new here, digging in

[geemamom]

grandson 5 [he and his mom live with us, i am his primary care giver] recently formally diagnosed. started on meds. lots of problems at school, i am sure you can all relate.

i am super overwhelmed, joined so i can gain as much knowledge as possible,

not feel so stressed/ alone. please forgive me if i ask a totally newbie question, i am starting from scratch here.

[Hidden]

I'm pretty new here too and everyone is very welcoming and has a ton of great advice. Don't be afraid to ask any questions you have. Btw, thank you for being an amazing grandmother!

[geemamom in reply to Hidden]

Thank you so much! I am reading posts like crazy since i can see theres so much experience amongst this wonderful group. i am glad i made it here.

[Onthemove1971]

geemamom-

Welcome to this amazing group of very supportive and kind people. One thing that helped me a lot in the begining was to know that childen with ADHD tend to get better as they grow up.. much harder in the younger years.

Also there is help with thearpy, in schools clearly on-line.

Please don't feel alone, we are all here for you. What is great is that there are parents in the group with children going through (or harder times) simiar things.

I think it is great that you are willing to start medications to help him control his impulses.

Take care, big hugs..

[geemamom in reply to Onthemove1971]

thank you so much! i am really looking forward to communicating with other parents who are going through this or even btdt. also thank you from the bottom of my heart for the medication comment, i know its a very personal decision family to family but in our case we really felt it was the right thing to do for him.

[Pennywink]

Welcome geemamom! Thanks for reaching out - we were all newbies at some point.

The first things that really helped me were:

1. Talking with the school psychologist. She was super helpful & recommended the book Smart but Scattered by Peg Dawson (it has since been recommended to me by at least 2 other mental health professionals.)

2. This video. Russell Barkley can be quite frank, which can be a little upsetting for the newly diagnosed. But I found the info superb in wrapping my head around what we are dealing with.

youtu.be/SCAGc-rkIfo(Not working as expected?)

[geemamom in reply to Pennywink]

thank you so very much! i will make sure to get that book today. I am currently "attending" school with him due to his behavior in class. [long story but his school said he couldnt come back - to kindergarten!!! unless someone was with him]

i also will watch the video for sure, frank talk doesnt bother me.

thank you again!

[KayNicole in reply to Pennywink]

Thank you so much for the video. I’ve only watched the first 20 mins but I can see already it’s going to be so helpful to me understanding what is going on for my son!

[Pennywink in reply to KayNicole]

I’m glad to hear it! It’s definitely long (though not dull), and almost 10 years old. But it’s still accurate - just missing some of the newer research, largely on genetics.

[Janice_H]

Hi geemamom, welcome to the group. You will get lots of advice and support here. It is extremely overwhelming raising a child with difficulties. Feeling alone and stressed out is very common. You are not alone at all. How can we help you?

[geemamom]

thank you so much! it really does help so very much to interact with other people who understand. i am finding my biggest challenge is to stay in and work the today, and not worry about when he is older right now, i get myself entirely too worked up just thinking about it.

on an encouraging note, brought him to the grocery store with me last night and it was probably the best he has been since he was teeny tiny. it feels good to just be able to type that. no running, hiding, screaming, yelling or crying. i let him know i was so so proud of him.