My 10YO MIGHT Have ADD?

[momof1princess]

DD10 is a VERY smart child, in gifted classes, etc., but her mind tends to wander a lot and she's very unorganized, forgetful, etc. her 4th grade teacher recommended this morning that i have her tested for ADD, but i honestly don't know where to start...do i make an appointment w/ her pediatrician? does insurance generally pay for this type of testing? if anyone has any experience with this on either side of the coin (as a medical/psychiatric professional or parent) i'd greatly appreciate your advice, opinions, tips....anything. i just really need help. TIA.

 

[ERMama]

Yes, first call your pediatrician.

My son was diagnosed at 5.5 yo. We had started with ped when he was 2 and first had him evaluated by a child developmental doc and had autism specrum ruled out. We then were referred to a neuropsychologist actually by our sons neurologist (he had seizures). They gave us the adhd diagnosis. We then saw a private therapist per recommendation of our ped who "confirmed" for us adhd (we now see her once a month).

Our ped is the one who prescribes our meds, the therapist discusses behavior modificatioin. My sons in special ed thru public school.

In our case everything was covered by insurance. We just have a $20 copay at each therapist visit.

 

[mla1977]

Not saying that your daughter does or doesn't have ADD, but kids who aren't being challenged enough tend to be distracted in classes. I was way advanced for my math classes in 3rd grade, so I never did the homework or any of the in class assignments, only the test. My teacher actually lowered me to the "regular" classes out of the honors group which only compounded the problem. Of course, ADD wasn't the diagnosis that was popular at the time, so I was never evaluated. Nowadays, I wonder if I have Adult ADD.

 

[mickeywho?]

We had our son go through this when he was 8. His classroom teacher was concerned and suspected ADD/ADHD. The schools here will do testing but not until age 10. We decided not to wait - decided the earlier the better to help him out.
We saw our family physician who recommended a child psychologist that worked out of a private centre. Our private health insurance paid for half of this - our cost was about $500. She did a number of tests over three days - ugh! At least it was thorough! There was a full report for us to go over at the end of it all.
As it turned out he was not ADD/ADHD but had some characteristics that may lead "less patient" people to think so - her words not mine. We also found out he was "gifted" - 99th percentile in math, 98th in language. But his organizational skills were behind for his age. She told us to hand a copy of the report to the school if we wanted to - but only if we were prepared to go forward with putting him in the gifted programming. We paid for the report - not the school - so if we didn't want them to know the results we could have just kept it to ourselves.
So, if your testing tells you that she has ADD it is perfectly acceptable to keep that info to yourself. You do not have to have that label in her school records. While some teachers are great and will work with improving her focus in class others will use it as an easy excuse as to why they are having problems teaching your daughter. Both my parents are teachers and both suggested keeping any negative reports off the record.
We've since put our focus into helping him with his organizational - time management skills. We tell his teachers in the first week of school to help him out with reminders - help him keep a daily to-do list (he keeps his agenda open on his desk now instead of putting it away like the other kids). He has his own calendar in the kitchen to help him plan his assignments etc.
We're looking forward to him starting the gifted-programming at his school next year - that should help with the day-dreaming, head in the clouds...
HTH! and good luck!
My brother has ADHD and was undiagnosed until college. He has tried medications to help cope but decided that it really made him feel worse - drugged and crazed - either dopey or overhyper. So instead has been very disciplined in his routine (bedtime and healthy diet) and found that it helped him more.

 

[ERMama]

I agree with not having to tell the school the child is adhd. But you really have to weigh the pros and cons of being totally open with them.
In our case, being open has allowed our son to get the extra help he so desperately needed as it was very much affecting his academics and learning.
In your case, if daughter is gifted and ADHD, I would maybe try the behavior management changes suggested to her by a therapist first. If that doesnt help her behavior in school you may have to tell the school.

Our son is younger and more immature and really needed the school to be on board with what we were doing with our therapist. In fact, the therapist my son and I see monthly has someone come into the school a few times a year to evaluate how the child is doing and recommends changes to the school.

(the drugs vs diet debate is huge and really depends on the parents views and how their child responds.)

