ODD...need lots of questions answered.
- Thread starter brandyf
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Kjs
Guest
We were told my son had ODD at age 2.5 - 3 years old. Also told no ADHD through school. We did nothing thought we could handle it. He was very bright, thought he was bored. He skipped a grade in elementary school trying to challenge him more. We were warned that later on the maturity level may be a problem. We knew he was very social and didn't think that would be a problem.
5th grade was awful. ODD was very present. He was almost always angry. Refusing to do work. Refusing to obey. We didn't want him labeled so we went against the suggestion of special education. Also refused medication. Until..he had a total anxiety breakdown and HE asked to be put in the hospital. He was then put on a mood stabalizer. It helped tremendously. Not as many drastic mood changes.
6th grade (middle school) was even worse,as far as ODD went. Wrong crowd (he was 10) by semester we were told we had a choice. Special education. or expulsion. He refused to do work, argued with teachers. Would not follow rules. We put him in special education. Had some modifications such as when he would get angry he could go to another room, cool down and then rejoin the class.
7th grade he made high honor roll at semester. Then lost it. same thing. Refused to bring supplies to class, refused to do work, refused to follow rules. Because of the reputation he made for himself, he was blamed for everything whether he did it or not. Was told he is not as mature as other 7th graders, and they just won't deal with it.
This year, 8th grade. Forgets everything. Forgets books, assignments, refuses work. When he does do it, he forgets to turn it in. Very little anger. More frustration and anxiety. He gets kicked out of atleast one class a day for talking, not following rules, or just doing the same as other kids, only because of his reputation, he is singled out. Spends most of his days in the office, not learning, which causes frustration and the circle begins again.
To do it over...we would not advance him a grade. Definately not mature at this time as others. Would of started the medication sooner when his anger outbursts were often.
Today we saw psychiatrist. We are beginning to take him off the mood stabalizer. But..we are adding medication for ADHD. For the first time in all his years his teachers have expressed concern over his behavior in that aspect.
He is not labeled. He takes medication. He has some modifications. This is to HELP him. Parents and others not familiar with ODD are sometimes easy to pass judgement. They are ignorant.
If his behavior is interfering with school, I would try to think of how he is feeling.
To try to have my son not struggle, not have everyday an issue, HE wanted to try the new medication. I did not. He doesn't want to feel that way any more. That is how our decision was made. His choice on how he wants to feel.
Each child is different. Each child responds to different situations differently. I pray your child out grows it. But if he doesn't you will have some tough choices to make in the future. Please don't take this the wrong way. I just wanted to share my story, not sway your decisions with your child.
Medication is not for everyone. That is a personal choice. Just my story.
5th grade was awful. ODD was very present. He was almost always angry. Refusing to do work. Refusing to obey. We didn't want him labeled so we went against the suggestion of special education. Also refused medication. Until..he had a total anxiety breakdown and HE asked to be put in the hospital. He was then put on a mood stabalizer. It helped tremendously. Not as many drastic mood changes.
6th grade (middle school) was even worse,as far as ODD went. Wrong crowd (he was 10) by semester we were told we had a choice. Special education. or expulsion. He refused to do work, argued with teachers. Would not follow rules. We put him in special education. Had some modifications such as when he would get angry he could go to another room, cool down and then rejoin the class.
7th grade he made high honor roll at semester. Then lost it. same thing. Refused to bring supplies to class, refused to do work, refused to follow rules. Because of the reputation he made for himself, he was blamed for everything whether he did it or not. Was told he is not as mature as other 7th graders, and they just won't deal with it.
This year, 8th grade. Forgets everything. Forgets books, assignments, refuses work. When he does do it, he forgets to turn it in. Very little anger. More frustration and anxiety. He gets kicked out of atleast one class a day for talking, not following rules, or just doing the same as other kids, only because of his reputation, he is singled out. Spends most of his days in the office, not learning, which causes frustration and the circle begins again.
To do it over...we would not advance him a grade. Definately not mature at this time as others. Would of started the medication sooner when his anger outbursts were often.
