What is wrong with my son?

Question

my son is going to be 6 in june. since he was about 3 he has had issues with anger control, being hyper and he has some issues with fine motor skills. he is currently in a kindergarten special ed class receiving OT 2 times a week. there is no diagnosis for what is wrong with him. he went to a behavior therapist, which didnt help at all, and he was in a therapeutic preschool before going into kindergarten. i dont know if i should seek an outsid eopinion or just continue with the school's treatment. i expressed with his councelor that i wanted to know what was wrong with my son and she said she would express my concerns with the doctor they use in the BOCES program. he is a very smart little boy. he just has a lot of issues with change and he is very impulsive. they tried to mainstream him for math but that caused issues that got him suspended for 2 days for having violent outbursts. i wouldnt know what kind of doctor to start an outside opinion with. please help.

Answer 1

To help your son better you need to get him a formal diagnosis.  There is obviously something going on in his little brain.  My son whom will be six in July is diagnosed with a mood disorder (presumably Early Onset Bipolar Disorder).  He was diagnosed at the age of three.  I would get your son in with a child psychologist or a counsellor whom specializes in children.  If you get him into this and get him a formal diagnosis, then your son would be covered better for services in school such as a Section 504 Plan.  If he already has an IEP then they should add a behavioral intervention plan into it so he will not keep getting suspended.  

He does sound some like my son whom is bipolar.  I would recommend getting him into counselling with an outside agency so they can help him learn how to control his body and emotions better.  They would also help you to help him, and support you too.

Look in the phone book yellow pages for psychologists.  Look closely to see if any of them have child or youth in their title.  If so then that is a good bet that they specialize in children.  If not then you will have to call them and ask them if they see children.

Answer 2

It sounds a lot like ADHD to me.  You might want to explore this possibility with your doctor.

Answer 3

It sounds like more of a mental health issue rather than a learning disability.  Your child me be suffering form an emotional disturbance.  This is something that could qualify him for special education, but he would have to be evaluated by a psychologist.  Since this is something that you are also aware of and is not just affecting him academically you should take him to a child psychologist/psychiatrist.

Answer 4

You should take him to a developmental pediatriac or neurologist to see what it's happening with your boy. My son who is 3 was diadnosed with Autism 8 months ago. He has speech delay & fine motor problems. He's in pre-school & his therapists, teachers, & dr. say my son'll be a regular kid by 1st grade.  Another kid who goes with my son to the school has the same problem that your son has, he has been diagnosed with AHDD + Sensorial Issues. I met this boy almost a year ago & his behavior has improved a lot.

At this point I have meet so many kids with some many different behavioral problems. It looks like those problems are getting common. However, I have noticed that those kids that have diagnosis, they receive the proper treatment in the school. I have seen children who look like my child but they are getting less OT & SP time since there is no diagnosis. So, the school district can't justify more resource for them. I know It's not rigth, but it's the reality.... I even asked my son's Dr for extra therapies. So, I'm taking him to more OT & SP outside of the school district paying by my insurance.... My son is even taking some multivitamins prepared for him by a biochemical center in Illinois...http://www.hriptc.org/ Here is the link of the center....

Answer 5

you need a developmental pediatrician to evaluate you child.  Check your local Children's Hospital if there is one near you.

Answer 6

pediatric neurologist

or

developmental pediatrician

or neurodevelopmental pediatrician

it has beenmy expeerience that regular pediatricians are clueless--75% of teh fmailies I work with say their pediatrician said teh child was fine-even when they weren't talking at all at 2 years old--some obviously had autism-but the doc said tehy were fine-

try the regular pediatrician-but don't accpet the 'he's fine-youre over reacting' statement most parents get....insist on a referral....

there was a recent study on the news that 50% of the time the pediatriciant did an insufficient job-with everything from routine care-to infections to disabilities

Answer 7

Schools can NOT make a diagnosis of your child. They can ONLY do testing to see if a child can qualify for special education services.

Although the childs problems will show up in this testing, the school can NOT make any diagnosis.

Since your child is being suspended for bad behaviors, you should request in writing to the district special ed director for a FBA - functional behavior assesment.

The school will do testing to see if the childs behaviors are happening BECAUSE of his problems.

If they aer, the school will then use the results of this testing to make a BIP- behavior intervention plan.

This is a plan the school will use to help your childs behaviors using POSITIVE support.

When your child has all this, he can no longer be suspended from school IF his behaviors are CAUSED by his problems.

If they still suspend him after all this, it will be illegal.

Have you thought about he could be behaving bad because he is frustrated because he CAN"T do things and/or his school work?

Schools are quick to jump and say the child is not doing his school work because he doesnt' want to.

But lots of times kids don't do their work becasue they CAN"T do it, and they act out in frustration.

Say that you are cooped up in 4 wall 6 hrs a day and can not do your job, no matter how hard you try, and no one will show you how to do it.

