A family member adopted a child two years ago, and she has been recently diagnosed with RAD. I don't know much of anything about it and while I could Google I'd like to hear from parents of children with this if possible. Another family member has a very defeatist opinion about it- that the child will be "scary" and basically ruined...I am assuming they are over reacting. The child is in therapy and under a drs care, and I haven't ever seen any behavior problems that would even seem abnormal for a kid her age, but I don't see her very much. I'm just sort of sad about family reaction to the diagnosis, and wondering if I'm the one who is wrong since I don't know much about it?

We are using it this year, the ap version because I wanted ap test style writing assignments, though Ds will not take the test. I own several of the spines, but Ds also has Hakims history of us books, and loves those, so we used those with the multiple choice quizzes for a spine. Its easy to match them to NROC chapters. He normally does one writing assignment, e maps, and watches the videos each week. We don't do the vocabulary, and the discussion questions may be a writing assignment, or we don't do them. I have sonlights us core (100?) but hate it. We've used some of the literature but most wasn't what we were looking for. I found a list of literature for ap us history somewhere on the Internet and he reads some off that list, some so light, some I found and liked. As a non traditional learner, Ds finds the videos very helpful. I wish they offered more in this style, like world history!

Aw, I'm sorry. Not fasd, but other special needs here. And they look normal, lol. I am so, so, so sick of hearing what magic curriculum would make my child with severe lds better at math, or how ADHD isn't real, or (insert comment here). I have great kids, and we are making progress, however slow, but some days I just can't take another well meaning comment to do xyz from a parent with nuerotypical kids!!! I find beer helps.

They used to have Speedo suits occasion ally in SAMs Clubs at good prices, I don't know if they still do? Mostly childrens, but large kids sizes fit thin adults. the sizes run different than other clothes- no 8-10 or s-m-l. They are great for long people with no bum, who want full coverage up top and as much covered as possible...I know this personally! They are meant to be quite tight, the tightness is what keeps the suit nicely in place no matter what, so don't let that dissuade you. She could throw a rash guard or cute swim skirt over it for more coverage, too.

Young students should have full sole so they have to work harder to point those toes, but imagine for a 3 year old, if you can only find black in split sole for now, the teacher wouldn't mind. What about white? I know several dancing boys wear white canvas shoes. They get dirty fast though!

KJE is nutty, but very sane. His behavior has been very predictable, like his dictatorial dad and granddad before him. Regime survival, baby, it's all about that. He has to prove to the old mi,itary guard (from his fathers and grandfathers era) he can play the game. That is what this is, showmanship based on internal nK issues. Think about it- if he provokes too much, his regime is wiped out in about 10 minutes. Those 10 minutes will be devastating for the people of Seoul, but there is zero evidence the north can field a long range missile- let alone a nuclear armed one- that can hit the us. Certainly Austin is safe, lol. There is no benefit to him doing any such large action- regime survival dictates he cannot. Blow up a ship? Bomb and island held by south Korea (or even Japan)? Yes. But full scale war or a move to attack us interests and he's a goner. He knows this! China is a stickier wicket, they have no love for a united, pro us Korea right smack on their borders. Russia doesn't either. Neither want the economic headache of a flood of refugees from extreme sanctions. Neither want to cooperate with the us...or the Kim regime. It's not an easy situation. Personally, I find Russia a bit murkier than China- I do think the lure of our power to buy their plastic dog poo is pretty strong! Saber rattling, dic$ waving, and more of the same, IMO. It's spring, when crops aren't ripe and winter stores are run out. They provoke, promise to stop in return for aid, they get aid, they provoke again next time they need stuff...this is the situation for years and years now. KJE is a bit of an unknown quantity, but no reason to think it's not more of the same.

Lanny, the health care! Yes! I was so confounded when we moved away, and our dog got a tumor. The vet hospital had all the best equipment- we would never have done so much intervention for our dog in the us, simply because of cost, but it was affordable! But the vets! They would lay out all options, and then want us to pick. They wouldn't say "do this, and this, never that" about her treatment. I am used to authoritarian us medical people who barely tell you what they are doing to you, let alone why. A few months later at our first dr appt for my youngest (broken finger) it was the same. Options, costs, Inc,using some homeopathic and Oriental medicine ideas, and we picked. Empowering, but scary for someone used to being told exactly what to do with no option in the us. Then years later we move back, and my oldest son got sick. We went to the er as he was crying saying it hurt to breathe- he's a big tough 14 year old, so not normal, at all. Pneumonia, a hospital stay. But GAH, the drs and nurses! No warning about an iv, just slam it in, taking him away to X-ray without telling me (let alone asking!), just wheeling him out with no word to me. So very different, and so frustrating! The dr acted like I was wasting her time, when I asked a question. And the costs-! We have very good insurance, but for er we submit a bill, though it is covered 100 percent. Astronomical, for the er, X-ray, hospital stay.

