Archived adhd and retail

[Anelmi]

Putting a kid on meds for ADHD can be incredibly beneficial especially if they are struggling in school. I would always advise a slow go approach but if teachers are recommending testing and IEPs, there are usually good reasons for it. Most kids w diagnosed ADHD are far beyond typical 1st grade wiggles, squirminess, lack of focus. I can always tell when a kid isn’t on their meds and it really does make such a difference in how they can access their own learning.

That said, one of my daughter exhibited tendencies of ADHD but was never diagnosed so I did the holistic thing and cut out all red dyes and gave her huge doses of fish oil among other things.

But...is she already on meds for ADHD and they want to add anti anxiety Meds? If so I’d be a bit more leery. Finding a coping mechanism is key, I think.

 

[Tessa120]

My daughter was diagnosed at the very young age of 2 with ADHD in addition to the already known autism. I decided to medicate (with dexedrine) at that young of an age. She went from nearly zero gains from speech and occupational therapy to really good progress. She was kept on medication for years, then taken off, and then briefly on again before she decided (age 16) she wasn't taking it. A lot of her progress and a lot of her stalling out with both school and therapy coincided with medication/no medication. (As far as the common side effects, she actually gained weight and slept better when taking a second afternoon dose because the ADHD kept her from sitting still and focusing on her plate long enough to eat and the medication quieted the racing thoughts so she could sleep.)

 

[commiecorvus]

One of interviews that stays with me was a man who had severe AD/HD and mild autism.
The problem was he was a kid in the 60's in Alaska so his parents just pulled him out of school and kept him at home.
He never left the house after that adding severe isolation to his issues.
Now his parents were old and he needed to support himself.

The counselor I supported was an old timer (since retired) who was so cool and calm they gave her the toughest cases, nothing could get to her.
Except this guy.
No eye contact is pretty standard for people in the spectrum, he would constantly be checking the room like he needed to escape
He never had a short answer to a question but he never finished a sentence.
Every other sentence he would start to stand, so she would ask if he needed to go somewhere, he wouldn't be sure why he was there, and the interview would have to be redirected.
Of course, when she recommended that he get psychiatric care and come back, he said he didn't trust doctors (well that was the gist of the answer, he didn't finish the sentence).
I don't know what happened to him.

I'd like to say I don't blame the parents because of when it happened but fuck, there had to be better ways to handle that.
Every time people tell me that AD/HD is made up or doesn't need medication, I just think about the genuine pain on that mans face.

 

[Tessa120]

That is so sad.

Yeah, there had to be better ways to handle it. Because if parents didn't scrounge around to find something, anything to help when there were no answers, then we would never have made it to the standardized treatments and therapies we have today.

I hope that someone found a way to help him.

 

[JagStar]

I am an ADHD GSTM w/ mild autism. I was diagnosed at 6 after I got kicked out of like 13 elementary schools and on top of that I had terribly delayed motorskills. Thank god for the meds and occupational therapy.

My GSTL is pretty tolerant of this. Tend to do lots of tasks other than just standing around all day. And there's always something to do if I get super overstimulated and need to decompress for a couple seconds (which isn't often now compared to when I first started).

 

[Signkitty]

Really? I’m pretty ignorant about all this. I have sympathy, I can’t even imagine having to cope with that !

Wow old thread!

Sorry I didn’t see to respond sooner. Yes, I was serious. The good news is that I am doing very well. Medication has made my life much more manageable. I am no longer picky about what equipment I get as long as it works. I do however still take 5 mins to park.

 

[redeye58]

I've had many parents of ADHD kids come up to my counter & order the kiddos an iced latte because the caffeine helps slow them down & improve their focus much better than Ritalin but again, results vary according to individual.

 

[Tessa120]

I've had many parents of ADHD kids come up to my counter & order the kiddos an iced latte because the caffeine helps slow them down & improve their focus much better than Ritalin but again, results vary according to individual.

I've heard this. But when I asked my daughter's psychiatrist about caffeine he said that if it was strong enough to help then it'd become a prescription drug and doctors would be prescribing it instead of Ritalin. (He also said that it wasn't strong enough to hurt either, which is what all the other moms were accusing me of doing to my daughter by allowing soda.) Maybe it's part perception since it's "safe" because it's a food and not a dreaded pharmaceutical poison, and maybe it's part dependent on how severe or mild someone's condition is. I could see a few espresso shots working on someone who has a mild enough of a case that medication isn't really recommended and behavioral modifications are normally enough.

 

[redeye58]

Maybe it's part perception since it's "safe" because it's a food and not a dreaded pharmaceutical poison, and maybe it's part dependent on how severe or mild someone's condition is. I could see a few espresso shots working on someone who has a mild enough of a case that medication isn't really recommended and behavioral modifications are normally enough.

Exactly this.

 

[GoodyNN]

I generally keep a can or 20 oz bottle of Coke in my purse for my kiddo, but that's more for the sugar than the caffeine. She has a tendency to forget food and then gets very irritable and nasty when her blood sugar drops.

 

[redeye58]

Same when the boys get hangry.
I keep some fruit/granola (candy bars dressed up as healthy) bars in my bag.

