DS7 is improving significantly (especially at home) with the addition of the SSRI (prozac). He is on day 3 of Focalin, a stimulant med we have not yet tried. It's extended release and supposedly very smooth, so hopefully ds will have fewer ups and downs throughout the day. It doesn't last more than 6 hours, however, so he'll probably need it twice daily. We tried not giving stimulants at all, but EVERYTHING got worse...focus, emotional regulation, concentration....
So, we'll see how he does with this. The more time we've all spent talking with the psychiatrist and psychologist, it's looking more and more like we're dealing with gifted/adhd issues and not a spectrum disorder. DS does have anxiety, likely due to perfectionism and frustration with asynchronous development. Not to mention, anxiety and depression occur in both sides of his family. His emotional regulation difficulties are very typical of kids with ADHD, and it's not unusual for stimulant meds to NOT help as much with these types of symptoms. This is an aspect of ADHD I was less familiar with, but I've learned a great deal recently about the lack of emotional regulation skills in children with ADHD.
Hopefully we'll find the right combination of medication/counseling to help ds. He starts CBT tomorrow with a pediatric psychologist. I've met with him, and he is really wonderful. I like the fact that we are going to get some hands-on practical strategies to try at home and at school. The psychologist will go into the school to observe and demonstrate implementation of the strategies in the classroom setting. We'll all be able to use the same terminology and encourage use of the same techniques/strategies.
Thanks again for the support and advice.
