Did medication at 4 for ADHD help social/language issues?
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Anonymous
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I have a closing in on 4 year old with moderate-severe ADHD with aspects that have been apparent for years, and a diagnosis that has been clear for a year. Kid also has delays in social skills and some language (mostly social/pragmatic now) delays. From a purely symptom/delay helping perspective (that is, ignoring all of the other things that go into a decision to medicate or not), I have been waffling about whether I really think the meds would help generally, because the social/language delays were evident well before the ADHD symptoms became really problematic. I'm sure the ADHD symptoms are not helping, but I think there's another underlying deficit, so I had been thinking, why medicate, it won't touch the bigger issues which are bigger priorities right now.
But I just saw a comment in another thread that a parent said moving to medication had allowed their child to benefit from the interventions related to social skills. And that's sort of our main problem now - virtually no progress is being made and it's maddening, and also increasingly concerning, since we're talking some of the foundational skills necessary for school success (and you know, peer relationships and the like). So, for those of you who at least trialed medication at 4, or thereabouts, and/or continued it, did you have a similar experience? Did it seem to make a difference with other delays /issues like in language or social skills? Do you think those issue were due to ADHD or another issue (diagnosable/sum-up-able or not)? Just trying to get a read on whether my original thinking (in simplest form - issues are not caused by ADHD therefore not likely helped by treating ADHD) is incorrect, and whether I need to rerun the calculus on medicating with some updated possibilities. |
Anonymous
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I was the poster who talked about my child with ASD/ADHD improving dramatically socially after going on ADHD medication at 7. His social issues was what caused us to get him evaluated when DS was 4 and looking back, I wish they had found the ADHD first and he was medicated then instead of waiting until he was 7.
DS has ADHD, combined type. The running in circles and inability to sit still, etc. we thought were stims from the ASD. DS has had pretty intensive social skills training since he was 4 but it really did not seem to "click" until this year in third grade. He started meds at the end of 2nd grade. DS is finally able to focus on his own emotions. He is able to talk about "how he feels" and is touch with his own emotions which transfers into understanding the feelings of others. Also, he understands what he is learning in his social skills classes and is able to put what he learns into practice because he understands what is going on in his inner life and everyone else's. Like a different kid literally. I have ADHD and while it never affected me academically, I am finally more "in tune" with my emotions on ADHD meds. It's hard to explain but the ADHD meds lets us focus more on our emotional life when there has always been a disconnect. Much happier! |
Anonymous
| We started shortly after 5th birthday, in pre k. It was miraculous to child and us. We called it stop and think medicine and it really helped DC do that. You can try it to see how it works. Results, if working, were immediate for us on stimulant. Give it 2 or 2 days and see! |
Anonymous
| We started at age 4 right before his 5th birthday, and this was my main motivation as I care less about "academics" at this age. We have seen huge benefits regarding this. In fact, we were both struck by the dramatic difference in eye contact and back and forth conversation that stayed on topic. Huge for him! We are on a VERY low dose, so low in fact that I suspect we will need to increase at least before next year, but it is making a big doference for him. For us, it's a difference between considering a special needs school versus feeling like we can brave mainstream public with an IEP. |
Anonymous
We have the same doctor I'm sure as that's what we call it too : ) I think that if it is going to work at all, you will know pretty quickly. Though, keep in mind that there can be a trial and error by medication and dose. We just happened to have good effects from the first one we tried. |
Anonymous
| I am right there with you op. My son just turned 4. What kind of social issues are you seeing? My son is very socially motivated and interested but can get too in the face, excited, wild. He has a mild receptive and expressive delay and does a co treat with ot because he can't sit still. |
Anonymous
| My child was a couple years older but medication helped both socially and academically. Their reading level improved dramatically over the summer we started. |
Anonymous
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21:31 again. One of the ways our psychiatrist determines whether DS's meds are working is if DS can sit face to face and hold a conversation with the normal give and take.
Before seeing this doctor, I did not realize the inability to hold a conversation (and not going on and on about his favorite subjects) was due to the ADHD. |
Anonymous
When the med is not working, DS will be running around or sticking his head into the sofa cushions either not answering or giving one word answers. Completely unable to have a conversation and this is with an adult and DS is generally much better with adults. I can't imagine what it must have been like with peers before meds. Anyway, now he has a group of friends at school and he is the leader according to his teachers. |
Anonymous
My son is exactly like this. This is what I am hoping will improve. He just can't still his body long enough to focus on anything really. |
Anonymous
Socially - just not interacting with peers. Some it is not sticking around in one place long enough to start those interactions. I think play skills (which were previously behind) have caught up such that that foundation is there, but a lot of it seems to be sort of failing to register what another kid is doing. Likes other kids, now tolerates them nearby, but responding to another kids overtures? Sticking around/attending long enough for another kid to respond in what *could* be a conversational exchange (albeit prompted on her side), nope. I think some delayed language skills come into play here too, but they're sufficient for some more interaction than we see. There *does* seem to be some motivation/interest, but social awareness - registering what is going on around, non verbal cues, tone of voice, being spoken to - seems to be fairly lacking at least with peers. That said, she's much better with adults, particularly 1:1 and in really really small groups - but adults can do more of the heavy lifting in an interaction. There's just a real qualitative lack of engagement in the give and take of social interactions that is difficult to describe - like you're interacting with me, but half the time (with adults, nearly all the time with peers) there's a feeling something is missing, we're just not on the same wave length - and difficult to pin on a particular issue. And then other times when it's that over the top/too excited issue - she's bowling kids over with hugs (failing to register they clearly don't want one right now), getting too loud, etc. It's hard to parse out if it's simply an issue picking up some (both subtle and overt) social cues, or also an inability to make use of them when she picks them up, but I suspect some of both. I think with adults it looks like "you're just not paying attention" until you get some longer qualitative experience with her, but with peers it seems really evident to me, given the real lack of interaction, that it's more than that with them. |
Anonymous
| Thank you for the replies, this has been very helpful. If we wanted to discuss the option for medication, where would we start (seeing as we're at the beginning of the 6-8 month wait for a developmental peds appointment)? We had been seeing someone out of network, but I don't think we can afford to do so (at least at the rates we had to pay) for more regular/ongoing appointments should we go down this road. I'm sure her pediatrician would not be willing to manage medication at this age (if ever). We're in DC, recs appreciated - even if generic (type of practitioner), though I suppose if we started with someone out of network and finally go one of those insurance covered appointments, we could transition over. Maybe in network is a fools errand though - I can't find a decent psychiatrist for me in network, I can't imagine it's easier for kids, but perhaps there are other places to start? |
Anonymous
| My kids are inattentive, not hyperactive. We started using medication when they were 5-6. Medication made no difference on their social/language issues. The social issues my kids had were related to either anxiety, language delays or the misinterpretation of intent/clues. Medication did help them regulate their attention so they could learn better but the only thing that really helped their language was therapy/practice/maturity. For one kid, we used Prozac to manage anxiety (at one point, it was more problematic than ADHD) and that made a big difference in his social interactions. GL. |
Anonymous
| Bumping. I need more information on this. We are in the exact same spot. |
Anonymous
| Also - op your kid sounds so much like mine. What underlying deficit are you suspecting? |