R Before I (research before ignorance)

Nope, I don't typically post on Sundays, but I am trying super hard to not blow a gasket at the ignorance of some people.

I'm appalled that anyone can hint that we, my husband and I, actually CAUSED our child's ADHD. WTH?!?!?! Our son was adopted at birth, and as a RN, I've done a tremendous amount of research regarding the genetic link of ADHD. ADHD actually has a high hereditability compared to other behavioral diagnoses.

People, do your research before you start to give your opinions...regardless that "some studies say TV and video games cause it." Actually, the studies say that TV and video games can aggravate symptoms, NOT cause it.

Just because my child can be difficult to manage at times and has a hard time containing his emotions does NOT mean we have parented poorly. To believe that is pure ignorance.

and now, I shall step down from my soapbox.

The ONLY Diet I Advocate: A Sensory Diet!

Today is the day that we have the all day, in-depth evaluation for my son to determine if he, in fact, does have ADHD. Regardless of the outcome, we are extremely happy that we've opened ourselves up to occupational therapy. As a family, we have learned a tremendous amount about the importance of a balanced sensory diet.

Our son has different issues with his visual, auditory, tactile, and proprioceptive senses. The therapists are teaching us different ways to help our child meet his needs. You would be amazed at the amount of "stuff" available out there...thank goodness for the information highway.

Here are some of the items that we are currently using:

B-Calm- This helps block out ambient noise. He's not super fond of wearing headphones, but it helps during desk work.


Hanging Seat: This swing helps our son focus and remain calm. I would have never thought that swinging would help someone's focus, but because the motion give him the sensations his body craves, it DOES help! We are using this at OT, but we are going to get it for our home too.


We are also getting him a trampoline and hoppity ball for at home use.

In addition, he is involved with karate and swimming. Both are helping him with his coordination.

Yes, each situation is different, but these are some things that have helped our child improve without having to introduce medication. As we discover new ways, I will be sure to post about it.

Our Feingold Experience

I've been getting lots of questions about the Feingold diet that we've started, so I thought I'd post our experience thus far. In truth, we are doing a modified version because the full-fledged diet doesn't fit for us.

Basically the premise is removing all preservatives, additives, and junk from your foods. For us, the program was well worth the money, even if we don't follow it to a T. By making specific brand choices, we've replaced MANY of our food items with healthier options. I'm pleased with that. I find myself not using processed foods.

It's been very eye-opening. Even some foods that you would think would be ok are only ok with specific brands. As I did my research, I was amazed at the additives many brands put into their foods. Yuck!

I've also returned to the way of our moms and grandmas for some things. For example, I'm making my own chocolate syrup for our son's hot chocolate. It's easy as pie, takes less than 5 min to make, lasts for a week, and has NO unnatural items in it. I feel GREAT about that.

It WAS (and still is) an adjustment for our son, who mourned the loss of his Chef Boyardee. It was (and still is) an adjustment for me as I hunted for the specific brands the first time in the store.

Will this plan "cure" his ADHD and/or sensory integration issues? I highly doubt it. Is this plan, however much healthier for the ENTIRE family. Absolutely!

To all the parents with ADHD children:

About a month ago, our pediatrician diagnosed our 8 year old son with ADHD and prescribed medication.

We have yet to start the medication.

After listening to me for an hour, she also suggested occupational therapy because he may have some sensory integration issues. At the time, I really didn't understand what that meant.

Fast forward a month...

Jacob is homeschooled and excelling academically. His handwriting has improved tremendously. He can focus for 20 min at time on his work. He is listening better.

Why the difference when we haven't started medication? Well, I attribute it to many different things: OT, karate, our version of the Feingold diet (yea, yea, that's a whole other post...HAD to modify it to work for us.)

During OT, in addition to the "fun" stuff they do with him, he does Interactive Metronome. IM is proven to help ADHD and sensory integration disorders. They are also giving me great tips to help him at home.

I've been doing a lot of reading and recommend a great book, "The Out-of Sync Child." Children with sensory issues can actually look as ADHD but NOT have it. I'm not convinced that he has an accurate ADHD diagnosis, so we'll be having an all day eval next month at the teaching hospital.

Parents, PLEASE do your homework. Be sure that your kids are getting what they need.

...and the journey begins.

Soooooo...we went to the pediatrician on Friday. I was VERY impressed with our doc. I expected a 15 min max visit. Nope, she was with us an hour talking and teasing out pieces of info. It's amazing because I now see so many signs of the past several years that are fitting all together now.

Yes, she did diagnosis our boy with ADHD combined type. When you do this questionnaire thing, it gets "graded." If you get 6 out of 9 from the first 9 questions, it's ADD. He scored 8 out of 9. If you get 6 out of 9 from the next 9 questions, it's ADHD. He scored 6 out of 9. The other pieces from it, he didn't even score on...so no worries there. We made the decision together to try medication, in addition to the diet thing. ADHD is bio-chemical, so if our son needs medication, we are not going to deny him it. I do have to admit that I haven't started him on the one she prescribed. I'm still researching it and may ask for a different med.

We are also getting an occupational therapy referral. Again, these are the signs that started to fall into place that our son needs a lot of stimulation. He is ALWAYS with clay in his hands, sculpting. He is also an adrenaline junkie...a risk taker. He craves that feeling. He sometimes has feelings of being overwhelmed when in large chaotic environments. So we are going to get an eval to see if there is a sensory integration issue and the need for some occupational therapy.

We have also started him in karate. Karate is GREAT for teaching focus and concentration. We've actually seen improvements in his ability to pay attention!

I feel good about this. I'm pleased that he is homeschooled because, as a nurse AND his mom, I want to keep a close eye on side effects from this new medication.

Speaking of the school...wanna know a few interesting things?

1) Even though I sent 2 emails to the school last week and included his teacher on the email, I never heard directly from her...wishing us well or anything. THAT speaks volumes to me.

2) I did hear from the director, who in his email, told us that he had noticed our son had some difficulty socially with a group of kids during summer camp. Ummmmmmm...huh???? We were NEVER told!!!!!! Actually the first we had heard about it was when his teacher said that she was told there were some "difficulties" this summer...this was 5 days before we pulled him out! She didn't elaborate. We would have perhaps made a different decision had we known during the summer. Was this a money-driven choice? One wonders.

3) In the email, the director mentioned that he has witnessed some interactions between our son and the "boys" that were clearing instigated by our son. I asked him to please give me some specific examples. We have yet to hear back from him. Hmmmmmmm...again, a silence that speaks loud and clear and makes us question the validity of his statement. Last week my husband visited the school, called and left a message, and emailed...WITHOUT a response back. W-O-W!

In essence, we are left with a feeling that these people truly didn't care about our son...truly didn't care about him getting the help that he obviously needs. They cared about having a slot filled.

If you live in the Bronson, Archer, Gainesville FL area/outer area and are considering a private school, feel free to contact me for the name of this school. I will freely share our experience with you. The vision of what we thought it would be turned out to be NOTHING like what our actual time there was.

Price for a year of private school not used: $6,000+
Price for an ADHD eval with insurance: $12
Price for a year of karate: $1,000+
Price for having our son out of an unhealthy situation and getting the help he needs: PRICELESS!

******ADDENDUM****** To the school's credit, my hubby did receive an email from the director that a refund has been mailed. We do not know the amount. Our request for specific instances observed has gone unanswered.