Contrary to popular belief, teachers can no longer stick with a child and make sure they know one concept before moving on to the next thing to learn.

Teachers have to stick to a schedule on teaching things according to the NCLB law and if a child doesn't 'get it', OH WELL !!

Answer 8

I would suggest that you start with your child's regular pediatrician.  Let him or her know ahead of time what your specific concerns are, giving examples of the behaviors your are concerned about, how frequently they occur, how they interfere with your son's learning, etc.  Ask the pediatrician for a referral to a developmental specialist who may be able to give you a diagnosis, and then, hopefully, a treatment plan.

As a special education teacher and a family member of people who have developmental disabilities, I would caution you that there are often children who do not get definitive diagnoses.  In my current class of 11 students, there are 4 who don't have a specific diagnosis.  In one case, the doctors - including geneticists and pediatric neurologists - believe that the child may have some as-yet undiscovered genetic syndrome.  3 others just have a diagnosis of "mental retardation," which really tells us nothing except that they learn more slowly that the typical child.  But I have found that having a specific diagnosis is really not essential to developing an appropriate educational program for a child.  Good teaching practices are good teaching practices, whether or not the child has autism, traumatic brain injury, Down syndrome, PDD, or a non-specific diagnosis.  Children need structure, predictability, a means of communication, positive reinforcement for appropriate behavior, and direct teaching of the expected behavior, no matter what the cause of his or her disability.  I know that it's frustrating not to know what the cause of the disability is, but it is rare that having a diagnosis makes a difference in how to teach a child.  The main exception is when there is a component that can be treated medically, which essentially means medication.  I rarely feel that medication is appropriate for children this young, but if there is some sort of biochemical imbalance involved, it can be helpful.  So talk with the pediatrician, and get a referral to a specialist.

Answer 9

I am a speech and hearing major. We discuss all kinds of issues. Based on what I have learned I would recommend that your child see's a pediatric psychologist/psychiatrist to be evaluated.

Answer 10

Go to your family doctor or pediatrician with all school documents and the information about your sons behavior.  That doctor will help you find who you need to go to.

Answer 11

there are pediatric psychiatrists. i would look in the phone book or ask your pediatrician if you have one. i'm sure there is a diagnosis and possibly medication that will help him calm down and be the smart little boy you know he is. good luck

Answer 12

sounds like it might be adhd, but take him to a doctor...pediatrician, not a psych.  Let the doc refer you to a specialist if needed.  Get the diagnosis in writing, and don't rely on the public school system to tell you what is wrong with your son.  YOU have to be proactive and on top of things.  There are incompetent people in every profession in life, including education.  No one loves your son like you do...to them he is just another kid and they see kids come and they see them go.  My advice- if he is hyper and impulsive, he needs lots of activity...LOTS.  Lots of physical and mental stuff...push him and challenge him, and switch up the activity, every 3-5 minutes.  Make sure he gets a lot of physical activity in and get him into a routine.  The same things at the same time, day in and day out.  This may help calm him down if he doesn't like change.  Limit the sugar and caffeine, especially 6 hours before bed.  What would exhaust a normal kid will  have him level out.  Good luck

Answer 13

Don't quote me but it sounds like he MIGHT be bipolar. The symptoms you're describing sound similar my friends daughter (18 yrs).  But you should DEFINITELY get your son looked at by a professional, even if it costs a lil extra atleast you'll KNOW what steps you need to take.  Just a bit of additional information my friends daughter had to be homeschooled because it was so bad. But the first thing is to know what's going on.  But like I said don't take my word as golden.

Answer 14

I would check with a psychologist that works with children.  You definitely need to look outside the school system.  If you check with your insurance company they should be able to give you a list of names of doc's in your area.  You could also check with your childs peditrician for a referral.  

Good Luck

Answer 15

I would definitely seek outside help- though the best intentions are there a lot of kids fall through the cracks with the education system- the counselors often have a very broad and general knowledge of disablities and base their answers on generic tests- with behavioral issues it is crutial to get them figured out at a young age- early intervention can make the difference between your son being able to learn to calm himself when he is older or living in an institution having to be frequently restrained and/or medicated to control his aggression

Answer 16

A doctor will most likely want to prescribe medicine for him. A lot of people are against giving medicine to young kids because

it's not always effective, and sometimes there are adverse side effects, but sometimes there is not much of an alternative.

The decision to put him on medicine is one that you need to discuss with his doctor as well as his father. You need to weigh

the facts and decide what you think is best.

Answer 17

I would check into a therapist. My son was diagnosed ADHD/OCD about 3 years ago. He's 6 now. We have battled impulsiveness with him since day 1. He's currently on medication to help with this, which has been wonderful. He still has his outburst and impulsiveness but I can help him with it better now. We saw an ADHD/ADD therapist and that helped wonderfully. You could also check with a pediatric neurologist.