I'm sorry this is adding more. Based on what you wrote it does sound like he could be a sensory seeker, which with a few strategies could be totally manageable. Sound like an eval wouldn't hurt and then you can decide. If you have any ot or sensory questions id be happy to answer them
Post by whereintheworld on Feb 12, 2016 20:33:18 GMT -5
As a mom of a 6yo boy who scored 99th percentile for ADHD-hyperactivity/impulsivity, I absolutely knew something was up when he was 3/4. Early interventions for behaviour modifications are hugely helpful. I think he's in a great place with access to therapies if he needs it.
I think there's sometimes a tendency to chalk it up to a boy being 'just an active boy' but I know in our case my son really struggles with sensory integration which makes him impulsive and disruptive, so i want to help him in whatever way I can, not just ignore it and hope he 'grows out of it.'
Post by oceanstbride on Feb 12, 2016 20:43:24 GMT -5
Lots of hugs as I would be overwhelmed in your shoes. Do you think some of the behavior might be due to a huge change in his life (changing schools)? Even if he loves it there, it is a big change. The no napping thing is tough. DS stopped napping at daycare in Dec. (and pretty much stopped at home recently) and it was a rough few weeks. I know you didn't ask for advice, but talking with DS on a daily basis about staying quiet so his friends can nap helped us. As did bringing a few books from home that only come out of his backpack at naptime. For the most part he does on, but I still get reports that he's dustruptive at naptime (usually either right in the beginning or the last hour).
Getting more information is always helpful. Thinking of you.
C's teacher pulled me aside at his class V Day party. She thinks he needs to be formally evaluated by the school therapists. A few things she mentioned:
1. He seems to be a sensory seeker. He is always going, has trouble sitting still and completing a task. She has started including him in the class "sensory breaks" like jumping on a trampoline and using a wiggle seat already. I have noticed this too--he is a total tornado, rarely sits still, will almost never play with a toy for more than 5 minutes at a time. His favorite activities are crashing into things, play falling over and over, and stuff like that.
2. His fine motor skills are not where they should be. Frankly, I think they're fine, I think he just doesn't want to sit still and concentrate enough to use a fork or trace letters.
3. He is unusually attached to the teachers in the class--not in a clingy way, but that he would rather chat with them than his peers.
4. He stopped napping at home and school. Apparently he is disruptive during nap and just wants to climb and jump all over his cot.
5. He's academically super advanced, very talkative and friendly. So that's good.
I gave the okay to get the ball rolling with an eval but fuck. I'm at my max with P already. I can't do this. She mentioned possible SPD and/or ADD/ADHD.
I was in such shock I forgot his bag of valentines at school too. MOTY.
I'm so sorry. This must be a lot to process. My son had a lot of the same red flags as you've mentioned - behind in fine and gross motor, preferred spending time with teachers over students, very talkative. He's still behind in motor skills, but the other issues have resolved with time. I was really concerned about him for a while but I've addressed it with his school and his pediatrician and everything has been within the range of normal. I hope that this is the case for you as well, and your preschool is just being overly cautious.
Post by MamaMaui24 on Feb 12, 2016 21:25:25 GMT -5
Hugs, Brie. Like we told another poster the other day, an eval will just help you help him (if he needs it!). You're doing a great job and both those boys are so lucky you're their mom.
Post by Queen Mamadala on Feb 12, 2016 21:32:13 GMT -5
Many hugs. (((hugs))) We recently received similar comments from my son's teacher. I've had my suspicions for a while, but kept being told it was normal, or that it's normal for his age (I've suspected these things since he was 3ish and he's 6). His ped said that if it doesn't improve by the end of Kinder then we can look into it further. I'm almost certain he has ADHD.
His teacher basically said he's advanced and very smart, but has trouble concentrating, completing tasks on his own, and his very "on" or hyper, always moving around, rarely settles into playing with a toy for more than 10 minutes. Also busy and clingy/high energy.
Post by Ashley&Scott on Feb 12, 2016 21:33:04 GMT -5
Hugs Brie. I would be overwhelmed too but an evaluation can only help. If it turns out he needs help he's already at a school equipped for it. You are doing an amazing job. Good luck!
Post by electricmayhem on Feb 12, 2016 21:39:57 GMT -5
This sounds like my DS to a tee. We were flagged at daycare too, only his teacher was woefully inarticulate and just kept saying something seemed "off", which was of zero use to me. We had a full eval from the public school district. At the time, DS was a little over 4.
It came back developmental delay, which our pedi completely disagreed with (he thinks there's nothing wrong). We were offered the option to have him go to a half day preschool for help and figured it couldn't hurt, so he has been doing this since late Dec and it seems to be going well. We've seen some improvement in his self control and regulation.
i'm honestly still on the fence about whether or not there's something really wrong with him. Some of it is maturity, I think. Other times I think daycare has skewed expectations, like where his writing skills are concerned. The OT report we got more or less confirmed this. I don't want to discount the opinions of his very experienced daycare providers, so we're doing our best to work with what we have for now. Let me know if you have more questions about this. I sympathize with how upsetting it is to hear that others think there's something wrong with your kid.
