difficult child 2 Update: Deliverance by Depakote!

gcvmom

Here we go again!
Each day seems to bring an increasingly finer-tuned picture for difficult child 2's mental landscape -- I am very encouraged by the Depakote.

psychiatrist said it was okay to add low dose stimulant now to address the focus, inattention, hyperactivity. We've got Daytrana on hand here for difficult child 1 so he told me to try a 20mg patch. I opted to use 10mg to start, and difficult child 2 responded really well to that, so I think we'll stick with it (no pun intended).

difficult child 2 has been at an outdoor day camp this week (the kids build wooden forts and play in the water and mud all day) and is functioning soooo much better than I thought he would: back in June, I was panicking at the thought of him there with a hammer in his hand and the possibility that he could be provoked.

He told me yesterday that some kids were teasing him with name-calling and that he got angry, but that he decided to hold it back and not yell or hit anyone!!! If you'd seen him in June you'd know what a HUGE thing this is for him! :bravo:

Another sign the Depakote (and possibly the Daytrana) is working came today, when he told me that sometimes things just pop into his head and although he thinks he might want to say them out loud, he just doesn't because he realizes that he doesn't have to talk about everything he thinks about. "It's sort of weird," he said. The fact that we came from him having diarrhea of the mouth and saying that his head was like a beehive full of hyperactive bees (his thoughts) at the end of June to THIS (feeling in control) is truly amazing!
 

smallworld

Moderator
Glad to hear difficult child is doing so well on Depakote. The right medications can make all the difference in the world.
 

timer lady

Queen of Hearts
Thanks for the positive update - I tell you, once I see something (anything) work for my difficult children it makes my heart soar. :bravo:

:dance:
 

On_Call

New Member
Great update!! :bravo: Congrats!

Sounds like your difficult child is making great strides! Even thought we've never found it, I am confident that the right medication combination is so important - and can make a huge difference.

Your difficult child sounds like ours. The constant thoughts - and need to express them - even when they are out of context and/or completely inappropriate. We have a saying in our house - "everything in your head doesn't necessarily have to come out of your mouth". :hammer: difficult child hates that saying!!

So glad you difficult child is loving day camp and that he is finding alternative ways to deal with the teasing (which I hate!!), etc.

Sounds like great steps forward!! :dance:
 

busywend

Well-Known Member
What a wonderful example of medications making a huge positive impact on a child's life.

Good for you and difficult child! I hope it continues to work and get better.

How cool is it that he controlled his anger!!!!????!!!!

:dance:
 

Wiped Out

Well-Known Member
Staff member
What a great post to read-glad to hear difficult child is doing so well! :bravo:Awesome that he was able to control his anger! :bravo:
 
What a wonderful post. My difficult child still runs her mouth wayyyyy too much and gets herself in trouble all the time. I love it that he said he is now able to keep those thoughts in his head. I pray all the time that my difficult child will someday be able to do that!

Congrats on the improvements!!

Hugs,
Vickie
 

TerryJ2

Well-Known Member
Wow, that's fantastic!!!! And he's processing the information in a way that's constructive, and he can tell you about it. Way To Go!!!
 

gcvmom

Here we go again!
Thanks to all for the encouragement :laugh: I am so amazed at the improvement I'm seeing! Needless to say, my anxiety level is greatly reduced these days. Sure hope this lasts!
 
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