 

[Order66]

I knew my son was probably ADHD before the age of 2, but nobody will diagnois a child that young. As soon as he started kindergarten I planned to request testing for him. He didn't even make it the first week before his teacher approached me. My first step was to call the pediatrician and request the forms to be filled out. He/she will start with a checklist of questions that both you and your spouse and another for the teacher. Then they'll be compared to look for consistancy in behaviors. One of the first steps in recognizing the issue of ADHD/ADD is does the child have this problem in multiple settings? But if she exhibits the same types of behaviors in multiple settings, at school and at home and even at grandma's house then consider requesting the testing. Some children have "signs" such as lack of foucs or organizational problems the teacher might suspect as ADHD during school, but the behavior is normal in a variety of other settings. In this case think boredom in school. If the checklist warrents further testing your doctor will tell you the next step.

Our insurance pays for everything including visits and medication. Minus our co-pay of course. Some schools offer the testing as well, but I'd recommend your own doctor instead. Some pediatricians handle it and others recommend specialists.

Good Luck

 

[momof1princess]

thank you all so much! fortunately, she's not hyper, but her teacher is convinced she's got ADD to some extent. i'm kinda perturbed she waited until the last day of school to drop this bomb on me, b/c it's not like i'm not involved and haven't been around-i'm co-head room mother and she sees me on a regular basis. i'm VERY tempted to see how DD does in middle school this fall before requesting an evaluation from her pediatrician, b/c while i certainly want her to get the help she needs IF she needs it, i'm terrified of having to medicate her so she can go to school. also, now that school is over, i have no teacher right now to fill out her portion of the forms. DD will be changing classes for the first time next year and her teacher (now former teacher) suggested buying her a planner to write her assignments in, which i've done, and i'm going to be working with her on her math, which is the one subject where she seems to fall behind-she made high A's in all subjects but a 71 in math b/c she simply didn't ask me to go over her math tests w/ her each week so she could correct them then all i had to do was sign the corrected paper(s) and her teacher would've added 10 points to her grades for that effort. it was written on the board and repeated to the kids each monday (this is the day they bring their previous week's tests home), so DD can't say she forgot. *sigh* childbirth was easy, parenting is hard.

 

[TexasTodds]

My son was officially diagnosed with ADHD when he was 6 and finishing a "bridge" program before kindergarten. --we had suspected LONG before that, but won't even do testing til they are at least 5 years old. From the time of diagnosis we did behavior modification therapy, which bought us an extra year before we began using medication. At that point is was already affecting his school work/grades. It was an immediate turning point, and he became a totally different child.

To make a long story short, I find it really unusual that your daughter would reach 10 years old with no one (a teacher) ever mentioning that they suspected your daughter might be ADD. Of course, when the hyperactivity is not present, it is a little harder to see, but of the several kids I know who have already been diagnosed with ADD, it was usually noticed by 1st grade, or at least by the end of that year.

Another thing, kids with ADD/ADHD are usually very bright/above average intelligence, so it is certainly not a learning disability or a weakness. I also wouldn't say it is a lack of being disciplined in her daily activities. I had actually suspected that I had ADD long before I had children, but until I had 3 kids I was able to "function" pretty well, and then it did become difficult at times. With my own medication, when I do take it, I feel that I can really concentrate much better, and stay on task. You may think at this point that it is something that she will outgrow, or will just get better, but if she truly is ADD, then just think of what she could accomplish if she were given what she needed to help her concentrate and focus. It is very rare that we forget to give DS his medication, but he does ask for it. I think that he very much dislikes feeling so out of control. If I wasn't a believer before, I certainly am now that it is truly a medical condition and does require intervention, same as any other condition. And like alot of things, there is certainly a range from mild (may be able to get by with just behavior modification therapy to sever--requieing medication every day, not just school days).

Certainly do start with your pediatrician. There is a very long questionaire that I would give to as many teachers as possible, as well as any other adults who spend a significant amount of time with her so as to get the most complete picture.

Please forgive me for the long rambling typing, but I think that this is truly a misunderstood diagnosis. Too many people think that it is just an easy way out of bad behavior, but if your child does not actually have it, the drugs will do nothing to change their behavior.

Good Luck with seeking out the answers...it is certainly a journey!

 

[powellrj]

I would investigate on my own this summer and try things like a change in diet if you want to avoid medication. I know many parents swear by it.

We went through the testing with my oldest DS and he was prescribed a couple of different meds which I never felt worked so we pretty much worked through it ourselves.

Our insurance paid very little. We first had to go to our family doctor who then referred us to a center that would do the testing which then sent the results back to our family doctor to prescribe the medication. It took several months. This was several years ago so I hope that its easier now.

I would work with her at home this summer to learn study skills and study tricks.

