Diagnosing ADHD

[jec3113]

I am convinced that DD 8 has ADHD, all the signs are there...Also looking at possible APD and also has symptoms of ODD. Anyway, what is the best route for getting diagnosis and treatment? Do we need a psychiatrist, neurologist, or what?

 

We are very interested in trying behavior modification before medication.

 

Thanks for your help.

[jacqui in mo]

Well, I'm just beginning that journey myself. I went to my pediatrician who is very helpful and she recommended a neurologist. She likes this particular one who specializes in ADHD, Asbergers (sp?) and she said insurance will pay for a neurologist where it usually won't pay for a psychiatrist. Pediatricians do vary widely in what they will do and recommend though. I had gone to a different one earlier this year (It was the first time I'd ever been to this one as I was trying to find a Dr. closer to where I live) and she barely talked with me or my son, and just recommended a psychiatrist. When I went back to my former pediatrician she took a lot of time with me asking questions and examining my son. She would have been willing to work on treating ADHD herself, but she thought she saw something a little more going on, and so recommended the neurologist. This neurologist is so busy that we couldn't get an appointment until December! Hope you find good doctors right off the bat! I would try asking friends in your area if they have heard of someone that is really trusted in ADHD treatment. HTH

 

Edited to add: Have you heard of the Feingold Diet? It is designed to eliminate certain preservatives and food colorings from the diet and appears to be helpful for some ADHD and autism spectrum disorders. I am trying this now, having just started a few days ago. It's too early to have much say on how it's working, but there may be some beginnings of hopeful signs for us. Can't swear that it's due to this diet though at this early point.

Edited October 8, 2009 by jacqui in mo

[Seraphina71]

Please let us know if the Feingold diet is helping! My dd4 has some "issues" as well, as does Mommy. At 4, she is too young for me to feel comfortable giving her any meds, but I would be willing to give this a shot. Oh, she has shown some improvement since I started giving her fish oil. I just open a grown up capsule and give it to her with lemon juice, but I know Dr. Sears endorses one that is emulsified in a tube of flavored cream. It kind of reminds me of Gogurt, but good for you. It's kind of pricy, though, and mine doesn't balk toooo much about the taste of the "lemonfish".

[sheryl]

I am convinced that DD 8 has ADHD, all the signs are there...Also looking at possible APD and also has symptoms of ODD. Anyway, what is the best route for getting diagnosis and treatment? Do we need a psychiatrist, neurologist, or what?

 

We are very interested in trying behavior modification before medication.

 

Thanks for your help.

 

 

My 10 yo dd was just recently diagnosed with add, adhd and odd....whew! These issues were brought on, or maybe already co-existed to a lesser degree, by her epilepsy. She was fine until her grand mal Mar 2007. We then got her seizures under control and she has been seizure free 20 months! After the onset of her seizures we saw the development of behavioral. Like I said they may have already been present, but now they were becoming increasingly obvious.

 

For her epilepsy that is controlled...PTL...she goes to a neurologist. They saw defiance during a routine dr appt and suggested a neuropsychological eval AND a psychiatrist.

 

It's hard to say "where" you should "begin". I would talk to your ped to find out which order of testing/dr might be the most logical sequence. Are there ANY other symptoms that would direct you more as to which speciality dr to start with?

[jec3113]

I am leaning toward a psychiatrist because we could get help with techniques to use for behavior, etc. If we were only interested in medication then I might lean toward a neuro. We are also in the process of getting on a waiting list for an evaluation for auditory processing disorder. We have had testing done by psychologist. IQ, acheivement, and a screening for APD. Also, DD was given a test about social skills. I do not have the reports yet on APD or the social, but I do know there are enough areas of concern to warrant more testing in both areas. DD is actually gifted with IQ in the 130 range. All these other issues have gone undetected b/c of the giftedness. If a kid is making A's the school does not care that you think something is wrong. AND something is very wrong with DD. We started homeschooling this year, so I am with her 24/7 and can see the struggles first hand. The biggest issues with possible ADHD, etc. are the behavior and social struggles. The academic struggles probably have more to do with the possibility of APD. She is defiant, hateful, arguementative, seems unable to control herself, has trouble with friends and has problems with responding appropriately in social situations. From the academic side she is slow to start, slow worker, easily distracted, talks nonstop about off topic stuff, messes with brother constantly, whiny, lack of focus, etc. The work is easy once she gets going, it's just getting going. She seems to be much better in very structured actvitites. Needless to say weekends or vacations are terrible for us b/c she goes crazy without the strict structure.

 

I really appreciate everyones input. Keep it coming!

[Ottakee]

I think that a psychiatrist sounds like a good idea. With what you mentioned here, it may be ADD or it might be something else or a combo of things. A good psychiatrist can help you figure it out.

