We have recently had our 8yo daughter diagnosed with ADHD. She also has some learning disorders which are to be further investigated with cognitive testing.
She is so far behind all her peers academically and slightly behind socially.
My problem is, I don't know what to do or where to go for help if there is any.
It's like we have just been slapped with this label and are left to work it out for ourselves, meanwhile my daughter is suffering.
Can any please share anything you might think would be relevant in my search for help/info.
Thanks :)
3 Replies
ADHD is certainly not the end of the world, a majority of "sufferers" lead very normal lives. Personally, I think ADHD is very overrated and is just a bit of an excuse when doctors cannot diagnose something else or want to excuse bad behaviour without doing the hard yards.
My husband has very severe ADHD and as a child was pretty much just ignored by doctors because they put him in the too hard basket. He was on Riddolen (not sure of the spelling) and he hated the medication, it made him drowsy and he has no memories of his childhood because of it. He said he just felt like a zombie when on it. He said when he came off of it he just changed his lifestyle and he was able to maintain a normal life. He was fine at school but a little brat at home.
I have a son with a load of letters! He is just one of those kids.
These are the things I'd explore. A psychologist who does 'behavioural therapy' they basically will help you and your daughter find strategies to maximise the things she wants/needs to do, and minimise the things you would like her to do less of.
I'd look into a speech therapist who works on literacy. Many many speech therapists work in the area of literacy because speech/listening/reading/writing are heavily intertwined. Many speech therapists also run social skills groups.
Also important to have the medication discussion. We found medication enormously helpful. Wish we had started it sooner rather than avoiding it because of misguided guilt. Medication has come along way in the last 20 years and doses are able to be more fine tuned for the child versus to what was available when my son was young (he is now 22).
My daughter has been diagnosed with ADHD and learning difficulties when she was 5 (she is now nearly 16) and we just got moved and moved around, going crazy from her teachers complaining constantly and thinking her behaviour was normal! My advice coming from the same/similar situation to yourself which helped us cope.
1. Visit pediatrician'a until you find the right one! This is a must!!
2. Medication it is not the end of everything! I tried fish oil, diet control, natural alternatives and this did not work for us but it may work for you. so we went to the paediatrician and he prescribed My daughter a long lasting medication to help her at school with concentration which is important to us for her to feel like she belonged. The most important thing is you need to listen to the paediatrician about medication if this is what your daughter is given and not other people about medication as every situation is different! Trust me when I say there is very negative people out there who love to give you advice on what they "think" they know what is best for your daughter!
3. Be supportive as much as you can as this journey is frustrating, emotional and confusing for your daughter. I put my daughter into counselling to help her cope with her feelings. School could probably help you there. I attended a few sessions to help me cope with situations that occur at home with tips and advice for when she came home.
4. Book appointments with your school and talk to them about extra support within the school with the subjects your daughter is needing support in. They have funding for this so they can help you there.
5. I kept a diary on my child's diet and found trigger foods in her diet that just did not help with her concentration (sugar and certain colours in foods) which effected her mainly straight away and last until the next day!!
6. You can apply for a health card to help you with costs of appointments and medication if given. Your paediatrician can help you fill the forms out.
7. Most of all help is out there and don't ever think you are alone because you are not at all! You will get negative people in your life who think they no best but you need to leave there comments out of your head and work with what suits you as a family. My daughter is a beautiful nearly 16 year old and has strived in school in Maths, Technology, Dance and HPE! Other areas we are working on! But most of all she is happy with herself in life and that as a mother means the world to me. Take care and all the best on your journey?