Please help me better nurture my 10 year old

[tallanvor]

Originally Posted by geez0pete How do they determine a sensitivity? She was recently allergy tested and has numerous allergies and mild asthma. They didn't test for food allergies because I said she didn't have any.

Honestly, I don't remember. We had it done a few years ago and it confirmed a few things we suspected, but hadn't had confirmed by a regular doctor, since typically a regular doctor will only do allergies, not sensitivities.

Also, something to consider -- ADHD. Doesn't sound like she has the full ADHD, but perhaps the ADD. Forgetfulness to a point is a normal thing, especially for children, but the degree you're talking sounds like it's more. Lots of times you can help treat it with dietary changes and behavior therapy, but if you try other things and they aren't working, you might consider talking to her doctor and seeking testing.

[geez0pete]

Originally Posted by tallanvor Honestly, I don't remember. We had it done a few years ago and it confirmed a few things we suspected, but hadn't had confirmed by a regular doctor, since typically a regular doctor will only do allergies, not sensitivities. Also, something to consider -- ADHD. Doesn't sound like she has the full ADHD, but perhaps the ADD. Forgetfulness to a point is a normal thing, especially for children, but the degree you're talking sounds like it's more. Lots of times you can help treat it with dietary changes and behavior therapy, but if you try other things and they aren't working, you might consider talking to her doctor and seeking testing.

Wow. I just looked up ADHD and she has every.single.one on the inattention list...not one on the hyperactivity list, though. I NEVER would've thought about ADHD since she's not fidgety and it's not something I would've ask. Thanks so much for the suggestion. I guess I have something to explore a bit more. From WebMD:

Inattention symptoms of ADHD include:

• Not paying attention to detail
• Making careless mistakes
• Failing to pay attention and keep on task
• Not listening
• Being unable to follow or understand instructions
• Avoiding tasks that involve effort
• Being distracted or forgetful
• Losing things that are needed to complete tasks

Yet, she sat for 1 1/2 hours last night and made a very detailed diorama of a leprechaun's bedroom. I'm going to email her teacher today and see what she notices throughout the day.

[tallanvor]

Well, the thing is, with ADHD/ADD, kids with the hyperactivity part and sit still and the kids with the inattentive part can pay attention, but it typically has to be something they are interested in. I have a cousin with ADD and he has always been able to focus if it was about cars because that is something he's always been interested in.

[mcpforever]

She sounds a lot like my almost 10yo 4th grader except his medium is legos instead of clay. He was diagnosed as ADHD-primarily inattentive type in 2nd grade. We do have to give him reminders, etc. and it helps to organize activities so that everything is done in the same order every day.

It also helps to have to get the business part of life finished before the recreational part. In the morning he has to get dressed, do his hair (I help), eat breakfast, and do his morning chore before he can go and play on his laptop. Having that laptop carrot helps him stay on track. After school it's similar. Eat sack. Do homework. Change into taekwondo gi (including shoes for car ride!) before he can have his 30 minutes of allotted XboX time. We also use reading as a carrot for him. Get your shower done quickly and you'll have more time to read before bed kind of thing. Setting small daily goals with a reward at the end helps him immensely. And they aren't extravagant rewards. They are just the "fun" part of life for him.

I also make him repeat instructions back to me so that I know he's processed them.

He has come a long way this year in the homework department. I used to have to ask him if he had any homework, then remind him to do it. Now he just does it. Bigger projects are different and I find myself breaking them down into smaller, more managable goals.

And Tallanvor is very right about ADHD kids being able to focus on things that really interest them or when they are highly motivated.

[jessnic]

I worked with ADD/ADHD kids and for rewards we would go shopping ahead of time for the reward but they couldn't use it until they met the goal. They could look at it, and it was available immeadiately when they met the goal, but

[jessnic]

I worked with ADD/ADHD kids and for rewards we would go shopping ahead of time for the reward but they couldn't use it until they met the goal. They could look at it, and it was available immeadiately when they met the goal, but was put up until they earned it. Might be worth trying??