# Advice on 5 YO. Should i claim DLA?



## samsastar

Hi ladies, bit of advice..we currently get dla for my boy whose 3, hes under referral for possible autism and woman who did his griffiths report (in depth development check) says he has development delay. We were awarded middle rate care. Well anyway, I have a 5 year old girl who has always been a little different..atm its almost pointing towards adhd. She cannot sit down without constant fidgeting, it takes her a good 3 hours easy to settle at night, they have noticed in class her concentration isnt great but said "she isnt 1 of the worst" well her understanding and speech isnt the best and she has recently started having number 2 accidents..she has this occassionally and has done since being potty trained..she constantly needs to chew things so its nornally her hair or her sleeves..she dont like wearing clothes (at school she always takes her cardigan off) n at home likes being in the nude, and bedtime she dont like the quilt on..ive took her docs today and they have said thwy will write to the peadi again to get her seen quicker (shes already under them and was seen in october because of previous odd behaviour) i feel guilty for even thinking of trying for dla for her, shes not naughty but she is hard to deal with at times. I think its possible she has ADHD or possibly SPD..its a long road ahead but as a baby she had meningitis (strep b) almost lost her and they always said they dont know what damage it did to her brain..and also her dad had ADHD as a child so not sure if its hereditary. also she has problems with her knees. They said shes hypermobile but as it doesnt hold her back and she has full strength there isnt much they can do for her, however i have major problems with my knee and having an MRI next week, and my mom has issues too so it could be a genetic problem. This issue causes her to not be able to walk long distances and she normally hops in the pushchair, even if i put her on my shoulders, as soon as i take her off she starts really crying. Ita as though she sufferes with dead leg loads. Should i try for DLA even though we havent had a diagnosis? Xx


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## alibaba24

What would you use the dla for? If you were planning to use it for therapy or anything else that is going to help your daughter then yes. Iv seen so many parents use dla to line there own pockets it really bugs me. The decision is yours then can only say no x


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## samsastar

alibaba24 said:


> What would you use the dla for? If you were planning to use it for therapy or anything else that is going to help your daughter then yes. Iv seen so many parents use dla to line there own pockets it really bugs me. The decision is yours then can only say no x

She currently does swimming as an after school activity, i would be using the money for her to do extra activities (keeping her busy) and look into sensory equipment etc..
It deffo wouldnt be used for me (i dont drink/smoke/drugs etc) 
I would also consider possibly getting a maclaren buggy (saving her little legs as she is really too tall for a normal pushchair) the money would go solely to her and her needs xx


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## alibaba24

Iv read lots that it's not about the diagnosis it's about the extra help your child needs on a daily basis x


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## samsastar

alibaba24 said:


> Iv read lots that it's not about the diagnosis it's about the extra help your child needs on a daily basis x

She needs constant reminders about everything with her understanding being low, and the distractions, i still have to get her dressed as on her own it would take a massive amount of time, we would be late. I think ill try applying, if we dont get it we dont, we wont be loosing anything. Thanks for your replies x


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## alibaba24

My daughter doesn't have good language understanding either . Does she see a speech therapist ? X


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## _Meep_

No desire to scare you, but since you mentioned she has started having bowel accidents and that she suffers with dead legs and pain, I wondered if she has had a scan of her spine at all?

There is a condition known as a tethered cord - it's unlikely she has it. But these two things can be a sign. If you think it fits any of the physical problems she has been having, it might be worth asking.

I hope I haven't spoken out of place here. Just a suggestion. :flower:


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## samsastar

_Meep_ said:


> No desire to scare you, but since you mentioned she has started having bowel accidents and that she suffers with dead legs and pain, I wondered if she has had a scan of her spine at all?
> 
> There is a condition known as a tethered cord - it's unlikely she has it. But these two things can be a sign. If you think it fits any of the physical problems she has been having, it might be worth asking.
> 
> I hope I haven't spoken out of place here. Just a suggestion. :flower:

Ill research that now, and yea she has speech and language therapy x


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## smurff

I'm in the middle of filling out dla form for my 4yr old, she has learning difficulties but it looks like it could be autism aswell, they won't test her till she's 5yrs old so she doesnt have official diagnosis but I'm still claiming. I've read lots of threads where people have claimed without a diagnosis. Luckily enough I have plenty of paperwork to back up my claim but I've also read some people don't even have that


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## Thurinius

I claimed before I had official diagnosis. But I had all the health visitor reports and the initial consultant report as my paperwork which I included.
I'm using it to pay for a private speech therapist at the moment.


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## lusterleaf

my son is very sensory seeking as well and he gets occupational therapy twice a week (they work on fine motor and sensory issues) i think she would benefit from that, if you can get that service.


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