion. I would not let the school take care of this. In my experience, our school disctrict only has THEIR best intrest in mind.

S.,
Some will say it's normal boy stuff, and they'd be partially right. My oldest was just like that and I was able to help him a lot by overhauling our diet at home. A lot of kids have allergies that cause them to be unable to pay attention too. While the medicines are amazing & sometimes necessary, when my boy was on Ritalin, his dose kept going up & up while he stopped growing! He was 60 lbs for THREE YEARS!! And when the meds stopped working it was scary, his eyes dilated & were huge. I would urge you to try everything in your power to help before going to meds. They're magically great for getting the children to be able to focus & sit still & all the things teachers want, but they do other things, too.

Good luck to you!
D.

ps I really think all moms need to read the book Save the Males Why Men matter & women should care. It is an excellent look at how our society affects boys (I mention it here because it partially addresses of the prevalence of ADHD diagnosis for boys).

Here is an article that has info for books that could be helpful.

Decoding Behavior- Temperament
When children are not delightful to be with, their behavior is telling us they have a need that requires our help. Those needs are Physical, Emotional or Sensitivity/ Temperament Issues. Let's take a look at Sensitivity/ Temperament Issues.

Have you ever noticed how different one sibling can be from another? How is that? They have the same genetics, the same or similar environment, but they are so different.

Children come into this world with their own unique temperament and sensitivities. As the brain develops we each create our own unique way of processing information. The are some general patters, but each of us is unique. For some children their brain develops in a way that causes them to have a different way of processing the stimulus around them. A child like this might be said to have Sensory Integration issues, Hyper Activity, Explosive Temperament or they might be called High Spirited.

These types of issues can show up in many ways. A child might avoid stimulus or they might seek stimulus. So you could have a child that is very sensitive to loud noises and avoids them or on the other end a child who yells and screams to stimulate that sense.

There are exercises, games and interactions that can help children with these issues.

If you have the feeling that your child might have some of these issues, below is a list of websites and books that will be very helpful in giving you the information and tools you need to help your child.

Out of Sync (Sensory Integration Issues)-
http://www.out-of-sync-child.com/
http://school.familyeducation.com/sensory-integration/par...

High Energy/ Hyperactive-
http://www.amazon.com/Stopping-Hyperactivity-Solution-Nan...
http://www.amazon.com/Smart-Moves-Learning-Your-Head/dp/0...
http://www.braingym.org/

Explosive (Easily Frustrated)-
http://www.explosivechild.com/

Spirited (Intense, sensitive, perceptive, persistent)
http://www.parentchildhelp.com/SpiritedChild/tabid/59/Def...

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run, don't walk to your pediatrician - and do your work concurrently to what is going on at school good luck.

I would definately recommend you take charge of your son's situation. Let the school do their thing, but do your own investigation - you know your son best.

My baby sister was "hyperactive" (ADHD by today's standards). Her doctor wanted to put her on Ridilin (sp?), but my parents refused. Instead they found out about the Feingold diet. The diet removes foods that are known to cause problems, expecially articial ingredients. It is definately worth looking into. Once they took my sister off artificial colors, flavors and preservatives, she was a different person. If she had a glass of Kool-Aid or a popsicle, she would be bouncing off the walls again (and she would get kindof mean, too).

Another thing to try is yoga. It will teach him to quiet his mind and focus.

One other thing, if he's not involved in any type of sport, it would be a good idea to sign him up for something, so he can learn to get out his energy in a good way.
Good luck!

It sounds like the school is trying to be proactive about your son's possible issues, which is good. I think letting them proceed with their evaluation is great- but make certain you are kept in the loop about any reports or conclusions. You are right to be concerned that they don't just label him as ADHD to keep him out of the teacher's hair.

What is the teacher doing now to moderate his behavior? Do her requests seem reasonable and age-appropriate for 1st graders? Meet with the teacher, the principal and the psychologist and don't be afraid to ask questions. The evaluation may take several weeks and in the meantime you should also take your son to an outside clinic or doctor's office for an evaluation of your own. Start with your regular doctor and try to rule out anything physical. Your family doctor can probably recommend a clinic for a more in-depth evaluation. This is a process totally separate from what the school does, so remember you are in charge!

