Nakia Posted May 12, 2012 Share Posted May 12, 2012 I could use advice and prayers! Cora was diagnosed with ADHD in February by her pediatrician. Her appointment with the behavorial pediatrican for a full evaluation and treatment plan was originally scheduled for July, but the office called me yesterday and told me they had a cancellation for Monday, so I took the slot. Now I'm freaking out a little. I thought I had more time to research. To be honest, I have been in survival mode for months, and now I need to focus on this appointment. I know they will have a lot of information for me, but I suddenly don't even know what I should ask. Any advice? Should I just chill out? LOL! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Catwoman Posted May 12, 2012 Share Posted May 12, 2012 Sending you :grouphug::grouphug::grouphug: and prayers, but I have no experience with this sort of thing, so any advice I tried to give you would be absolutely worthless. I hope everything goes well at your appointment. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rosie_0801 Posted May 12, 2012 Share Posted May 12, 2012 Chilling out is a good idea :) If you're chilled out, the questions you want to ask will come naturally, I'm sure. Best wishes! :) Rosie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Audrey Posted May 12, 2012 Share Posted May 12, 2012 Chilling out is a good idea :) If you're chilled out, the questions you want to ask will come naturally, I'm sure. Best wishes! :) Rosie This. Or, if the questions don't come to you on the spot, you could still chill, take the information, go home, ruminate on it a while, write down all the questions that come to mind and then bring those to your follow-up visits. I'll be okay, though. It really will. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris in VA Posted May 12, 2012 Share Posted May 12, 2012 I will pray you leave the appt hopeful and not overwhelmed! I've never had the kids go thru an eval for ADHD, but we did several for our Aspie. Will they give the results right away, or have you come back in another day to hear results? It'll be ok--:grouphug: I think you will be encouraged that there are ways to help Cora meet her world successfully! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nakia Posted May 13, 2012 Author Share Posted May 13, 2012 Thank you so much, friends! I needed the encouragement and advice! Must chill out. Must chill out. Must chill out. I just want to help my sweet baby girl. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mergath Posted May 13, 2012 Share Posted May 13, 2012 I'd recommend bringing someone who can be in charge of information management- writing down notes, asking questions if you forget, stuff like that. When you're at a dev ped and you start hearing things like, "Well, I think your child has xyz" or "Yes, there is definitely something wrong with your child and he/she will never be normal," it's easy to freak out and completely forget every single thing the doctor said. Having someone come along who isn't going to absolutely freak out is very handy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AuntieM Posted May 13, 2012 Share Posted May 13, 2012 :grouphug: Ya know, it is probably a real blessing that it's one up suddenly. I understand you wanted to do some research but ime, that often creates a google-inspired set of worries. You'll avoid that! Just keep in mind that now Cora can get any help she may need earlier. I agree with Mergath's excellent suggestion of a second set of ears. Definitely a notebook! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pippen Posted May 13, 2012 Share Posted May 13, 2012 You'll find some helpful information on what to expect here: http://www.conductdisorders.com/forum/f14/tips-successful-evaluation-337/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alessandra Posted May 13, 2012 Share Posted May 13, 2012 (edited) Well, it often takes some time for the dr to score/interpret tests that have been done, so you might not get that much info right away. But you might want to be prepared to answer questions (if you can) about developmental history, etc. If you have some info that you want to share with dr, but do not want to see in a report, say so. Keep in mind that the final report can take on a life of its own. Down the line, other drs will want to see it. And, if you are getting special services through a school district, a report can be useful. But (in my experience at least), appointments are so helpful -- nothing to be scared of, either for parent or dc. Good luck! Edited May 13, 2012 by Alessandra Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pippen Posted May 13, 2012 Share Posted May 13, 2012 If you have some info that you want to share with dr, but do not want to see in a report, say so. Keep in mind that the final report can take on a life of its own. Down the line, other drs will want to see it. And, if you are getting special services through a school district, a report can be useful. ! Because of the above, it's important not to sign to authorize release of the report to doctors, schools, other specialists, etc, until you've previewed a copy. If you feel the content is reasonably accurate, then deliver copies yourself. I once had a report come back with all sorts of errors and was glad I didn't sign a blind authorization. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ottakee Posted May 13, 2012 Share Posted May 13, 2012 If at all possible, bring another adult with you or an older teen that can take her to the waiting room, etc. so that you and the doctor can have a frank discussion without her hearing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Twigs Posted May 13, 2012 Share Posted May 13, 2012 I'd recommend bringing someone who can be in charge of information management- writing down notes, asking questions if you forget, stuff like that. When you're at a dev ped and you start hearing things like, "Well, I think your child has xyz" or "Yes, there is definitely something wrong with your child and he/she will never be normal," it's easy to freak out and completely forget every single thing the doctor said. Having someone come along who isn't going to absolutely freak out is very handy. You can also take a tape recorder for this in addition to another person. Best wishes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
