Childhood onset bipolar disorder

[Anonymous]

I also suggest an neuropsychological evaluation as a starting place. Daisy Pascualvaca, PhD is wonderful. (3301 New Mexico Ave NW, Washington, DC 20016-3622, [phone])

Our son (ADHD) started seeing Dr. Daniel Pine when he was six. (The Ross Center for Anxiety & Related Disorders, 5225 Wisconsin Ave, NW, Suite, 400, Washington, D.C. 20015 , 202-363-1010) He is making great progress.


Best of luck to you.

[Anonymous]

Op here. I know this thread is old but I thought an update was in order. We found a great Dr. who agreed on the diagnosis and my desire not to medicate. I think we lasted just 3 months before deciding we needed to. Life has been great until this past week and we are currently sitting in the ER waiting for him to be transfered to another hospital to be commited. Childrens failed us again and would not take him because of his age and diagnosis.

[Anonymous]

I'm so very sorry, OP. Please know that I'm thinking about you and your family right now and hoping for the best. Please keep us updated, especially if you don't have a sympathetic support network. I can only impagine how tough this is for you right now.

[Anonymous]

Oh dear, OP, I'm sorry to hear that.

DO you mean you will now medicate going forward? Or that child started medication yet are at the ER?

[Anonymous]

Sorry to hear that OP, Please keep us posted on how things are going. Maybe this episode will help connect you with some doctors/therapists who can help your son. Children's is not the only facility out there......

[Anonymous]

Back to an old pp post regarding the testing for minerals, etc you could try Kelly Dorfman. I think she is in Potomac, maybe she could help you

[Anonymous]

I would go to a major center for an evaluation - Children's or Kennedy-Krieger. Insurance is likely to cover some or most of it and because they are usually in-network providers, their rates are likely to be cheaper than a private evaluator. They have tons of specialists on staff and are likely to give your child a more detailed look-over than a private psychiatrist.

You might also want to see if NIH has any studies you could be a part of -- you'd get detailed evaluations in many instances and there would be no cost. Good luck!

[Anonymous]

Before you start exploring alternative therapies, which usually have little research behind them, I would consult a real psychiatrist at a real research center. Good luck, OP -- it sounds like you are facing some difficult stuff. Moreover, if you are concerned about cost, these alternative therapies are not covered in most cases and have little track record. Get a full evaluation from a teaching hospital like Children's or Kennedy-Krieger if at all possible.

[Anonymous]

Dear lord, OP, words fail me. I'm so very sorry for what you and your family are going through. My heart goes out to you. You are in my thoughts. Good luck. Please keep us posted.

[Anonymous]

Here's a link to a couple of the NIH studies. We participate in anxiety research and think highly of Dr. Pine. Our dev ped knows him and also thinks well of him. Best of luck to you, OP.

http://clinicalstudies.info.nih.gov/cgi/wais/bold032001.pl?A_00-M-0198.html@bipolar

http://clinicalstudies.info.nih.gov/cgi/wais/bold032001.pl?A_02-M-0021.html@bipolar

[Anonymous]

Children's totally let us down on a psych admit during a manic phase (he's autistic, not BP, but was on a med that was making him seem BP). They kept him there in the ER for 8 hours without doing anything. Pointless.

Anyway, OP we are thinking of you. I hope you get the help you need soon. I agree with the recommendation for Kennedy Krieger.

[Anonymous]

So sorry, OP. Why is it so hard to get kids help?????

FWIW, we did a neurospych at Kennedy Krieger and we did not suspect autism. Also, we have bad insurance and it was still covered completely.

[Anonymous]

Early onset bipolar is overdiagnosed. Make sure you see somebody who knows what they are talking about and is a careful diagnostician. There is a local expert, a woman associated with NIMH, whom I was told is the best person in the area. I can't remember her name, but I'll look it up and post later.

[Anonymous]

Best of luck to you and your boy, OP. Please keep us updated - we are concerned for you.

[Anonymous]

OP here. I want to be very clear when I say that Children's refuses to treat him. They will not take a boy his age with his diagnosis. I tried to get him into the NIMH study but they too wouldn't take him because of his age and diagnosis. They said to call back after he turns seven which thankfully will be pretty soon.

My son is still in the PIW and I have no idea when he will be released. It's difficult to get there everyday because the hours are very restricted, are during rush hour, and the PIW is an hour away without traffic. DH and I were sure that at least one of us visited him each day and it was so sad to see that our child was the only one that had a visitor all weekend. The staff there is good and our own psychiatrist volunteers there which gives me confidence that he will receive the care he needs.

We are taking it one day at a time but DH's family is making it difficult. They think DS just needs a good beating or the super nanny and won't understand it's not a discipline problem.