 

She is defiant, hateful, arguementative, seems unable to control herself, has trouble with friends and has problems with responding appropriately in social situations. From the academic side she is slow to start, slow worker, easily distracted, talks nonstop about off topic stuff, messes with brother constantly, whiny, lack of focus, etc. The work is easy once she gets going, it's just getting going. She seems to be much better in very structured actvitites. Needless to say weekends or vacations are terrible for us b/c she goes crazy without the strict structure.

 

I really appreciate everyones input. Keep it coming!

[momofaandh]

Hi,

 

We just started this journey as well. Our peditriacian said to wait, our school said he was fine but needed better discipline. His preschool teacher didn't seem to agree and neither did we.

 

I took DS5 to a psychologist since I really wasn't sure what we were dealing with, Asperger's, ADD, AHD. anxiety, etc. We are currently finishing an evaluation and so far was a bit suprised by the outcome. So far it seems he is rather gifted and ADHD (hyperactive-impulsive) and anxiety. We still need the final reports though.

 

I'm glad we went through the evaluation first, now we need to figure out our next steps.

[tenoraddict]

Have you looked into Vision Therapy? It does for the brain (via the eyes) what physical therapy does for the body: trains it to work properly. DS10 went through a year of it for dyslexia issues as well as visual processing issues which caused him to be "unfocused" in life. We feared perhaps ADHD, but the year of VT did wonders for him. His reading comprehension jumped several grade levels and symptoms of ADHD diminished almost completely. DS6 is another story, though. He starts VT later this month; his ability to focus seems to decrease daily, and I am praying that VT works for him, too.

[Shifra]

My 5 year old son was diagnosed with ADHD this summer (and my husband is an elementary school principal). To be diagnosed with ADHD, we went to a pediatric neuropsychologist. We paid out of pocket about $1800, so I don't know about insurance. My husband had worked with this pediatric neuropsychologist before so that's how we found him. Your pediatrician is a good source for references. He/she may alternatively recommend a developmental pediatrician, who besides a pediatric neuropsychologist, neurologist or psychiatrist, can also diagnose ADHD. However, before you do all of that, you may want to ask yourself what will you do with this information. Will you be willing to medicate your daughter? Will she undergo behavioral therapy? Otherwise it is a very expensive process and can be very damaging to have an official label of ADHD.

[jec3113]

After the day we had today...I will medicate along with the behavior mod. if that is what is recommended. It is like living with Jeykll and Hyde. Hoping to have final reports from the psychologist in the next couple of days then I can start making appointments for her. I'm nervous about finding the "right" ped. psychiatrist. If it is ADHD I understand it only gets worse during puberty and I don't want to look back and wish we had done something sooner to help her. Not to mention the fact that she is difficult to live with.

[Pippen]

I am leaning toward a psychiatrist because we could get help with techniques to use for behavior, etc. If we were only interested in medication then I might lean toward a neuro.

 

Frequently psychiatrists won't spend a lot of time giving help in the behavioral aspects but will focus more on med management. Sometimes you will find a professional who will take the extra time to work more in depth with you on specifics of managing behaviors, but that is the exception.

 

If she's not responding well to traditional parenting strategies check out the book "The Explosive Child" by Ross Greene. It's a very different way of approaching a difficult child but has been really helpful for parents who aren't getting anywhere with the usual methods.

[Ottakee]

I hesitate to mention this but I would suggest that you get the book, The Bipolar Child and do some reading on pediatric bipolar. The Dr. Jeykll and Dr. Hyde comment is so common from parents that have a child with bipolar. Life is like walking on eggshells never quite knowing what will set them off or how they will respond to a normal request.

 

I might to TOTALLY off, but better to read and see if this might fit. IF (again I am NOT a doctor) it is bipolar, then meds for ADHD can make it MUCH worse. A mood disorder would require a different class of medications----but can be very effective.

[TravelingChris]

Actually ADHDers who were medicated throughout childhood and adolescent normally have a much better time as teenagers then as children. They normally don't go through the bad teenage years anywhere as badly as normal children. NOw as a previous poster suggested, that is not the case with bipolar which normally continues to get worse for as long as it is not treated.

[tenoraddict]

Have you looked into Vision Therapy? It does for the brain (via the eyes) what physical therapy does for the body: trains it to work properly. DS10 went through a year of it for dyslexia issues as well as visual processing issues which caused him to be "unfocused" in life. We feared perhaps ADHD, but the year of VT did wonders for him. His reading comprehension jumped several grade levels and symptoms of ADHD diminished almost completely. DS6 is another story, though. He starts VT later this month; his ability to focus seems to decrease daily, and I am praying that VT works for him, too.

DS6 was re-evaluated today for VT. The good news is that he doesn't need VT, but the bad news is that he doesn't need VT. I really had my eggs all in the VT basket, and am kind of stunned by the results. So now it's off to buy fish oil, cut artificial colors and flavors from his diet, and stay away from preservatives... From what I'm hearing from the rest of you, a visit to the pediatric psychologist might be in order as well.:bored: