Advice to get my 4 year old diagnosed with ADHD

[lilcmhos]

Advice to get my 4 year old diagnosed with ADHD

I suspected that my 4 year old has ADHD since he was 2. He has all the signs and we are having behavioral issues both at home and daycare. His ped referred us to a child psychiatrist which would not diagnose him at the time cause he was only 3. They sent us for 11 weeks of parenting classes called the Incredible years program. We went and the methods are not helping. We get calls from the school to come pick him up because of his uncontrollable behavior. We are now waiting to get him into Parent-Child Interaction Therapy. I need him to be evaluated and diagnosed but it seems like everyone just wants to refer us to do classes. I want the diagnoses to help with getting him help with school and getting him into a special needs preschool so that he can get some help with teachers that actually deal with children with ADHD. I feel like he is falling behind.

[Onthemove1971]

Lilcmhos- welcome to the group. There are many things you can do to get your child and support him in the mean time. Here are some suggestions:

1. Request a second opinion ( maybe a Specialist who focuses on children with ADHD)

2. Ask for Thearpy ( this is suggested with or without a diagnosis

3. Start the assessment process of getting an educational plan ( IEP or 504 plan) with the school ( you do not need a medical diagnosis) to get help, it is an educational system- they can make recommendations but can not give you a diagnosis.

4. Look into things like weighted blankets, fidget spinners, etc to help now.

5. You could consider all of the non-pharmacology items that could help. Bath salts, nutrients, minerals..etc..

6. Read and learn as much as you can about parenting/behavior modifications.

7. Connect with other parents and kids with ADHD so you can get support for the journey ahead.

All of these will help you a lot while you are waiting.

Hope this helps, we are here to support you while you advocate/support your child.