Mirabelle, I am glad to hear my story offered some positivity and hope. I think you highlighted something which was pretty crucial to my long-term success which was early intervention and proactive treatment from the right experts. I do think that in my case if I wasn't properly medicated at a young age things could have spiraled out of control to the point of no return. A key part in this, which I think I can be very challenging for many parents is getting access to the resources who can help manage things. I was fortunate to see a highly specialized child psychiatrist which allowed proper diagnoses and medication management. I think many times difficult children don't have access to this and end up getting incorrect diagnoses or incorrect medications which just make things worse. You certainly sound like you do everything you can to help support your "difficult kids" but please remember there's only so much you can do!
I've also had a few people reach out to me privately regarding my experience with Prozac so I thought I'd elaborate on that a bit further. Obviously, none of this is medical advice and you should always follow the guidance of whoever is managing treatment. But I can certainly say that for me, it was a miracle medication and it turned me from a destructive and angry child into someone who excelled at school and socially. I know there are some who disagree with medications, particularly in heavier dosages (yes 60mg for a 12 year old is a lot) but for me I think it was necessary and the benefits outweighed the risks. Neither my parents nor the doctor necessarily wanted to rely on medication and it was regularly evaluated, however without an adequate amount of Prozac I would break into angry rages. I definitely needed this medication.
Also, regarding Prozac for ODD, it's actually shown to be very effective and is regularly used to reduce anger and aggression. I think many children with ODD can be misdiagnosed as ADHD when it is actually other issues such as anxiety or depression that are co-morbidities. Here are a couple of studies showing its efficacy for conduct disorder and in particular with reducing rage and aggression:
Treating Depression and Oppositional Behavior in Adolescents (take with a grain of salt maybe as one of the authors does have ties to the manufacturer of Prozac)
[URL unfurl="true"]https://www.liebertpub.com/doi/10.1089/cap.2020.0174[/URL]
[URL unfurl="true"]https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5716335/[/URL]