Accidents, anything with loads of adrenaline pumping, is a recipe for a full on break down for me. Or most people, really. We are just wired that way. the gas pump will be fine!

Yes, it is very real, and in some ways worse than the original culture shock. People in the foreign country know you are foreign. People in your own country think your a total wacko, lol. I would add to the above list: Talk, talk, talk about the little/ not so little cultural things as they come up. For example, where we lived plain, very insulting comments on appearance, etc were normal. In the us, you can't say to someone "gee, you have a really big zit on your chin". But my youngest, who didn't remember living anywhere else, still does this. There are other things, but this is an example- even if your family wasn't like the prevailing culture, chances are the kids picked up many subtle cultural things that are not like the us. Pop culture sucks. Justin Bieber is a mystery, and no one can figure out who Snooki is. I have no help on that one, we are just clueless. But many other pop culture things I know as raised in America...my kids didn't. Wearing shoes in a house. Using plastic bags at walmart. All the stuff at walmart (they were literally dumbfounded, I wish I had photos!). Driving everywhere, and not being allowed to go wherever they want, alone, and there being no where to go as they live in a suburb now. The huge houses. Not littering. Etc. I wouldn't trade it, but I can see, and my oldest especially will agree, that my kids are very changed by all this. They stood out racially in the foreign cow they, but in the us no one expects how different they are. My youngest was in therapy when we moved away, and when we came back, so don't discount that it might be needed.

It's my fantasy to imagine all the stuff I'd do in the hours the kids would be gone! The scrap booking, the hikes, the clean organized house, the fresh meals...sigh. Please don't disrupt my happy fantasy with facts. ...like, both my kids have special needs (which seems so stinking unfair sometimes!) and would flounder, they DID flounder. After school activities, including those that give my son the boost to his self esteem because he's finally good at something, couldn't happen. And I'd have to get a job, because it wouldn't make sense at al, for me to be home if not homeschooling, we could really use a second income. I still fantasize, though.

We've had two broken fingers here, same symptoms- swelling, pain, no bruising though. X ray confirmed, dr splinted, waited 3 weeks and good as new. Then dh broke a finger (same finger as the boys, his middle...I find this hilarious for some reason) and he didn't want to go in. Wed done the er for fingers twice, we even had a finger splint that fit him...he put it on and called it good. Only, unlike toes, fingers are a whole lot messier if they heal wrong, it turns out. And he later had to have surgery for it, and it became a big old mess! it won't curl as well as the fingers on the hand, and this turned put to be a bigger problem than you'd think. So, go in for an X-ray, as annoying as it is. A splint is probably fine, no resetting needed, but...just in case, go!

I can see where some might consider the language used inflammatory, but as an iud using person, I personally did not. Because I don't think a 5 to 12 day old blastocyst is a newly formed human, so? No problem. Others do think that, ergo they don't have a copper iud. The op asked for opinions, and a variety of people are giving them, as she wanted. Nothing to get upset about, I haven't seen any outright falsehoods used, just the regular ol opinion based reasons- shouldn't that be expected? I would hate for anyone to feel restricted from sharing their views on a thread like this, they are their views after all!

No they don't, because it swirls down the opposite way and that works better. ;-)

The copper iud was fabulous for me. It hurt a bit with insertion, removal was painless, no maintenance or remembering anything, no hormones. There is no reason it must be long term, though it can stay in place for 10 years (or nearly 12 in my case...whoops). I thought it was making my periods heavier and more crampy, but they have continued to be obnoxious now that's its gone, so I think that was actually just age these last 4-5 years, not the iud after all. It is expensive if insurance doesn't cover it, so maybe too expensive for keeping it just 3-4 years.

Having lived in Asia, I can soooooo relate. Especially the "zoo animal" feeling! Sometimes we got amazing privileges as the lone white people- people would give us food to try, or show us extra areas of things, or go out of their way to help us. Sometimes we were completely blocked from an activity, simply because we were not Asian (I speak the language, by the way, but am white). We just never could tell which way it would go, and it does get old and you want to just be a regular old person after a while!

Having lived and worked in Asia, I loved that study about the US scoring low, but the highest on "how they felt they did". Why? Because it's just so hilariously apropos. Highly intelligent, well read people who lack the confidence to interject their knowledge into a discussion or make a decision are not very helpful in most jobs. The outside the box thinker with the willingness to skiff off a mistake and keep on going, they are. Which has nothing to do with trophies, but I'll take our education system any day.