I post super rarely, but my son was diagnosed with SPD (seeker) fairly recently. It was lots of little things that finally made sense. Trust your gut. Do you think it's an issue? It really bothered me when family and friends tried to brush me off by saying that's just how boys are. His preschool teachers noticed the same things I was so we moved forward with looking into it. He's been in OT since October and has made a lot of strides.
Good luck! You got this! And feel free to pm me if you have any questions!
Secondly, I worry about Caramini's fine motor skills and social skills quite a bit. She can read and do math, but she is socially awkward and her fine motor skills are lagging. We are working with her and considering a specialist going forward. It's hard and scary. You are not alone.
Isn't he way too young to be diagnosed with ADD/ADHD?
Technically no, especially at a comprehensive specialized school, with specialized providers onsite (not teachers, but Psychs and others who actually conduct the eval process. They may flag it under SPD or a various delay, and then change the label to OHI, at age 5.
Like @barefootbarista , we knew something was up with Kirklette from age 3. It wasn't enough at that point to go through the Early Eval process because it wasn't impacting academics. At the time, it was still in the social emotional domain.
However, the formal ADHD diagnosis, with Anxiety/ Mood Disorder comorbidity came last month. It was an "aha" moment, after years of gut feelings, and hearing the same things at parent teacher conferences.
Yes, I want to make it clear that we're not jumping to a diagnosis at this point. His teacher has a Masters in special Ed and several years of classroom experience in his age group, and there are several types of therapists in and out of the classroom.
I have been wondering recently about whether his activity level is normal myself, so it can't hurt to check it out and keep an eye on for now. He's absolutely in the right place if his eval does come back with some red flags.
Hugs, Brie. I agree with others that an evaluation can only help.
Your little guy sounds exactly like mine at age 3. (Except the napping part. He napped at home and wasn't in daycare...though I doubt he would have slept there. He had to almost literally bounce off of the walls in his room for awhile before finally crashing from exhaustion.) My grandpa nicknamed him NeverStops, and it absolutely fit him. There are busy 3 year old boys...and then there was my son. I often wished I had a tranquilizer gun to slow him down! I've worked with enough kids to know he was far more active than other kids. I chose to put him in Montessori school because there were fewer distractions & essentially no silly fun things during the half-day program (he gets plenty at home, but at that age, he simply was not able to go between the two activity levels). He was VERY verbal & preferred to talk to teachers (who could have a full conversation with him & he could understand, unlike many of his peers), but he would play with kids. He didn't sit still long enough to focus on much find motor stuff, either. In your son's environment, I have no doubt that he would have been at least watched, if not "treated."
BUT he's now 5. He's still more active than many peers, but it's no longer glaringly obvious. He's doing very well at school. He's a great kid (except for the newfound love of lying). I don't think Montessori fixed him, I think natural maturity did. Montessori was just the bridge that connected the two (& kept him from getting in trouble). Things may change when he hits kindergarten, but my concern is minimal at this point.
Tl;dr: Good for agreeing to the eval. Time may change everything.
Post by imojoebunny on Feb 12, 2016 22:38:24 GMT -5
3/4 is not an appropriate age for an ADHD diagnosis. Sensory processing, maybe. Developmental delays, maybe, but an awful lot goes on in a child between 3 and 6. I know kids that have spectrum disorders that were experiencing problem as young as 18 months, and they benefit from therapy very early. The earlier they were identified and treated, the more functional they are at 9, 8, 7, and 6, so I would do an evaluation, but I would not treat a child with suspected ADHD at 3/4, unless they were violent or completely disruptive.
I always knew DD had some issues, pretty much from birth, I was told hold her back, she is ADHD, she has low tone, her fine motor sucks, she might be a little person, she is a spirited child, it's her diet, it's because she is too attached to you, didn't go to daycare, has a lower IQ. All by qualified professionals. She is none of those things at 9. She does have a sensory processing disorder, which we have to work around, and she got help for.
Have your child tested, see the results, but trust that you know them. I would not have imagined that my 6 year old who rocked back and forth in her first grade class like a person in in an institution, would be the same child I see today, at 9, whose two teachers say they wish they had more students who were like her, she is delightful, happy, engaged, and focused. A far cry from the rocking in class 6 year old, or the space cadet 4 year old, or the screaming for hours 3 year old, for no known reason.
Post by oliviapope on Feb 12, 2016 22:57:16 GMT -5
Hugs and good luck. It can be overwhelming, but it sounds like you have an amazing teacher and team behind you.
Also, to some of the PP-if teachers are mentioning it then likely something is above and beyond of peers of his age. However, that doesn't mean something is "wrong" or that he needs/has a diagnosis. Sometimes kids have some sensory triggers, and once you learn to identify and manage those the behaviors lessen.
I work in research related to developmental behavior, and we are learning a lot of things as to why some sensory triggers happen and how to manage them (and even correct them).
I applaud you for working to get to the bottom of it, and not pushing it off as "sounds normal to me".