Help my son is out of control

Louise - posted on 11/16/2010

Hi there... Yes I too started with a Play Therapist. Then a naturopath, then a psychologist and Neurofeedback Therapy, then meds... no choice and an empty savings account. The meds were the only thing that would stop him from his aggressive behaviour during the day. The teachers and students all saw a really nice kid with alot of potential. That was grade 3. He is now in Grade 6. He struggles with interest in academics but he is much better socially. Still has the odd hiccups at school but not too many. Our problem now is when the meds wear off he rebounds and he is a monster and his symptoms are worse than before we ever started with the meds... It is very sad and very hard to deal with every day. Trying new meds just takes weeks and months of having to deal with the monster affect with the meds wear off because we still have not found a solution to take him through the whole day. We can't go without meds when he rebounds because he is harmful and violent to me and his two brothers... I still struggle every day.... I really feel like I am alone...

Laura - posted on 02/20/2009

I did talk to me pediatrician and he recommended my son see a play therapist who will work with him and try to figure out why he is so aggressive.

Rita - posted on 02/20/2009

My son was diagnosed at the age of 5. I went to three specialists. I didnt  want to take the first one. Your doctor should be able to help you and direct you in the right direction.

Tina - posted on 02/20/2009

My son was diagnosed in October by a pediatric neurologist. She confirmed that he does have ADHD. We have been working with him since the age of two and a half to find out what's wrong with him. He had delayed speech. He also has an articulation disorder. He has been in school since he was three years old at an Early Interventive program. It runs for the whole school year and extends into the summer. There, they work with him on his speech problem as well as his developmental issues.



You need to be proactive. Take him to see his pediatrician for a start. Explain your concerns. Have them recommend someone to take your son to who can accurately observe and diagnose him.



The earlier, the better. Hopefully you can have the same wonderful programs for him that we have found here.

Natalie - posted on 02/19/2009

Dear Laura, it is not unusual for children to exhibit signs of ADHD at an early age. My youngest has been diagnosed, but did not begin medication until he entered school. A really good book that I can recommend to you is "Taking Charge of ADHD, The Complete, Authoritative Guide for Parents" by Russell A. Barkley, PhD.

Jennifer - posted on 02/18/2009

My son is 5, he will be 6 in March and was within the last month diagnosed with ADHD. He is very hyper but also is very aggressive, he stands 4'1 and 75 lbs and does not know his own strength. We went through half a yr in kindergarten and a very loving and understanding teacher who has been teaching for 20+ years, before we finally took him to be tested. He has always been quite a handful! He is my 3rd child the other two are girls ages 14 and 11, so I put alot of it on the fact "thats how boys act." We filled out behavior evaluation along with everyone he had contact with regularly, his teachers, his grandparents and my husband and I also. He is on Focalin XR 10 mg.  He started on 5 mg, but after about a week his teacher noticed that after he went to PE (sbout 10:30 am) everyday, he was back to his old self.  So we moved up to 10 mg and it is lasting throughout the day and his school work  and comprehension is getting better. My husband and I did not want to medicate him unless it starting to greatly affect his schoolwork.    Good Luck!

Laura - posted on 02/18/2009

Well I call the doctor and my son has an appointment with a play therapist in April.

Thanks for everyones input.

Pamela - posted on 02/17/2009

my son was 3 as well but no meds till he started school.Even with meds he is still out of coontrol.

We struggle daily with him and his physical abuse that he puts us through , he hurts me and his older sister (13) and yells and screams at us for his own faults because he is your normal ADHD child , will not admit when he has done wrong !!

But things are very complicated for us , I am divorced and his dad thinks I am unfit and that he can do better , but he is the one who just got busted for sellikng his own sons Adderall !! So my son is not to see him until DFS says different and my son is angry at me for this , so that is another fight for us .

Laura - posted on 02/17/2009

He doesn't have any speech delays and is quite a smart boy.

Laura - posted on 02/17/2009

Hi Laura, my son was diagnosed about 3 years ago (so he was 10 at the time). It had (and has) been a difficult run for me too because he's actually a very, very clever boy but many people cannot deal with children like him.  He has no learning disabilities but he lacks focus and concentration and the ability to sit still, listen and/or stop talking...it's a challenge.  A lot of people don't subscribe to the "medication" route of treatment because they don't understand it and many kids will have adverse effects to the medication if they are incorrectly diagnosed or incorrectly medicated.  I would definitely take him for a checkup and have him assessed.  When Daniel was diagnosed I had to do behavioural reports and take him for Pshyco Therapy and they delved into his home life, his school life, his history, everything, because they say that there can be many issues that the child is trying to deal with but just doesn't know how and this can manifest in the symptoms of ADHD. Good luck and let us know what the outcome is.  If you need to chat, I'm on Facebook and MySpace and Twitter.  I will always welcome you for a chat.

Tina - posted on 02/17/2009

My son was diagnosed with ADHD at age 3 but we did not start medication until he was in kindergarten.  I would definately talk to the pediatrician about any concerns I had. Does your son have any speech or language delays?  If so this definately affects their behavior and aggressiveness.