Would it be crazy to diagnose a two year old with ADHD?

[Midnight_Fairy]

My son was diagnosed with ASD at 3 and he has alot of ADHD traits buts its hard to say which of those are asperger related etc.

Its not ridiculous, You know your son better than anyone else.

What happened with my sonw as I took him to see HV and she refurfed him. It cant harm to talk to someone. Its not the end of the world if he does have it because a diagnosis will not change him but it can help things.

I am lucky my son got diagnosed before starting school so everything was in place for him when he started.

He gets extra time to run around outside (on top of the playtimes) He also has a stress ball he can fiddle with when they have to sit still x

 

[thisisme]

ADHD in itself is open for discussion. What the doctors look at to diagnose ADHD, its just a list of things normal children do. Some examples i found online:
* Seems not to listen to what is said to him or her.
* Avoids tasks like homework that require sustained mental effort.
* Easily distracted.
* Forgetful in the course of daily activities.
Hmm sounds like alot of children to me... I might be being biased as i'm studying social work and we get taught the social model opposed to the medical model, so when behaviour is diagnosed as a disease, it just doesnt fit right with me.
I hope your son is OK, good luck x

ADHD will not be diagnosed in a child till they are 6 as the behaviour before that can be seen as that of any child...however when they get to 6 and are in school full time and have a more structured routine and more is expected of them it becomes more noticble and they are 'different' to that of there peers.

my son is 6 next week and he is in the final stages of being diagnosed with ADHD but they will not give him the official diagnosis until after his 6th birthday and the only reason that has come about as his headteacher at school is also the SEN dor the school and she has expressed concerns about his behaviour.

i do feel ADHD is too often used an excuse...it isnt over diagnosed because more often than not it is a parent saying their child has it as an excuse for their behaviour.
but as a parent with an ADHD child i can assure you it is alot more longwinded and heart breaking than just an excuse.
you get to a pont as a mother that you feel a failure that youre childs behaviour must be something you are doing wrong (even if you have children who behave diff|) you feel like nothing you do makes a difference and that you really cant cope...going to the doctor is always a last resort because it makes you acknowledge that you arent coping.

but it really does make it difficult for children who genuinlly do suffer (and yes they can suffer because of it many get excluded from things because of something they cant control|) because people say oh so many kids have it....its not real...which then makes it harder for people to accept ADHD children.

op I can completly understand how you feel....my son was exactly the same as a 2 yr old...it doesnt isntantly mean he has ADHD as sometimes the routine of school changes their behaviour...but if it does continue dont feel like it is tyour fault these things cant always be helped
but in answer to your question yes 2 yrs old is too early to try for a diagnosis the doc wont even entertain the fact that its a possibility

 

[Midnight_Fairy]

ADHD in itself is open for discussion. What the doctors look at to diagnose ADHD, its just a list of things normal children do. Some examples i found online:
* Seems not to listen to what is said to him or her.
* Avoids tasks like homework that require sustained mental effort.
* Easily distracted.
* Forgetful in the course of daily activities.
Hmm sounds like alot of children to me... I might be being biased as i'm studying social work and we get taught the social model opposed to the medical model, so when behaviour is diagnosed as a disease, it just doesnt fit right with me.
I hope your son is OK, good luck x

ADHD will not be diagnosed in a child till they are 6 as the behaviour before that can be seen as that of any child...however when they get to 6 and are in school full time and have a more structured routine and more is expected of them it becomes more noticble and they are 'different' to that of there peers.

my son is 6 next week and he is in the final stages of being diagnosed with ADHD but they will not give him the official diagnosis until after his 6th birthday and the only reason that has come about as his headteacher at school is also the SEN dor the school and she has expressed concerns about his behaviour.

i do feel ADHD is too often used an excuse...it isnt over diagnosed because more often than not it is a parent saying their child has it as an excuse for their behaviour.
but as a parent with an ADHD child i can assure you it is alot more longwinded and heart breaking than just an excuse.
you get to a pont as a mother that you feel a failure that youre childs behaviour must be something you are doing wrong (even if you have children who behave diff|) you feel like nothing you do makes a difference and that you really cant cope...going to the doctor is always a last resort because it makes you acknowledge that you arent coping.