besroma Posted May 13, 2012 Share Posted May 13, 2012 You could also ask the doctor if you could call back with questions if you have any when you leave. Some doctors will do this, and some won't, but it might be worth asking. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MamaT Posted May 13, 2012 Share Posted May 13, 2012 I don't really have any advice beyond what you've already gotten. I just wanted you to know I'll be praying for you both. You know you can call me if you just need an ear. :grouphug: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Starr Posted May 13, 2012 Share Posted May 13, 2012 I think you are going to feel better. You will be giving information and getting information to make life easier for your sweet baby. We'll pray you through it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amo_mea_filiis. Posted May 13, 2012 Share Posted May 13, 2012 If you have some info that you want to share with dr, but do not want to see in a report, say so. Keep in mind that the final report can take on a life of its own. Down the line, other drs will want to see it. And, if you are getting special services through a school district, a report can be useful. Good luck! Be very careful of the report! I had a misread report bite me in butt! Ds was seen for a diagnostic evaluation by 4 docs. Diagnostics, cardio, pulmonary, and neurology. Not long after this eval we were going away and i needed a refill of albuterol for ds just in case. Well, the ped took out the report from diagnostics, and showed me that diagnostic doc says pulmonary does not think ds has asthma! It took a ton of phone calls to track down what went wrong. Pulmonary told me that if *i* wanted more evidence of ds's asthma, that i could stop the daily meds and track his symptoms. He never said or wrote in his own report that he did not think asthma was the problem. The diagnostic doc read the part about stopping meds and jumped to his own conclusions. Then neurology told me verbally that cerebral palsy does best fit a lot of ds's problems, and that we should stick with his therapies. Her report said that since ds's mri showed no evidence of cp, and his left side weakness was slight, she felt that cp was not the correct diagnosis! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hope in God Posted May 13, 2012 Share Posted May 13, 2012 It would be good to ask the doctor if there is any dietary therapies (he probably won't have a clue). And I highly recommend seeing a naturopath as well. You would not believe all the grief we saved just by trying a few thing that are off the radar of allopathic medicine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tap Posted May 13, 2012 Share Posted May 13, 2012 When we went through this, I looked on line for sample questions that they would ask. That helped me think of some questions and answers. Then I wrote out all of the behaviors that I was concerned about. That way when they asked me during the appointment, I had it all ready that I could reference. This also helped me come up with questions. I suspected the diagnosis they would come up with, so I read up on that too. That helped me understand the vocabulary they would use, and helped me be more concise in my recanting of events. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alessandra Posted May 14, 2012 Share Posted May 14, 2012 When we went through this, I looked on line for sample questions that they would ask. That helped me think of some questions and answers. Then I wrote out all of the behaviors that I was concerned about. That way when they asked me during the appointment, I had it all ready that I could reference. This also helped me come up with questions. I suspected the diagnosis they would come up with, so I read up on that too. That helped me understand the vocabulary they would use, and helped me be more concise in my recanting of events. Good idea -- you can google 'screening tools' plus your suspected diagnosis, and add 'cdc' if you want to narrow your google results. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KidsHappen Posted May 14, 2012 Share Posted May 14, 2012 With my dd the dr. decided to just treat the symptoms without a saddling her with a diagnosis that may later be a problem. After, seeing her for awhile she did give me an unofficial diagnosis but simply noted mood disorder on the chart. That is something that you might want to think about. I agree with taking an extra person with you and taking notes because you will forget things and think of questions later. Treating these sort of things is an on-going process so it isn't like tomorrow will be your only chance to talk to the dr. I am sure you will do fine. :grouphug: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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