I'd try Meds, but i tried Prozac and Valium form one problem peer with no result. He actually broke his leg in a fall from a bookcase, and it needed surgery and months of a cast to heal, and that sent him over the edge. Bit, howled, peed...sadly, we had to put him down anyway 18 months after the fall due to behavior. And no, no one will adopt a cat like that- I got him as a stray from the humane society, no one but me wanted him then, either. The humane thing to do is put them down, not give them to an overcrowded shelter, IMO. It's the responsible but not fun thing to do. But definitely try him outside! My indoor outdoor cat is 15. She gets all mean and squirrelly if kept only inside, she needs the stimulation of the outdoors. We keep her up to date on every shot, but not flea stuff as she had a bad reaction to it years ago. She has had the occasional flea problem, but I just flea bathe her (involves gloves for me, not fun but possible) and that takes care of it. She truly has a wonderful life, and while I understand indoor cats live longer statistically, I know some cats are just not leading happy lives that way. Our other 2 cats are males who are fine indoors...but not her. I have volunteered with a cat rescue for years, and always feel somewhat hypocritical when someone adopts from the rescue and has to sign the "this cat will be indoor only" line. Because realistically, that doesn't always work for all cats!

Aw, glad she is ok! My youngest broke a finger in the mcdonalds play land, , didn't realize til the next day and it was swollen. Terribly. Broke a toenrunning into the coffee table, played soccer for 2 weeks after, finally went in and and yep, clean break, toe totally disconnected from the foot. Both instances should have hurt enough for us to realize, but some kids just feel pain differently i guess! Same kid hit his hand doing an aerial cartwheel, I took him in for x rays...clear. Next day, swollen, x ray...broken hand. So even taking them in right away doesn't guarantee a correct diagnosis. So basically what I'm saying is if you have Danger Prone Daphne for am child like I do, just do the best you can, lol.

That's hilariously terrible. Learning to read English (which is a language that has a lot of makes no sense rules and exceptions) should definitely be made a puzzle. That'll help.

With such a small family history, and the fact that he is growing, even if not gaining, and also became mobile, I wouldn't worry. My 5pounder was 14 pounds at a year, but walking since 7 months, he just never chubbed up. We went through a doc being concerned, but in my gut, I knew he was fine. I mean, I knew- he was talking about 30 words, running, etc, just 14 pounds. What does your mama sense tell you? I'd go with that before a doctors growth chart.

Then the therapist recommends a treatment plan that gets the person the help they need. It's not a bad thing, but it can he a scary thing. It is a necessary thing. It isn't easy, but getting help for this most serious of mental help issues is a brave thing to do. The right thing to do. Help is there, and I hope that anyone in need of it will take it.

I would definitely get it checked out, but i grew 4 inches at age 19 (a girl, too!) so don't discount the late growth spurt phenomenon. A stop in growth is worrisome, my kids are small (at 14, 5'4" and 120 pounds and at 11, 4'9 and 70 pounds) but always have followed a curve, it's just their own curve versus the norm. I am praying they get my late growth spurt, but minus the scoliosis I have as a result. (no one checks a 19 year old for scoliosis).

My oldest is allergic, it appeared one day suddenly after a dose, he'd taken it many times before but that was just it I guess. Benedryl didn't help, he started to have trouble breathing, so ended up in the er. So far, its been taken very seriously- they ask at every check in for reception, every pharmacy, every lab. But he did get amoxicillin prescribed anyway last year- the pharmacist caught it! I didn't hear "penicillin" and just blithely left the dr with the script, thank goodness for pharmacists, eh! We got Ds a bracelet after that. I'm allergic to codiene, penicillin, and sulfa drugs, I am hoping Ds will stop with just the penicillin.

Well, I'm irrationally jealous of y'all who have blackheads or whiteheads as such a rarity you are grossed out! I've had terrible skin since 10, two rounds of accutane, every topical med ever, and...still have bad skin. It's not diet, its not hormones, it's just...me. I also have severe metal allergies- think huge cysts and boils from metal contact. Not pretty. It's such a fact of life for me that no, it's not particularly gross.

My oldest has perfectly lovely skin, but gets the occasional blackhead in a pore of his nose. I guess because he is very fair, it's soo noticeable! It makes me twitchy, I can't help it. Sometimes a face scrub will get it, but in the past...yes...I've attacked his poor nose and gotten rid of it. He can do it himself now, but just doesn't unless prompted. I know if it doesn't bother him, it ought not bother me. I know. And yet- I just. Can't. Help. Myself. Younger Ds once asked me to pop a pimple on his rear- had to pass on that one. That's a job for dad, or a doctor, but not me, not ever! He has almost no shame or modesty when it comes to any bodily function or the discussion of it, lol. Hopefully as he grows he will acquire some!