 

[rd123]

Putting a kid on meds for ADHD can be incredibly beneficial especially if they are struggling in school. I would always advise a slow go approach but if teachers are recommending testing and IEPs, there are usually good reasons for it. Most kids w diagnosed ADHD are far beyond typical 1st grade wiggles, squirminess, lack of focus. I can always tell when a kid isn’t on their meds and it really does make such a difference in how they can access their own learning.

That said, one of my daughter exhibited tendencies of ADHD but was never diagnosed so I did the holistic thing and cut out all red dyes and gave her huge doses of fish oil among other things.

But...is she already on meds for ADHD and they want to add anti anxiety Meds? If so I’d be a bit more leery. Finding a coping mechanism is key, I think.

She didn’t start her medicines yet. She was diagnosed Aspergers at school when she was 4. Recently we took a doctor diagnosis which said it’s more of Adhd. We are so confused already and her doctor seems to pressurize for medication. She doesn’t show any severe symptoms. Main concerns are at school when she has meltdowns sometimes when it all gets too loud , putting non food things in mouth and some pragmatic language delays. She gets service for all the above from school.
We have started trying chewing gums at school and I ordered a chewelry last week . Let’s see how it goes.

 

[can't touch this]

one thing to watch out for is overpriced shrinks who charge a whole entire bag to suggest "coping methods" and other quack stuff like "mental exercises" that don't do jack shit. I'm still chuckling about when my mom dragged me to one of these clowns when I was 15 and we wasted 6 hours a day doing useless shit like flash cards with abstract shapes, vaguely similar to the kind used in IQ testing but also not. Did nothing and I'm still stupid. I'd like to have a moment of silence in remembrance of the 22 lost Benjis 🙏

tl;dr - only coping methods that actually work are small and white and come of out of a bottle with a safety cap

 

[Anelmi]

@rd123

Gum (especially mint) helps. Also get her noise blocker headphones (lots of kids use them at my school even if they aren't diagnosed with anything). A wiggle seat and a bike tube around the bottom legs of her chair. Many things you can try to help with the hyperactivity portion of ADHD. Fish oil capsules (or a teaspoon of liquid if she can do it) really help as does eliminating dyes and overly processed foods. You don't need severe symptoms to need/utilize meds though. They just will help slow her thoughts down, help with processing and keep her from spiraling into a frenzied state. So take it slow and see what happens. Now is a crazy time of year and much of the intense learning has already happened which might be a good time to try the meds out.

 

[Tessa120]

She didn’t start her medicines yet. She was diagnosed Aspergers at school when she was 4. Recently we took a doctor diagnosis which said it’s more of Adhd. We are so confused already and her doctor seems to pressurize for medication. She doesn’t show any severe symptoms. Main concerns are at school when she has meltdowns sometimes when it all gets too loud , putting non food things in mouth and some pragmatic language delays. She gets service for all the above from school.
We have started trying chewing gums at school and I ordered a chewelry last week . Let’s see how it goes.

Two words - second opinion. See a different doctor for confirmation/rule out of both diagnoses. Be prepared for a psych eval, request it in fact, they really do wonders at sorting out what is causing what symptom as well as identify areas of impairment that treatment can focus on (psych evals are not just for mental illness, but also developmental disabilities and learning disorders). See if you can get therapies outside the school setting, a lot of schools try to do therapy on the cheap even when it violates law and even within the law they focus on what enables the child to learn, not what enables the child to live post-school.

 

[commiecorvus]

She didn’t start her medicines yet. She was diagnosed Aspergers at school when she was 4. Recently we took a doctor diagnosis which said it’s more of Adhd. We are so confused already and her doctor seems to pressurize for medication. She doesn’t show any severe symptoms. Main concerns are at school when she has meltdowns sometimes when it all gets too loud , putting non food things in mouth and some pragmatic language delays. She gets service for all the above from school.
We have started trying chewing gums at school and I ordered a chewelry last week . Let’s see how it goes.

I talked with one of the counselors at work and they really stressed that if you aren't seeing a pediatric psychiatrist that should be where you go for the medication recommendations.
A regular doctor even a psychiatrist or pediatrician is not going to cut it.
You need someone with the training and background in both.
I hope you live in an area where one is available but if not the travel time would be worth it.
Giving your kiddo the best possible shot at the earliest possible point is well worth the time and trouble.

One thing that tends to go unnoticed but comes along with all of these things is depression.
It is something that should be addressed along with the other problems because it can be an underlying issue that never really gets addressed.

I like the idea of the gum.

 

[Tessa120]

Also a developmental pediatrician. They are specialists, but they can see the "whole child" and evaluate the findings of the other specialists to determine what is doing well, what is doing poorly, and what new thing needs to be tried.

 

[redeye58]

Gum (especially mint) helps. Also get her noise blocker headphones (lots of kids use them at my school even if they aren't diagnosed with anything).

My son did better with sour gummies, main thing being strong tastes.
When he was little we used headphones like the ones found at shooting ranges; go to Academy or other sports stores.
We pulled out a layer of foam so he could still hear but the intensity was dampened.
Nowadays he uses silicone earplugs, which are less obtrusive.

 

[GoodyNN]

My daughter also uses noise-dampening earbuds. Less obvious to people around her who jump to conclusions based on limited data.