On your own- what have you observed about your son? Start recording his behavior or anything he does that seems like a problem to you. Is he just an ordinary, very active 1st grader, or does something else seem to be going on. The more specific information you write down, the more helpful it will be later for a therapist or teacher who works with him. Trust your own observations- does he behave differently at school than at home? Keep notes on his diet- what is he eating, does it effect his ability to concentrate? How much TV is he watching? How much sleep is he getting? All these things can really effect a kid's behavior and ability to concentrate.

Once the evaluations ( both yours and the schools) are done, next you have to see what the conclusions are AND more importantly, what they plan to do to address the problem. Some things to look out for : do you feel like you are being given input and your opinions are respected and listened to? Do you agree with the strategy they come up with? Do you think it will be a good approach for your son? If not, is the school open to trying something that you or your doctor recommend?

If you feel AT ALL like the school is not taking you seriously, or just buttonholing your son and not really working to craft an approach that will benefit him, then talk to an advocate with special training in school IEPs. They can come to meetings with you and will guide you through this process and make sure that the school is doing what it needs to.

Good luck!!

You're the boss, applesauce! Check out this website for more information: http://www.frcd.org/. I cannot recommend this organization highly enough. They are a wealth of information when it comes to my daughter's education in the public schools. (She is five years old with an ASD.)

Bear in mind that the school can only "diagnose" relevant to your son's education. I'd suggest getting a medical opinion as well. Remember, not all cases of ADHD are treated with Ritalin. There may be other paths, not the least of which is organizing his environment for success.

Good luck!

S.,

Hi S. my son has a slight case of ADD we did not get him diaignoised (sp) till middle school he is very smart and when he was younger giving him extra work and jobs to do because he was bored but in middle school he was overwhelmed and he was in a gifted program switching classes when we found out he had ADD we went to Dr. Blair in auroura adn he is on some medication he is not a zombie and has had no ill effects i did find out if you have ADD caffeine has a oppisite effect so you can try that and that could tell you if you should get him checked or just get him checked it has made my son's life much eaiser good luck and people may tell you to avoid but if it truly is ADD its treating a sickness where the brain is not firing properly and you should treat sicknesses.

Hi S.,

My daughter has ADD. We found that out in the secnd grade. Her doctor had us and her teachers fill out forms and send them back to the doctor. She is on meds right now. She is 13, without these meds, it seems like a lost cause to get her to do anything. If she does not take her meds, then it is a million and one trips to the bathroom, to get a drink, to see what I am doing, to stop and play with her 2 year old brother, and anything else she can do to waste time or get side tracked. But when I give her her meds, she is fine. She gets everything completed in a certain amount of time and things go much smoother.

But it did take time to find the right meds for her. She is not hyper, just gets side tracked super easy. She goes to get check out by her ped every 6 months. Her ped, is hard on her, but she is a great doctor. She tells my daughter the way it is and the way it has to be.

I hope this helps.
Have a great day!

L.

Hi S.,

Spend some time carefully observing your son over a two to four week period. If you have seen things that really concern you, consult your doctor. I know that sometimes medical providers will have professionals come in to screen children for any possible health or developmental problems. It's good that you are not quickly jumping to conclusions, because children do go through phases. You never know if anything traumatic could have brought it on or what have you. However, I strongly believe that early intervention can have many benefits for both you and your child, and some people feel otherwise.

All the Best!

ADD is a medical diagnosis. The school can only fill out questionaires that may suugest he is having attention issues. I used to teach before staying at home with my little ones. I know people think teachers just want these kids medicated, but seriously that is not the case. We see a child who can't focus and having a negative experience at school. Children gone undiagnosed and treated with whatever means are best for him or her, have a much higher rate of drug use and higher rate of dropping out of school. He will start to hate school b/c he is constantly getting into trouble. The kids will start to pull away b/c of his behavior. Medication is not always the answer. Work with your Dr. and the school and see what you can come up with. The school is not against you. Make it a team approach.

Good Luck

I am a parapro and work in 1st grade, most 1st graders have a hard time sitting still because it is a full day of school and they are not used to it. However, if you say you see attention problems at home it sounds like may be it is an issue with your son. I would wait to take him to the doctor until you get the information from the school nurse and psychologist, this way your doctor can look over their information. I have seen children in class before who are struggling to stay on task and just can't do it. There are medicines or diets that parents use to help, I am sure that your son is trying to be good in school but maybe it is not in his control to do so.