I have a funny story. One of the things DS could never master was upper number multiplication. In frustration I told to to multiply anything he didn't know by 10 and to just subtract. It worked. Fast forward to high school. I get a call from the teacher and she is irate that he is doing multiplication that way. She said whoever taught him that was an idiot. I just let her rant, I may be an idiot, but it worked and he was able to multiply. Now DD is in middle school and guess what the teacher told the class to do when they are stumped??? Multiply by 10 and subtract. I guess this idiot knew a little something. I guess the point I am making is that you can do more than you realize, just work with her this summer and try to come up with some study skills that she can use next year.

 

[jack hannah bananah]

ADHD at 2 yr. old. I want to meet a 2 yr. old that doesn't have ADHD.

I am a former teacher and have a major problem with this diagnosis. Please, please, please don't let any one put her on drugs. There are other behavior modifications you can work on with her to help her focus better. I guarantee the drugs will help her focus better, they almost always do. However, drugging her will take away some of her personality that makes her unique. I have story after story of students whose personalities totally changed after being put on medication. Yes, they were easier to handle, but I missed THEM. I don't want a class filled with "perfect" little clones.
First, see if she is bored. See if she responds better to her teacher next year when school will be more challenging.
Maybe she is a tactual learner (hands on) and this teacher is teaching mainly for visual or auditory learners. I find most students who are diagnosed with ADD are not. They just learn differently. We need to work on our education system to take this into account. Until then, we need to help our children learn/succeed in whatever environment they are put in.

 

[jackskellingtonsgirl]

thank you all so much! fortunately, she's not hyper, but her teacher is convinced she's got ADD to some extent. i'm kinda perturbed she waited until the last day of school to drop this bomb on me, b/c it's not like i'm not involved and haven't been around-i'm co-head room mother and she sees me on a regular basis. i'm VERY tempted to see how DD does in middle school this fall before requesting an evaluation from her pediatrician, b/c while i certainly want her to get the help she needs IF she needs it, i'm terrified of having to medicate her so she can go to school. also, now that school is over, i have no teacher right now to fill out her portion of the forms. DD will be changing classes for the first time next year and her teacher (now former teacher) suggested buying her a planner to write her assignments in, which i've done, and i'm going to be working with her on her math, which is the one subject where she seems to fall behind-she made high A's in all subjects but a 71 in math b/c she simply didn't ask me to go over her math tests w/ her each week so she could correct them then all i had to do was sign the corrected paper(s) and her teacher would've added 10 points to her grades for that effort. it was written on the board and repeated to the kids each monday (this is the day they bring their previous week's tests home), so DD can't say she forgot. *sigh* childbirth was easy, parenting is hard.

My DS12 has inattentive ADD. He is not hyper at all, he is just flighty. He is easily distracted and requires a lot of redirecting to stay focused. His teacher mentioned in 3rd grade that it might be good to look at testing him for ADD. We started to pursue it through the school district BUT the guidance counselor gave me so much wrong information that we gave up on that. Our pediatrician has a diagnostician on staff so we had her test him. Our insurance covered it because it was billed through the pediatrician. She said he is a textbook case of moderate inattentive ADD. Some insurance will cover it through a psychologist, but it is covered on the "mental health" side, not the medical side. The testing is expensive, but it is worth it.

We also had the problem of the school year ending before we could get things sorted out, so DS wasn't diagnosed until the second semester of 4th grade, and we didn't find a medication that worked until the first semester of 5th grade. He will finish 6th grade next week.

Middle school has been a tough transition for him because he has to deal with 6 different teachers. He has a planner. The first planner got lost within a week. The second planner he has managed to hang on to, but he likes to draw little pictures of rocket ships and Godzilla in it instead of writing down his assignments. The teachers maintain an online grade book so I can monitor what he is doing. There have been times where he was missing like 4 things in Science. He claimed to have no knowledge of any of them. I pulled out his binder and came up with 3 of them. He just can't seem to manage all of his subjects all of the time. Something is always falling through the cracks, and that's WITH medication. He is a solid A/B student and is in the honor society. He aces his standardized tests every year. He is smart, but he is disorganized.

Good luck getting things sorted out with your DD!