Today we saw psychiatrist. We are beginning to take him off the mood stabalizer. But..we are adding medication for ADHD. For the first time in all his years his teachers have expressed concern over his behavior in that aspect.
He is not labeled. He takes medication. He has some modifications. This is to HELP him. Parents and others not familiar with ODD are sometimes easy to pass judgement. They are ignorant.
If his behavior is interfering with school, I would try to think of how he is feeling.
To try to have my son not struggle, not have everyday an issue, HE wanted to try the new medication. I did not. He doesn't want to feel that way any more. That is how our decision was made. His choice on how he wants to feel.
Each child is different. Each child responds to different situations differently. I pray your child out grows it. But if he doesn't you will have some tough choices to make in the future. Please don't take this the wrong way. I just wanted to share my story, not sway your decisions with your child.
Medication is not for everyone. That is a personal choice. Just my story.
OpenWindow
Active Member
My difficult child has seen a neuropsychologist in St. Louis. He was part of an autism clinic. The evaluation was thorough but didn't give us any real answers, only more questions. We're looking for a new neuropsychologist now that we've moved to a different state and he's a little older. We've been to psychiatrists, psychologists, therapists, and no one has been able to give a real concrete diagnosis. They all have told me they can't pinpoint anything. I'm just telling you this because your son is young, and you may run into the same thing. I found a psychiatrist who had experience working with schools, so he saw the need to put something in writing so difficult child could be better served at school.
You can request an IEP evaluation at the same time you are getting evaluations on your own, before you have a diagnosis. We did when difficult child was in kindergarten. If you think the school is on the same page as you, getting the ball rolling sooner rather than later would be better. Have you talked to the teacher about whether she thinks he would benefit from an IEP? She will have a lot of input during the evaluation.
Linda
You can request an IEP evaluation at the same time you are getting evaluations on your own, before you have a diagnosis. We did when difficult child was in kindergarten. If you think the school is on the same page as you, getting the ball rolling sooner rather than later would be better. Have you talked to the teacher about whether she thinks he would benefit from an IEP? She will have a lot of input during the evaluation.
Linda
sweetiegirlz
New Member
Hi and welcome here. I am new too and enjoying all the input I receive not to mention the love shown by everyone.
It so helps to talk to others going through the same.
I have a difficult child who was diagnosed with adhd/odd at 7 and she is now 11. During the short time she was in counseling (I am getting her reevaluted soon with another counselor) the counselor told me that ODD kids who are very intelligent
1) get bored easily and have to have constant activity for the mind. Other wise they begin to instigate conflict with others.
This I have found to be exactly true.
Have you been able to switch his teacher at all? Just a thought, I have done that before with my easy child just to give them a fresh start.
BusynMember
Well-Known Member
From my long experience trying to get both myself and my son correctly diagnosed, I have found (and some may disagree) that regular therapists and psycologists don't test and don't diagnose well. They just don't put forth the tremendous effort it takes to try to diagnose. Since there are no blood tests, it is best to test all areas of the child's function over a long period of time (we had twelve hours). And I don't mean just talking to the child about his "issues" or behaviors. I mean TESTING. That way you can see the strengths and deficits of the child and you have the best change at an answer. Now the older the kids get, the clearer the picture can get. Unfortunately, if a child is misdiagnosed, the teen years can lead to substance abuse and self-destructive behavior. This can happen even if the child is PROPERLY diagnosed, but at least a correct diagnosis. gives the child a chance at stability. Rather than accepting just plain ole ODD, which is more a diagnosis. a therapist or psycologist would give, I'd try the neuropsychologist route again. Often ODD is actually a mood disorder. Mood disordered kids tend to be VERY ODD. Over 90% of all kids with early onset bipolar also have ODD. They need to be put on mood stabilizers--often then the ODD dissipates or even goes away. My son isn't mood disordered, but he IS on the autism spectrum. He started out very ODD--spit at us, bit us, screamed, tantrummed, banged his head against the wall, etc...you know the routine. With proper Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) interventions he's a mellow teenager doing well. in my opinion ODD isn't a useful diagnosis. It is not usually the main cause of the defiance, and it can't be treated other than trying behavioral methods that often don't work due to co-morbids, diagnosed or undiagnosed. Take care :wink:
F
flutterbee
Guest
Re: the comment about the neuropsychologist being medication happy, neuropsychologists can't prescribe medications. They are PhD's not MD's. That comment may have been regarding a neuropsychiatrist and I'm not sure what the difference is. Most, if not all, of the parents here that have used this specialty have used a neuropsychologist.
