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ADHD or LD?

Submitted by an LD OnLine user on

Newbie here. My son (1st grader) was diagnosed ADHD 1 year ago and is on Concerta. While it’s calmed him down tremenously, and done amazing things with his behavior, his teacher at school says he’s still struggling, alot.

She reads him a story, closes the book and asks him to tell her about the story and he has no idea, can’t answer a question about it.

Can’t grasp routine - kids walk in the morning and are all taking off jackets and hanging up jackets and bags in their cubbies. My son is sitting at his desk with jacket and backback on.

Puts a list of sight words in front of him and he knows little to none (been working on these since Kindergarten). Yet an hour later puts the same list in front of him and he knows all but one.

Says he seems to be “off somewhere else” while there. His mind is somewhere else, he’s just not there.

Consistently writes letters backwards, does it seconds after teacher shows him the correct way.

As of today as reverted to writing in all capital letters.

Are these things part of his ADHD or could this be a LD? We’ve increased his ADHD meds and there is little to no change.

Advice and suggestions greatly appreciated.

Submitted by mmm on Sat, 10/09/2010 - 3:29 AM

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Why not both? They VERY often go together. As an old poster used to say - our kids are complex and you have to peel back the problems like an onion, one layer at a time. Very few kids are all 1 thing.
Please don’t listen to previous poster (” I know because my husband is..” get advice from your doctor. The fact that the meds calm your child is very important. The meds are stimulants and if your child was neurotypical, they would be stimulated, not calmed.
Your child needs educational testing to find the problem-could be a number of things - processing problems or retrieval issues or learning strengths. eg. He may be a strong kinesthetic learner but not a great auditory learner. Please pursue testing.
Its great that you have a line on the problems early. It makes a big difference.

Submitted by Mandi on Sat, 10/09/2010 - 11:41 AM

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Absolutely correct. Don’t listen to a word I say. Because I don’t matter. I just speak from experience with this system as someone who has been through it. I speak as an archaeologist, someone who studies humanity through the careful and excessive use of science. I am married to a PHD in theoretical research who understands the scientific process and who has stated that the methodology employed in the diagnosis of ADHD does NOT meet the standards of science as a methodology. Neither one of us knows weather ADHD exists or not. I have no idea. But it seems to me, before one pumps one’s child full of the chemical equivalent cocaine as that is what ritalin is. (Studies prove it affects the brains of those with ADHD and those without it in the exact same way, not only that the effect in the brain is the exact same effect as cocaine. So no wonder your kid calms down. Your child is stoned.) It seems, to me before you pump that and other similar crap into your kid’s system you should atleast have a legitimate basis in science to do so.

But don’t take it from me.

Posted Oct 20, 2009 at 7:23:43 PM
Quote Edit
Subject: Medicating ADHD Children, Science Facts

Before you do what anyone tells you. Before you listen to experts. Before you push pills on your child, Please, read what science is telling us about medicating children for ADHD.

This is important, as these drugs are not as minor as they tell you. I am a biased source, only fair i should tell you that. I have seen the devestating effects of these drugs used on children with ADHD up close. Including the death of a friend from Ritalin.

The sites listed here are not mine. I simply present them here for your consideration. I offer hard science. They offer fear. The choice is as always yours.

They will not be honest enough to disclose their connections to the pharmaceutical companies. I can and will truly state for the record my income is provided by my work in archaeology and my husband’s work in physics. We receive nothing from any drug company. There is no conflict of interest here. Before you medicate your child look at the science please, and you ask yourselves, if your experts can truthfully say the same about their connections to the drug industry and the conflict of interest issue.

http://www.ritalindeath.com/

www.adhdfraud.com

http://www.adhd-report.com.

www.wildestcolts.com

http://www.news-medical.net/news/2009/02/05/45622.aspx

http://faculty.washington.edu/chudler/adhd.html

http://www.amphetamines.com/adhd/drugsbrain.html

http://adhdwise.blogspot.com/2008/03/ritalin-cocaine-for-kids-risks-benefits.html

http://newideas.net/adhd/methlyphenidate-ritalin-brain-memory

http://www.education-world.com/a_issues/issues148a.shtml

http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/commentary/la-oe-klein20aug20,0,7161010.story

http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/commentary/la-oe-klein20aug20,0,7161010.story

http://www.ask.com/bar?q=Doctor+who+named+ADHD+says+it+is+over+diagnosed&page=2&qsrc=2417&ab=0&u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.zhealthinfo.com%2Fadd-adhd.htm

http://www.feingold.org/adhd-history.html

http://adhd-add-treatments.suite101.com/article.cfm/drugs_are_still_not_the_answer_for_adhd#ixzz0QXI3UBTM

http://adhd-add-treatments.suite101.com/article.cfm/drugs_are_still_not_the_answer_for_adhd#ixzz0QXIM0TSA

http://www.explosivechild.com/bio/bio.html

http://www.lostatschool.org/

http://www.adhdhelp.org/stimulants.htm

http://www.adhdhelp.org/DrugResearchBias.htm

http://www.adhdinsight.com/

http://www.adhdinsight.com/ADHDHeredity.htm

http://www.adhdhelp.org/behavior-modification.htm

http://www.adhdhelp.org/ADHD-Testing.htm

http://www.adhdhelp.org/DoctorsDilemma.htm

http://www.adhdfraud.org/history_of_the_fraud_of_biological_psychiatry.htm

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/03/26/AR2009032604018.html

http://tinyurl.com/dyb777

Read the facts of science for yourself.

