"DING DING DING! What do we have for her, Johnny?"
Well put!
Posted on 07/11/2006 3:24:49 PM PDT by blam
You got that right! It's as if everything has some 'value-judgement' on it. Offering help can be sometimes be construed as implying that her parents didn't do a good job in some way when all you are doing is trying to help a kid for who you have fond feelings!
When it comes to college, know that there are schools are there that work with these type of kids (my daughter is going to one this fall). They may be more expensive, but going to a huge state school is a waste of money.
who == whom **sigh**
So sorry! I was reading their comments and thought you were in the same vein.
I must add that even your sarcastic comment sounded much more informed and intelligent than many of the other comments. I don't understand the knee-jerk bashing.
"Compared with teenage girls who had no psychiatric disorder..."
As a former Teenage Girl, we're all pretty psycho while our hormones are going wild, we're getting boobs and zits and hair (down there!), we're obsessed with horses and the Hollywood Hunk of the Week, we're contemplating tatoos or piercings and are busy cat-fighting with the girl who WAS our Best Friend last week and is now our Sworn Mortal Enemy! (And we'll make her pay. Yes. We. Will. *Snicker*)
I'd be interested to see how they even found a control group of female teens that they thought were free of psychotic tendencies, LOL!
What? They don't use control groups to actually prove or disprove medical findings when they want a specific outcome? My bad. *Smirk*
"DING DING DING! What do we have for her, Johnny?"
Well put!
"Tell that to my 19 year old daughter who has fought with ADHD and depression her whole life. Nothing fake about it. Nothing."
Don't think twice about the utter ignorance of these people. The problem with looking at it from an adolescent standpoint is that sometimes, it emulates the immature way kids will act. So ignorant people say it is just kids being kids and blame the teachers. While behavioral problems shouldn't always be blamed on ADHD, it is a VERY REAL problem, especially in today's hustle and bustle world. ADHD people are usually very intelligent, and are many times very successful only because they keep cruising no matter what (people with the depression aspect have an extra challenge on them). But their poor brain changes channels from one subject to the next constantly. These people self medicate with alcohol (even though they are not alcoholics), with caffeine, and unfortunately many times with illicit amphetamines. It is medical fact that ADHD people get a calming effect from stimulants like Ritalin. That is fact. People who are not ADHD get hyper when they take Ritalin. While I agree that it is hard to tell in an adolescent, mainly because of the different maturity levels of kids of the same age, adults with ADHD will tell you, it is not fake. People need to stop listening to radio talk show hosts, and develop some critical thinking skills of their own.
The initial testing involved reading her brain waves when presented with decision making. I am giving the most simplest explanation as I do not understand all of the testing parameters. But, it didn't hurt, she loved the attention and looked forward to going for "testing" for the couple of years she did it.
You mention other very legitimate problems and we do need research for all of that too. But, to say that ADHD doesn't exist because it can't be measured--nope, try again.
Just curious...did ANYONE suggest changing her dietary routine?
Thank you for saying that. That is exactly what I was thinking.
So? That happened to me all the time in school...it's called being bored as hell with the subject at hand...still happens to me as an adult.
....indeed we did. We tried eliminating dyes, additives, and common allergens. We did cleansing diets and then reintroduced 1 food at a time. We were so desparate to figure out what was going on, we listened to anyone and everyone and tried any approach even if it sounded wacky. She was so wired up it was suggested that it would be best that we homeschool her for Sunday School as the other kids could not concentrate around her. Nothing mean mind you, just lots and lots of chatter and activity. This was all before going to the doctor. The doctor was the last resource.
"And before you suggest that I work harder or "focus", understand that I rose the the highest levels of the corporate world at a young age."
Of course you did. Because when you are focused, you are hyperfocused, and can get more done in thirty minutes than most get done in a day. Then, you will spend half the rest of the day spinning your wheels. But nobody usually notices so much, because you are so productive, and such a go getter when you are focused. Am I close? LOL, I wrote the above before I read all of your post. Yep.
Excellent point...throw the TV set in the garbage, buy comics for the kids to read, at least in the early stages...
Maybe she has dyslexia. Public schools will not start helping kids with dyslexia until they are 2 years behind in reading. Some kids have it and can sort of manage, but they really need extra help.
My daughter has special needs (brain damage). She's been struggling in school this past year (3rd grade), so we had an independent evaluation done by a neuropsychologist, learning specialist, and speech therapist. We knew about my daughters speech problems, but they also found auditory and reading problems. Besides speech, they recommended a multi-sensory reading program for her. The district will not provide it because my daughter is not 2 years behind. We're pulling my daughter from public school and putting her in private and getting her reading help.
I hope your babysitter can get a good evaluation on her and find out what is really going on. There are lots of programs that can help struggling kids.
Soda? Fast food? Did she get lots of fruits, veggies, and nuts? At least the 'doctor' was the last resource.
I honestly really don't remember much of my life until around the age of 22. It was just a blur. I have piano compositions and orchestral pieces I wrote in my teens that I know I spent hours and days on, but I don't remember actually writing any of them.
I hate seeing home movies from from my childhood because I was burning at 115% in every single one of them, all of the time. I honestly don't know how my parents put up with it. I would have killed me.
Today, at 37, I'm exactly like you describe: I'll work in a flurry of energy for 4-6 hours, get everything done and then coast for the rest of the week. I've also been successful, I'm a Director of IT but the VP I report to is exactly the opposite of me, he works slow and steady the entire week. It's really bizarre.
...because we didn't feel like wasting our valuable time while the teacher tried to coax the correct answer out of the class morons. :-)
You mention it being a curse...she describes it this way. "I can tell myself to do something a certain way, but before I finish the thought I've already done it wrong, then I get mad about doing it wrong and then I get sad when people say 'you're too smart to do things that way! Concentrate!' and then I do it over and over again--hundreds of times a day." I wouldn't want to live her life.
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