Advice

[11202010]

Hi I'm new to the group my 7 year old was diagnosed in September with ADHD combined type he gets bad anxiety about things he doesn't need to worry about and his temper is out of control sometimes he is a very sweet loving boy and would help you with anything but sometimes it's like flipping a light switch he is in first grade this year and this year is going better than last year did but I think part of the reason is because the teacher is willing to work with him . Last year his teacher would send me emails of what he did that day and they were always negative he is on a medicine and it helps him in school but at home I still struggle some days with his listening . Just wondering if anyone goes through the same thing .

[LizES]

You are not alone. My 5 year old son is the same way. I call his the Jekyll and Hyde moments. I am still worried his medication may be causing the anger issues or making them worse. I have been working with my doctor to figure out ways to reduce the let down from the meds. So far we have changed his afternoon snack to high protein, eliminated gluten and worked it out so when he first gets home he gets 10-20 minutes completely by himself with no noise and minimal distractions. I have also started using choices (ex. Would u like to brush your teeth or get dressed first) instead of me asking him to do something. I read an article that said making choices is a different brain pattern then when listening and having to react. We just started it but it seems like he is more accepting and receptive.

[Gabbysmom1973]

Yes my ten year old daughter is very similar to this. Teachers tend to focus on the negative and not praise my child for her positive traits. It's so frustrating. She has severe adhd and oppositional defiant disorder,severe anxiety at all times.

[Frecklechops]

Yes, my son is the same, the meds help for during school but he can be a lot more jeckyll and Hyde at home, more so if he’s tired. My son is also very loving and sweet but has no fuse when temper flares. I did the incredible years programme which helped me a lot to give loads of praise, and spend one on one time with him too. To do list that they can tick off helped me and him too, so I wasn’t just bossing him because of his forgetfulness.

[Mark2608]

You say he's medicated but you haven't said with what. The only reason I ask is if it's any form of Ritalin, especially the slow release ones, there are some pretty nasty common (notice I said common not rare or uncommon) side effects including explosive behaviour and anxiety.

The explosive behaviour especially at home after school can be attributed to several things

1. I'm guessing your child doesn't eat properly on said meds, so is unknowingly Hangry (hungry and angry)

2. Eats as soon as they get home and gets a sugar rush

3. Close to bed time starts to crash from sugar high (not just refined sugars, carbs can cause the same) increase protein intake to help counter this.

4. Research has shown in some cases the effects of Ritalin do not taper off like they are supposed to, rather they crash out of the system causing the body to instantly crave the drug (Ritalin is a form of cocaine so the addiction is real) anyone with an addiction craving can be very difficult to deal with especially if said medication helps control the behaviour that's being displayed.

If you are shocked by the Ritalin/cocaine statement Google it.

As for anxiety it's always been there but 2 things are happening your child is learning to express it, something to be commended and talked through the best you can and the other is its being made worse by Ritalin. My sons pedeatrician told us that the medication could make any traits of autism worse. Didn't think about it at the time but wish I had, As he's convinced himself he's afraid of heights and clearly isn't. He' been off he's meds for about 4months now and only now is he's confidence returning, he's trying new things all the time and doesn't why away so much anymore.

One last food for thought. Hyperactivity can be a coping mechanism for anxiety. Medicate the hyper with Ritalin what do you have left ? An anxious person with no way to deal with their emotions who will wait until the meds wear off to express how they feel through the only way they know how. We call it explosive behaviour or temper tantrum but they only know it as coping......the best thing to do if this is happening is to give them a safe place to get it out of their system don't get involved stay out of the way and wait for it to stop or if your concerned compression works very well (I'm not talking restraint that's different) give them a really good hug a really good squeeze. Then talk about what' upsetting them 9 times out of 10 they are struggling with something at school

Sorry for the long post I've been my sons primary carer since he was diagnosed at 4 he's now 9 and I'm still learning about him and really want to share my findings with anyone who's struggling like I was