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[quote=Anonymous]I am a mom of two ADHD children, not a psychologist, psychiatrist, or a pediatrician.  My opinion and advice may not apply to your child because I do not know your child or what disability your child has.

In my children's cases, I did see significant impact to their self esteem between 3rd and 5th grade.  Their disabilities really had an impact with reading comprehension but in the early years, they could mask their problems by listening to the teacher and other children talking about books in their reading groups.  They realized as they got older, they were having difficulties getting the same info. from reading as their peers, they felt dumb, and they did not want anyone to know.

Their self esteem issues and anxieties about school became better when their needs began to be addressed through an IEP and a private Special Education tutor.  In middle school, my daughter was sensitive to other kids knowing she had an IEP.  She had a particularly bad teacher in 6th grade that told the class that she got special accommodations because she had a disability.  It hurt a lot at first, but then she realized her friends and peers did not treat her differently.  She also made some new friends that she kept close with through high school that also had IEPs and they helped each other navigate through school problems.

The key question a professional should evaluate your child for is what is the root cause of the self esteem issue?  Low self esteem, anxiety, depression could be symptoms of a comorbid mental health disorder or it could be a normal reaction to the stress your child deals with when facing an education system that is not meeting his/her needs.  Our pediatrician used the approach of first educational supports (accommodations at school and tutoring) and then we moved on to medication for treatment of the ADHD symptoms.  When we saw the self esteem and anxiety issues improve, we knew my children did not need treatment for a comorbid mental health issue.  [/quote]

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