May 4, 2010

The blessing of trials

This picture, is my life...well it's a fraction of my life. This simple cartoon is a humorous look into the life of a parent of a child with ADHD. But in our house we now officially have TWO children with ADHD and let me tell you, some days its REALLY hard to see the humor in it.

My oldest son, Timmy, who's now 7 1/2 and about to finish a really successful year in first grade, was officially diagnosed just before the start of Kindergarten. It was a long tough road with him. As a relatively new mom I allowed others input quiet my gut which told me something was different with him. It began about age 3. But I was constantly being told he was a typical boy, or that it was just because he was so smart (which he was and is) or that he was acting out because of issues at home. But finally I decided things were getting to be too much and I thought Kindergarten would be a nightmare if I didn't intervene. Since his diagnosis we've been using medication to treat his symptoms. We had to do some playing to find just the right spot for him with doses etc and will continue to have to do so as long as he needs medication but I truly do not know how he would have managed school these last two years without it. At home the mornings are VERY hard. And we continue to struggle to figure out the best way to handle things for all of us. But for the most part Timmy is an amazing kid and is doing really well.

Even before Timmy's official Dx, Johnny was taken to the school for a speech evaluation. At that evaluation we were told he was still within normal range however they asked if we'd ever considered that he may have ADHD. I literally chuckled because honestly, compared to Timmy he seemed very calm and he was so young his attention, hadn't really been something I'd even paid notice to. But even today, in comparison its hard to notice Johnny's issues. But his teacher has. Things I tried to put off as being young or as middle child syndrome are really affecting him at school. He's also a bright kid so he's meeting or exceeding all the academic requirements of school but he's struggling to stay on task to get work done or to stay seated and quiet when he needs to. So once again we initiated things with the Dr for a ADHD evaluation and once again the Dr confirmed. We started him this morning on the lowest dose of the same thing Timmy takes and we'll see how it goes.


Again, another ADHD cartoon.  It really is a serious matter, but the truth is we have to look and the bright side.  Yes, ADHD brings hurdles for my kids and for us as a family.  And having two kids with ADHD plus a toddler means I repeat myself A LOT, seriously A LOT.  But my kids are smart and tough and I am convinced that they will continue to succeed and do well.  And as for me, some days I DO want to pull my hair out but then I'm reminded how lucky I really am.  My kids are here and healthy and I'm pretty darn lucky to have them.

If you think your child may have ADHD, trust your gut and talk to your Dr.  Here is wikipedia's info: here.  And if you or someone you love has ADHD, I highly recommend checking into CHADD here.

3 comments:

  1. I am having the worst day dealing with this and other issues. The bottom line is that no one in my life does what I want, when I want, and how I want. And it makes me want to pull my hair out. I'm just not up to dealing with Kaya's homeschooling one more second. (But I will.) We don't want to put her on medicine. She was doing so well until we moved about a week and a half ago. Now it's like we're dealing with 3-year-old Kaya all over again. She won't pay attention, and she's SO defiant and rude. I'm having my own struggles with an identity crisis and dealing with a 2-year-old and a newborn. It's just too much. So I'm feeling ya on everything you said...except the part where you're handling it all okay and making it as a family. :)

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  2. My husband was diagnosed when he was young. His fifth grade teacher worked a lot with him and they figured out things to do and modifications so he came off the medicine. I have to repeat myself with him a lot, because his mind wanders. And, he is always tapping his fingers or shaking his leg

    Desiree
    weeshareblog@gmail.com

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  3. That's awesome that you went with your gut and did what you felt best for your son!

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