Our children are complicated. This is a true and a fair statement. The reality that parents don’t realize though, is that the industry of psychology is also very complex and honesty from experts getting paid by both ends of the system by their client and by the drug companies to push their products with ghost written essays in journals and unfavorable scientific studies using their drug stopped and new ones started till they get the result they want, is also a complicated issue.

Have you never looked at nature? Every young creature is hyper and wild. That is part of growing up. In europe almost no one is on these meds which is interesting to me, because shouldn’t per same population the need for meds be roughly close together if it is really genetic as they claim it is??? I would think so as most americans find their heritage in EU. Yet it is almost non existent here.Which to me is a clear indication, that in the usa too many are proffiting too much unfairly and at the expens of children. Even the one who named ADHD in 1980 says it is over diagnosed by over 30%. Go do the research yourself. I have given you a good starting foundation. But seriously, look at the science yourself and use your own brain. Don’t trust blindly because trusting blindly is just a dumb thing to do, especially when it is your child’s life and sanity and future on the line. Please, do exactly as that other poster says, do not listen to me. Listen to doctors like Doctor Baughman or Dr. Breggin. Read some books like Talking Bakc To Ritalin. Do some research. Don’t trust anyone me or your doctor blindly. Because you are your child’s last defense.

There is another possibility though, And this i know because i am an archaeologist. It has nothing to do with my husband being staff at Vienna tech with a PHD that emphasises quantum mechanics and has nothing to do with his grasp of the scientific method. This comes from studies done by archaeology on children. Children’s brains do not finnish developing till they are int heir mid twenties. The last thing to develop is the frontal lobe. And it is the frontal lobe, that causes largely calm down and balanced decision making etc. It is the self editor in the brain and that isn’t fully done growing till the mid twenties. Children are supposed to be…. Children. That is how nature has designed them. There is no physical test that can distinguish which it is ADHD or just childhood. What is more there are over 400 other things, physical things that CAN be tested for using actual legitimate science that often cause ADHD symptoms and are NOT looked for as a standard prior to ADHD diagnosis.

If it were my kid, I would first, rule out all the physical possibilities before turning to the spectral evidence.

There are however many very legitimate and real forms of LD and those can be extremely serious and it is crucially important to know what those are to properly take care of your child and education is so important.

But don’t take my word on anything. Look it all up for yourself. Get information from unbiast sources, sources not payed for by the anti drug folks and not payed for by the pro drug folks or read both and realize the truth falls somewhere in the middle. It is still scary then to put your kid on medication. Because the truth does fall as it always does between extremes somewhere.

So please don’t listen to me. And don’t listen to subjective opinion. Please do listen to the facts that science uncovers on these matters and do the research and hhopefully this should get you started.

Submitted by Mandi on Fri, 10/01/2010 - 10:21 PM

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This does not sound at all like any kind of ADHD I have ever seen. What it sounds like to me, is something else completely. I used to do some volunteer work at a chorus for the retarded and for those with autism. It sounds to me, and I am no expert just someone who volunteered a few months at a chorus playing piano and assisting kids with developmental issues get to the bathroom, and trying to teach them simple songs… ADHD is alledgedly related to autism and the autism spectrum is pretty big i hear. He may be a very mild case?

As for the rest of it, turning letters around is something I used to do. Because, I am dyslexic. It could be a symptom of dyslexia. That being said many of the behaviors you are describing don’t sound anything like a combo of dyslexia and ADHD. i think you should get a real evaluation from someone qualified to diagnose anything desides ADHD.

They love diagnosing ADHD, because there is payment twice to the doctor for that. Once from the drug company who they wind up kind of repping for to the worried parents who just want their kid to be normal. Then they get payed again through the patient they see. So, it is proffitable for them to pretty much make up anything that will get them payed twice rather than once. If it were my kid, I would go get a couple of alternative opinions as the diagnosis for ADHD is lacking in all scientific merit. ( I know this because my husband a PHD in theoretical physics presently staff at Vienna tech uni has studied it to see if it is scientific in methodology, the verdict is, not in the slightest.) It is made, based on completely subjective opinion.

Something is clearly wrong with your child. I don’t pretend to know what, but if my kid were behaving as yours is, ADHD would be the last of my concerns and I would be looking very seriously into autism.

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