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StrictHarshB -> RE: Parents of special needs kids (8/30/2009 12:06:42 PM)
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This is going to be quite long as I’ve not been here for quite a while and just found this thread, so I’m going to add my comments to various things that I read as I’m going through.
Firstly, a bit about my background in all of this….. and by the way, I’m in the UK
I have a son (Munch), now 12 who had moderate ADHD, mild Autism and Dyslexia. I lived with his mum till he was 5.5 then we separated and since then we have shared care, most weekends and some school hols with me, the rest with his mum. He was suspected of some sort of problem from the age of about 3 and it was brought to our attention by his nursery group leader. He was partially excluded from school at 4 yrs 8 mths (only allowed in for 3 hours per day and had to be collected from school before lunch break started). Having had several hour long discussions with a paediatric consultant, he was put on medication at 4 yrs 9 mths.
After the summer break, a change of class teacher worked wonders and gradually over 1 term / semester, Munch was reintegrated in to full-time school. He built a fantastic bond with that teacher because she showed him that she cared and understood. She kept strict rules and encouraged him to keep within the rules rather than punishing him for his failures – this is HUGELY important for ADHD children. Love, patience and understanding within very very tight and strict rules/guidelines are the best recipe for success. Give no slack, don’t give an inch, your word is law and the child will do as he/she is told. Make sure the consequences for not doing so are immediate and harsh. Being persistent and consistent will pay off. Try to make the same rules apply all the time, ie, behaviour acceptable in public should be the expectation in your own home too – the fewer differences and changes the child has to deal with, the better they will cope. By far the best results will be gained if you start this when the child is very young (under 3) and the older the child is, the harder it will be to implement this effectively.
Throughout his life, at home and school these tactics have proved to be the best and most successful. Any situations where there has been a lack of very firm discipline have proved that to be much more difficult, both for him and everyone else around. I’m willing to share a lot more details and evidence as proof if anyone would like them.
Munch has been medicated since it’s introduction at 4yrs, 9 mths, we have tried several excluding Ritalin, and he has been taking Equasym and Equasym XL(slow release version) for several years now and also takes Risperidone to help with the symptoms of Autism. The meds make all the difference between manageable and unbearable.
As for foods, I agree about the food colourings – stay a million miles away from anything with orange flavouring and almost all coloured sweets, chocolate is no problem at all. Same with drinks – no orange except pure orange with no artificial colourings, Tropicana Blood Red orange juice is a really good option.
For those of you, such as Holly, who have noticed a sudden dramatic change, it is very possibly due to a certain food or ingredient. Make a detailed diary of everything your child eats and look for a pattern. It may be a specific ingredient that is found in several foods.
We were advised to keep Munchs’ salt intake down to a minimum.
I saw in one early post about the colouring in Amoxicillin – ask your doctor for Erythromycin instead, it’s a non penicillin drug and comes in Banana flavour.
Another thing with Munch is that he does not see danger. Officially over here, it is called ‘lack of cause and consequence perception’ and is evidently a very familiar and regular trait of those with several of the Autistic Spectrum disorders.
Children with ADHD are usually very focused on something that grips their concentration and imagination; and they are usually very creative. Try to identify what your childs greatest interest is in and focus their mind on it. For Munch, it is lego, with enough of it, we would not hear a squeak for hours. Ahh bliss J
On top of dealing with that, my wonderful slave t y r a s i a , who some of you on here will know, has ADD and is on Ritalin, so now I have two of them to deal with.
For those of you who know my slave, various real life events depict that it is best if she doesn’t come here too often and does not post at all, but she is fine and well. My slave will be back once things have been dealt with to completion.
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