 

[tazdev3225]

My son has ADD. I knew this before he was in nursery school, he was expelled from there. When he started school I became very involved, volunteered in classes went on the PTA. In first grade I begged the principal to test him and she refused. By third grade she was calling him a bad seed. I put him in a private school for 3 years. They confirmed what I knew but could not help him because we lived in a different county. I put him back in public school and then had him tested on myown. Thankfully my insurance paid for it. He was diagnosed in 8th grade along with a major LD. I then had to fight for an IEP every year. The school would not put him in spec. ed. They sent me to truancy court instead because he cut classes all the time. The lack of a diagnosis caused him to have severe anxiety/panic attacks. He developed psoriasis from this and had to have permission to wear a hat at all times. The psoriasis disappeared within a week of school letting out and came back within a week of school starting.
Test privately if you can. If you get a diagnosis get an advocate and fight for everything your child is entitled to have. I learned the hard way what to do. My son eventually dropped out of school because it was to late for him and he grew to be very distrustful. It has taught him what to fight for when it comes to his boys.
Sorry for the rant but I don't want anyone else to go through the H??? we went through.

 

[momof1princess]

thanks so much everyone your experiences and opinions are INVALUABLE to someone like me who really didn't know where to begin. DH refuses to believe DD might have ADD and insists she's just bored. when i look at my DD i see SO much of DH's sister in her-messy, disorganized and totally scatterbrained-DH's sister was hs valedictorian and is now a college professor w/ a phD in chemistry (without any sort of medical/psychological intervention) so i have no doubt that whatever we're dealing with, DD can overcome it, i just have to keep reading everything i can get my hands on and get DH on board. i appreciate your responses so much! you've given me so much help and hope

 

[pbharris4]

My DS12 has inattentive ADD. He is not hyper at all, he is just flighty. He is easily distracted and requires a lot of redirecting to stay focused. His teacher mentioned in 3rd grade that it might be good to look at testing him for ADD. We started to pursue it through the school district BUT the guidance counselor gave me so much wrong information that we gave up on that. Our pediatrician has a diagnostician on staff so we had her test him. Our insurance covered it because it was billed through the pediatrician. She said he is a textbook case of moderate inattentive ADD. Some insurance will cover it through a psychologist, but it is covered on the "mental health" side, not the medical side. The testing is expensive, but it is worth it.

We also had the problem of the school year ending before we could get things sorted out, so DS wasn't diagnosed until the second semester of 4th grade, and we didn't find a medication that worked until the first semester of 5th grade. He will finish 6th grade next week.

Middle school has been a tough transition for him because he has to deal with 6 different teachers. He has a planner. The first planner got lost within a week. The second planner he has managed to hang on to, but he likes to draw little pictures of rocket ships and Godzilla in it instead of writing down his assignments. The teachers maintain an online grade book so I can monitor what he is doing. There have been times where he was missing like 4 things in Science. He claimed to have no knowledge of any of them. I pulled out his binder and came up with 3 of them. He just can't seem to manage all of his subjects all of the time. Something is always falling through the cracks, and that's WITH medication. He is a solid A/B student and is in the honor society. He aces his standardized tests every year. He is smart, but he is disorganized.

Good luck getting things sorted out with your DD!

OMG This sounds just like my DD12. To the OP: I'd get her tested now instead of waiting. Middle school is harder. I was going to get DD tested a few years ago and didn't. I regret that now. I just KNEW middle school would be difficult. No problem withe social transition

First, in second grade her teacher (a former Learning Disabilities teacher) noticed she was having trouble understanding and comprehending, easily distracted, etc. We had her hearing tested which was fine, but further testing revealed she has CAPD (Central Auditory Processing Disorder). The school made accomodations for her..front of the classroom, repeat and write down directions etc. It was pretty new back then and not understood much. I did read that alot of times kids with CAPD also have either ADD or ADHD.

Fast Forward to middle school. DD is in 6th grade. Socially she made an easy transition :rolleyes I knew that would be ok. She loves changing classes, but has a hard time being organized. With the CAPD she had trouble following 2-3 step directions and is VERY forgetful. She often cuts me off while I am talking to answer me before I even finish. She's not that hyper. One of her teachers were reading the tests to her..hello...she has an auditory problem. The teachers think it's normal transitional stuff, I think it isn't. I'd rather know now. I should have done it awhile ago. I'd prefer not to give her meds unless she absolutely needs it. And if she's not ADD/ADHD then even better. But usually my instincts are right on. As most mother's are.

 

[K and K's Mommy]

Your daughter sounds just like my DS who just finished third grade. He is in gifted classes and his reading level is 12th grade. His 1st grade teacher used to call him the absent minded professor.

I am a former 2nd grade teacher, and there is no doubt in my mind he has many ADD characteristics. Every teacher has agreed with me. He is absent minded, disorganized, forgets homework at school, and has occasional outbursts when he is frustrated - although never at school.