but it really does make it difficult for children who genuinlly do suffer (and yes they can suffer because of it many get excluded from things because of something they cant control|) because people say oh so many kids have it....its not real...which then makes it harder for people to accept ADHD children.

op I can completly understand how you feel....my son was exactly the same as a 2 yr old...it doesnt isntantly mean he has ADHD as sometimes the routine of school changes their behaviour...but if it does continue dont feel like it is tyour fault these things cant always be helped
but in answer to your question yes 2 yrs old is too early to try for a diagnosis the doc wont even entertain the fact that its a possibility

My nephew has official diagnosis of ADHD and he was diagnosed before 6. Someone said the same about ASD but my son was 3 when diagnosed.

 

[RubyRainbows]

Thank you girls for all the information, & your personal stories & opinions. All very insightful! I am still undecided about having him evaluated at such a young age. His behavior still continues to be excessively "hyper"... compared to the kids i work with & the kids he goes to nursery school with. I feel bad bc the kids seem to avoid him at school... and when i arrive to pick him up... the other kids always run up to me to give me reports of Jayden misbehaving. He also has been getting time-outs an awful lot at the daycare. He is very impulsive... it's like he can't help himself from dumping buckets of toys, knocking things off shelves & tables, kicking other kid's blocks over... & now he has started throwing toys & chairs which was the latest report i got from his teacher. I feel bad that he does get excluded from things like the library, community events, the park, etc. I have temporarily stopped taking him bc it's always such a disaster. Just yesterday we were at a birthday party & he refused to sit for circle time, was knocking over the soft play toys, instead of watching the puppet show he kept stealing the puppets & running away, he was opening doors he wasn't supposed, trying to knock the fire extinguisher off the wall, was opening drawers, & poked his finger in the cake! Meanwhile, all the other kids (all about the same age) were just playing in the kid's gym & following the routine of the party! I keep hoping his behavior will improve with age!

 

[Blah11]

I think doctors diagnose ADHD waaay too quickly and I really think some children who get diagnosed with it are just normal children who might be a bit more naughty than the average

 

[thisisme]

I think doctors diagnose ADHD waaay too quickly and I really think some children who get diagnosed with it are just normal children who might be a bit more naughty than the average

i have to disagree sorry but there is an extremly long process that goes with the diagnosis, ours has been going on 18 months and the head ped is only just saying now that she believes DS1 will fulfill the critiria for diagnosis of ADHD. and thats with him having problems since he was 18 months and both his father and uncle having it.

dont get me wrong there are parents that will push for adiagnosis for the money aspect of it.
and there are an awful lot of children whos parents say they have ADHD as a way to excuse bad behaviour and a lot of this is just from reading info on the internet or that their friends kid has it, never from a doctor, ped or pschiatrist diagnosis

just my tuppence worth lol

 

[Akira]

In reguards to the food being an influence I fully agree. Cutting out anything with red food colouring (and perhaps the other colours as well) can have a huge difference, nothing high in sugar or salt. I would also advise getting your son allergy tested from the doctor as I have now met three different boys who have been diagnosed with gluten intolerance, stopped eating wheat and their behaviour drastically improved.

I would seriously consider letting Jayden go back to day care, as although h is playing up alot now i can often help if he see's how other children are behaving, and getting left out of trips etc can be a very powerful tool in behaviour management, as long as the teachers are onto it and quickly include him when he does behave.

We have some children like this at my work (I am an early childhood teacher) and often it does end up just being a phase. A very frustrating phase for you but I certainly wouldn't be looking into ADHD so young, not without first investigating all other possibilities.

 

[Midnight_Fairy]

I think doctors diagnose ADHD waaay too quickly and I really think some children who get diagnosed with it are just normal children who might be a bit more naughty than the average

I disagree also. For one anyone with a child that has ADHD knows it is FAR more than being "naughty"...

When people say my son is just "naughty" it infuriates me and I often advise them to do their research before putting there opinions on my sons diagnosis.

PLUS, you cant just go to the doctors and get a diagnosis. 1 doctor cannot diagnose, it has to be a long process!