My daughter's therapist (an MSW - Master's in Social Work) was the first person to recommend a neuropsychologist to me. She wasn't our first therapist, by far. She saw the issues with my daughter and she was right according to the neuropsychologist findings. The neuropsychologist isolated the specific areas of strengths and weaknesses and recommended interventions and treatment. As far as how long it took...she started seeing a therapist at age 5. We didn't have definitive answers until age 11. Until then, it was a lot of guessing.
by the way, welcome to the board! If you're unsure of any abbreviations and don't find them on the FAQ board, just ask (for example, Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) is Autism Spectrum Disorder). We'll be more than happy to fill you in. I still run across a couple that I'm not sure of. I always mean to ask, but forget. :hammer:
My daughter's therapist (an MSW - Master's in Social Work) was the first person to recommend a neuropsychologist to me. She wasn't our first therapist, by far. She saw the issues with my daughter and she was right according to the neuropsychologist findings. The neuropsychologist isolated the specific areas of strengths and weaknesses and recommended interventions and treatment. As far as how long it took...she started seeing a therapist at age 5. We didn't have definitive answers until age 11. Until then, it was a lot of guessing.
by the way, welcome to the board! If you're unsure of any abbreviations and don't find them on the FAQ board, just ask (for example, Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) is Autism Spectrum Disorder). We'll be more than happy to fill you in. I still run across a couple that I'm not sure of. I always mean to ask, but forget. :hammer:
brandyf
New Member
Re: the comment about the neuropsychologist being medication happy, neuropsychologists can't prescribe medications. They are PhD's not MD's. That comment may have been regarding a neuropsychiatrist and I'm not sure what the difference is. Most, if not all, of the parents here that have used this specialty have used a neuropsychologist.
My daughter's therapist (an MSW - Master's in Social Work) was the first person to recommend a neuropsychologist to me. She wasn't our first therapist, by far. She saw the issues with my daughter and she was right according to the neuropsychologist findings. The neuropsychologist isolated the specific areas of strengths and weaknesses and recommended interventions and treatment. As far as how long it took...she started seeing a therapist at age 5. We didn't have definitive answers until age 11. Until then, it was a lot of guessing.
by the way, welcome to the board! If you're unsure of any abbreviations and don't find them on the FAQ board, just ask (for example, Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) is Autism Spectrum Disorder). We'll be more than happy to fill you in. I still run across a couple that I'm not sure of. I always mean to ask, but forget.
wyntersgrace:
Thanks so much, i searched again and its totally differnet with using neuropsychologist...instead of teh psychiatrist. thanks so much....
brandyf
New Member
Desari:
well, we arent like buddy-buddy, going out for lunch and stuff but i attend every PTA meeting, all events and have even worked together with him for hours on the yearbook. he is a good person. and not bad looking, (just thought i would throw that in
), just joking tho..and have known him since my daughter was in preschool and i was pregnant with my little one, andrew, the one who has trouble.
it does make it a lot easier tho, since i have always went to him for one on ones, he knows i dont handle this very well.
brandyf
New Member
i would almost bet a hundred dollar bill you are right about everything you just said. i have horrible mood swings and depression that goes in and out over long periods of time...i just havent had the time to really get into me..with all of my difficult child's problems. also, about 1.5 years ago i went to my reg family doctor to try to get on some pills for stress and depression, i was crying all the time...well i still do..but anyway to make a long story short, this was the first time when difficult child was in preschool and he was kicked out of school...and i just couldnt handle it. i was put on lexapro adn took it for about a month, but out of no where i started craving alcohol..it made me sleepy, tired, more depressed. is it true that some antidepressants can have a reverse reaction wtih bipolar????whats your thoughts on this?
thanks for everything.