We have never had him tested because he makes all A's. That said, I worry very much about middle school. I talked to my pediatrician about it, and he said since his teachers have been accommodating, we can wait to have him tested. If it doesn't improve with maturity (which the teacher part of me says it won't), I will want him diagnosed before middle school. That way, there has to be a plan for him. I know someone with a son who had to have medicine in high school and college. He now doesn't use it as an adult, but he has a wonderful wife and secretary!

Good luck!

 

[jack hannah bananah]

Aren't some people just absent-minded and disorganized? Since when do we have to diagnose this as a disorder and drug our children?
We should be teaching them organizational tools they can use, and when they still aren't totally organized , they learn how to live being an unorganized, absent-minded person. A person who is probably lovely just the way they are!

 

[pbharris4]

Aren't some people just absent-minded and disorganized? Since when do we have to diagnose this as a disorder and drug our children?
We should be teaching them organizational tools they can use, and when they still aren't totally organized , they learn how to live being an unorganized, absent-minded person. A person who is probably lovely just the way they are!

See I one of the reasons I delayed testing DD12 is because I keep going back & forth. Some of it is just regular stuff that all kids go through(and adults too ) and my DD has had accomodations (IEP) in place since 2nd grade. She's been an B/C (an occaisional A) student, but the last half of the year she's slipped into D and F category and luckily she was able to bring it up some. So although the organizational tools are in place they aren't helping. My DH has the same problem and personally I think he should be tested as well and he agrees with me.

Everyone can be absent minded, but it's different when they constantly forget things. Even the simple things.

 

[mchllevns]

My 19 yo DS started w/concerns in kindergarten...we tried simple behavior programming w/the school (schedule of activities, planner for teacher-parent notes, positive reinforcement for staying on task, etc) thru 3rd grade...finally, by the end of 3rd grade it was evident he needed more. After a struggle w/his mom (and a record number of detentions), he went on medication for the 2nd half of 4th grade...no more detentions, better attention to task, etc. Fast forward...he just completed his 1st year of college...still takes medication, and I truly believe he would never have made it this far w/o it. I agree that you should try behavioral interventions 1st (especially since my background is in Behavior analysis!), but I also believe that medication can be a positive thing as well...I liken it to blood pressure and diabetes medication--if you can't control w/diet, you'll control w/medication right?

And, our elementary and high schools were great...504 plans in place, teachers worked w/us to make school a positive experience for DS...college is another story, but we'll keep working on that!

We did go through our ped for a referral to a great children's hospital in our area...the psychiatrist there has been following DS ever since and he meets w/him every few months for review of medications and such.

Given our experience, I feel more information is better...get a good evaluation 1st, then work w/the school as needed to give your child greater challenges, or organization as needed.

My best to you!

 

[mapmakerj]

Aren't some people just absent-minded and disorganized? Since when do we have to diagnose this as a disorder and drug our children?
We should be teaching them organizational tools they can use, and when they still aren't totally organized , they learn how to live being an unorganized, absent-minded person. A person who is probably lovely just the way they are!

Unless you have walked a mile in the shoes of a parent with a child that has ADHD, you have NO idea how medication is sometimes the only way to get that child through school. People who are misinformed always complain about how we drug our children when anyone mentions ADD/ADHD. Most parents go through years of therapy, diet modifications and many other behavior techniques before we try medication. Also, most people don't realize that ADD meds CANNOT work on a child who is not ADD. If a child who is not ADD is given stimulant meds, they will not calm them down and they will become very, very hyper. The stimulants work the opposite in children with ADD due to a chemical imbalance in their brains. Odd as it may seem, giving an ADD child a Mt. Dew will actually help them focus for a bit. If you ever encounter a child who's personality changes because of ADD meds then they are either on the wrong dosage or they need to try another med. My DS has been on meds for more than a year and he is, and has always been, the same funny, sweet, personable kid he was before the meds.

 

[dbmarie]

My daughter was diagnosised with ADD at a young age. However both the teacher and I questioned that diagnosis so I took her for further testing. She actually has APD (Auditory Processing Disorder) which can appear to be attentional problems in certain environments. So I think it may be a good idea to have a psychological evaluation. Our insurance would not pay and the school is not always the ideal place to obtain testing as they may not always know what to test for or how to test for certain learning disabilities such as APD. We went to our local university a student with their PhD did the testing and we paid half of what a private evaluation would be. I don't know if this is an option for you or not.