ADHD input please

krugle1 said:
Thank you, Susan

Um, no, I don't merit YOUR thanks.

I'm officially ADD and on medication. I didn't see any disrespect here from those who call for restraint on medications. Yes, there is over diagnosis and over medication as well as under diagnosis and under medication. I was diagnosed less than ten years ago, and I'm 54 years old now. But teachers can't be trusted to make the diagnosis. They have an axe to grind, which is to keep the classroom in order. Even the best-intended teacher is at risk of calling normal behavior a pathology. If a teacher recommends a five year old boy be tested for ADHD, I'd want to look at what motivations are behind it.

Kids need to move. School these days doesn't allow for enough movement. Five year olds are just beginning to master language. Impulse control is a new thing for them. It's normal for them to think out loud. It's nearly impossible for them to have a thought with words without vocalizing it. This could seem like poor impulse control.

"Don't feed the ADHD machine" - no disrespect here.

The OP discription, without more information, does not sound like ADHD to me. Professionals can figure it out. I would just comment that too often medication is wrongly demonized by the media and parents hesitate to use medication because of that. Yet, if a child has ADHD, the medical research studies show again and again that umedicated ADHD children have significantly more negative outcomes than child treated with medication. Academic failures, career failures, marriage failures, and high rates of depression and or substance abuse. If appropriate, there is nothing wrong about putting a child on medication at five years old. I know because I did and never regretted it once. And very interestingly now in college he requires a lower dose. I attribute that to the presence of the medication all those years allowing his brain to normalize. This decision is a most agonizing decision. Look at PubMed and read the studies.

One last comment and that is in the 15 years I've been reading about ADHD, attending conferences and listening to people's stories about ADHD, I don't remember anyone, diagnosed only as an adult, express relief they were not diagnosed as a child or that if diagnosed as a child, but sought treatment as an adult, say they were glad their parents never put them on medication when they were a child. Actually the opposite.

Who is this Amen character

You can find Amen on PBS, especially during the times they seem to be fund raising. I think he is an MD, and has looked at MRI's of ADHD brains and shows them in his presentations to the audience. He has done more than that. For whatever reason, I do not like the experts who get up in front of an audience to entertain and teach about any topic. Their knowledge that they share may be fine. For whatever reason, I can't get beyond a few minutes and have to turn them off. I would guess there are You Tube videos of him. Or, maybe Thirteen.org.

He has commodified ADHD, identifying 7 different types and, of course, sells the appropriate supplements

RobinM2, all good points. No I am not relieved it took 40-something years to diagnose me. When I was a kid, it wasn't called ADD or ADHD, it was called Lazy Rotten Kid. I was labeled as unmotivated and not working up to potential. But what treatment do I wish I had received. That's very hard to say! I'd like to believe that behavior modification is the most valuable treatment, but I can't claim it's the only thing that would have done any good. I wish I had had that at the very least.

If a teacher thinks a kid has ADHD and the only treatment she mentions or advocates is medication, the best thing I can say about her is that she doesn't know a heck of a lot about ADHD.

Numerous articles on kids and ADHD:

https://www.understood.org/en/learning-attention-issues/child-learning-disabilities/add-adhd

I agree that putting a 5 year old on medication is not necessarily a bad or wrong thing to do. Assuming of course the proper evaluations have been done to determine if it's the best course of action. I say this having been treated with Ritalin for 10 years starting when I was 4 years old. And I remember the diagnostic process (or part of). I remember being in a room doing games & puzzles while being observed through a 2-way mirror. My point is that my parents didn't cut corners trying to address a very clear behavioral issue and I was exceptionally lucky that they put the time & resources into me but also didn't allow me to use ADHD as an excuse for when I screwed up. And I turned out alright as a result. But I also remember my parents, particularly my Mother, being demonized for me being medicated as if it was some sort of parenting failure (even within the family). Now that I'm a parent of young children I can passionately say it was the exact opposite of failure. Unfortunately there's no easy one size fits all approach and it really pisses me off to hear stories of these meds being over prescribed because, in my opinion, all it does is create a backlash and scare away people from pursuing what may be the best available option for the child. I wish the OP and others the best of luck in their decision process.

I wouldn't be quick to jump on the ADHD bandwagon. It is highly over diagnosed. It could be that it is BECAUSE he is advanced..and even in Montessori he is bored. It could be a problem with vision or hearing..or being over tired due to not getting quality sleep (allergies, nightmares, etc).

There could be something he is stressed about (an ill grandparent or an irrational fear).

He may have a mild sensory processing issue and just need more sensory play (bouncing around, playing with sand, rice, etc).

I once heard a story of a boy who would bounce off the walls if he ate a banana....it could be a food sensitivity.

Even if there are minor behavior issues, if he is not struggling in any way, medication may not be advised....but if you choose you can always just give it a short term trial and then decide if that is the route you want to go.

5 is the age that docs will start to medicate...a diagnosis can be made sooner...but should not be made quickly but only after a lot of input and careful consideration (which most docs don't do).

You could consider getting an initial evaluation....and then another one around October 2016 to get a history established...and then follow up again in the 2016-2017 school year if he is struggling at all....otherwise just wait until 1st grade and consider another follow up if there are any issues.

I wouldn't settle on an ADHD diagnosis at this time...but be open to the possibility and carefully (not just jump on the bandwagon) consider it and all the other possibilities.

copyability I agree with you 100%. There are no easy answers. Your mother was very strong to stay with her decision. People do tend to be judgmental with too little understanding. They come from their own experience and assume that what is true for them is true for everyone.