Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Parenting and Advocacy What is going on with DS6?

ultramarina - sending good wishes to your DS and to you.

Ditto!

I will send you a PM too.

This must all be very worrying. I tend to second jdw's suggestion of a good child psychologist, if you possibly can. There are many possibilities for a psychological component, and sometimes parents aren't best placed to help alone. And if, by any horrible chance, your DS has been abused by someone connected to chess, he won't be the only one, and finding out rather than just having him give up chess would be a public service.

I didn't notice this post first time around. My concerns are with the physical symptoms: apparent decline of certain skills such as handwriting/drawing and seeming inattention, etc. I really don't want to freak you out with internet diagnoses even though I have personal familiarity with several possibilities, including an extremely rare cause. Keep in mind that the most likely reason should be relatively minor. Suffice it to say that the first medical opinion I would seek in your case would be with a pediatric neurologist. I hope all goes well with your DS.

I spoke with DS about chess club and asked him a lot of questions about whether anything had happened there, etc. He was very clear with me that nothing had gone on.

The most parsimonious explanation for his test results might cause poor sleep and irritability, which could lead to loss of concentration. We should know more in a couple of weeks. If the #s do not resolve, this may be a long process.

I am happy to say that the poor handwriting issue seems to have been temporary, or at least sporadic. He recently wrote some beautiful stories for me. I will say that we do notice, though, that some days seem better than others. It's hard not to overinterpret once you become concerned about your child. Every ordinary lapse becomes troubling.

DS had an unusual medical history as a baby, which does not help my sanity. It is possibly he has some kind of genetic variation or metabolic issue.

Thanks for the support. We are trying just not to think about it too much. We have been down this road before with him. There are things about him that ding doctors' bells, but nothing definitive has ever been found.

Sounds very difficult. Glad you have been able to clear the abuse possibility off the table, though. Best wishes.

What a relief that you could eliminate the possibility of abuse. Your family has been in my thoughts often this week, ultramarina, and I'm relieved for you. I hope you're able to get to the bottom of the issue soon.

I hope that the doctors are able to figure this out so that you can help your son - he sounds quite delightful, and you sound really worried!

Thinking of you!

I wanted to update this post and say that whatever was going on with DS and chess has gone away--the fire is lit again and he is absolutely enthralled with the game once more. He is no longer worries about reading hard books (that was a temporary strange problem, although I do try to be careful with book selection now...it's hard!) He loves his new gifted pull-out. Mysterious.

He still need to complete some further medical testing and pursue one further consult to rule out some things, but he seems in good physical health as well after the course of the medication he took and I am less concerned about him.