26 months old son wants my attention ... - CHADD's ADHD Pare...

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26 months old son wants my attention constantly

mahi9314 profile image
13 Replies

My 26 months old son constantly wants attention from me and my wife all the time. He play on his own for a short period of time, but most of the times he wants us to pay attention to him. He wants us to sit next to him and watch him while he is playing or else play with him.

This is our first child so don't know whether this is normal and what can we do to help him.

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mahi9314 profile image
mahi9314
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13 Replies
nurseandmom23 profile image
nurseandmom23

This is normal 26 month old behavior. Kids are a lot of work, especially toddlers.

mahi9314 profile image
mahi9314 in reply to nurseandmom23

Thanks for your answer.

cinvela12 profile image
cinvela12

Sounds normal to me... My son is almost 4 and still wants a lot of our attention, especially my husband, who works. He will play independently for me for longer periods than for his dad, maybe because I’m at home with home all day so he gets more of my attention.

mahi9314 profile image
mahi9314 in reply to cinvela12

Thanks for your answer.

It may seem normal to us but if you’re posting here you must think there is something more going on. I recommend setting up an appt. with a developmental pediatrician to see if an evaluation may be warranted.

mahi9314 profile image
mahi9314 in reply to

Thanks for your answer.

Grandma01 profile image
Grandma01

Good for you to notice that your son is just a but different than the typical child. My grand son ead the same way. No matter how many toys we oyt in front of him he'd still cry fir attention. As an in he wouldn't even swing in the baby swing without someone right next to him. I'd say your on the track to ADHD. As he starts to get older he crave more attention, the tantrums that should stop shorty after turning two will continue into three. He will start to act out act school during preschool, and as of NIW he's probably already bouncing around and appear ad if he not learning his ABC"s.

Seek help now... start with his PCP or make and appointment at a local mental health center, or even child find. Right now they'll probably tell you his has sensory processing issues, which could be true. Or even give you a diagnosis of everything but ADHD.

Don't let them give you the run a round. Make them test him. Tell them everything you to be true.

I know my grandson had issue about that age and earlier. We were told that he had possible Asperger's Syndrome. Very little of the signs for Autism Spectrum is display even though ADHD AND ASD do to overlap.

You know your better than anyone else. Get him tested for ADHD and seek some sort therapy service cause you will need help and support on this Ricky road. One last thing, there's no such thing as first child or only child, and nithing at all to do with where his birth date falls on the calendar... such as an early five year old or an late six year old. It's just was is because we're human.

That's just my option cause I've been there and not done yet.

But of luck to you and your family!!

mahi9314 profile image
mahi9314 in reply to Grandma01

Thank you so much for your suggestions.

Erinjake4 profile image
Erinjake4

This sounds like pretty typical toddler behavior to me. But if your gut is telling you it is something more, than you should definitely talk with your pediatrician or request a free evaluation with early intervention. My daughter with ADHD is now almost 9yrs old and I always joke that we knew she had ADHD when she was still in my belly. She was so active it physically made me sick!!! As a baby she never slept, ate constantly but gained very little weight and screamed all the time! It was absolutely miserable. She hit all her milestones early, walked at 9 months and climbed on everything. She was very social and would walk off with strangers if I turned my back for a second. She always had to have me with her when she played. She didn’t like me playing with her, just sitting next to her. By 2.5 yrs old we had to put her in a Preschool program because I just couldn’t provide enough stimulation for her at home. She needed to be around other kids. (She is still this way). These are just a few thing I remember from the early years. I always knew in my gut she was different. I don’t know if any of this sounds familiar for your little guy. Parenting is hard! Good luck!

cinvela12 profile image
cinvela12 in reply to Erinjake4

All of this sounds familiar, so when did you realize she was ADHD? How was her preschool experience?

Erinjake4 profile image
Erinjake4 in reply to cinvela12

She was officially diagnosed when she was 4yrs old. Preschool actually went really well. Her teacher definately noticed her inability to sit still and work on one task for any length of time but she was great at working with her differences. My daughter has never been aggressive towards other kids or verbally disruptive in class. She mostly required frequent redirection and reminders (still does). She has always had a lot of friends and is very social and easy going socially! We did some behavior therapy early on but have chosen not to medicate her so far. We keep her involved in physical activities which helps to release all the built up energy after a long school day. I’m happy to answer any other questions you may have!

cinvela12 profile image
cinvela12 in reply to Erinjake4

Thanks for your response. Again some things sound familiar but others do not. I think I am concerned with his attention span.., Who diagnosed her so early? What tests were administered? My son just turned 4. Thanks for your help!

Erinjake4 profile image
Erinjake4 in reply to cinvela12

Our pediatrician made the diagnosis. We filled out a few questionnaires as well as her preschool teacher. The doctor also did her own physical and evaluation of my daughter. It was pretty easy. I pretty much new what was going on and the doctor agreed.

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