Long time no post

Cody is doing well. He's lost both his front teeth in the last two months, both being knocked out by himself!! One by jumping over a swing in Utah and the next he was playing with an umbrella. But school wise he's doing very well. They are seeing huge improvement in learning and behavior. He's reading better and has pretty much accepted the fact that he has to go to school everyday. But he has an awesome teacher and had two wonderful student teachers.

We are now getting ready for Christmas. I am excited to see him open his gifts. We tried to buy less gifts this year. We tend to spend too much on him since he's our only child. We are very grateful for him and the cute things he says and does. He may be a bit high maintenance but he's my little man and I couldn't imagine life without him. He's going through a funny phase right now. He has a cute, funny personality. He loves to make Daniel and I laugh and is trying to be very independent lately. He will be 8 in a couple of months. Hard to believe but he's getting so old...and so am I (but that's another story).

Kiai!!

Cody practiced Karate with an Occupational Therapist at the camp he went to this past summer and loved it. He kept telling us that he wants to do karate with Sensi Wayne (that's the OT from the camp). I contacted him to see if there was a program like his in our area and I quickly received a call from him. He told me that he didn't know of any other program like his anywhere. The program he runs is karate for high functioning Autism and ADD kids. He's been in the paper many times and received all sorts of awards. He's also a really good surfer and has a surfing camp during the summer. We thought about it and decided that it was something that Cody would have fun doing. We signed him up...only one problem...he's all the way out in Tustin. We did a trial class and we were amazed at how powerful Cody is and how karate really keeps his focus. We were stunned. Of course they teach the kids that it's only for self defense and sport/health so that they don't start doing karate on everyone they know!! He also emphasizes respect and love for parents to the kids. We are three weeks into it. He only goes on Saturdays right now but after seeing the confidence it gives him and the focus we couldn't deny him this experience. Plus it wears him out which nothing else does. It's worth the 35-40 minute drive.

If anyone is thinking about karate for their child and the child has some focus and attention problems I really recommend this program. Cody is testing in two weeks to receive his first stripe and we are very excited. Watch out world, this kid is already talking about getting his black belt!

Audiology

A couple of weeks ago we took Cody out to Laguna Niguel to see an Audiologist. The recommendation came from the psychologist who performed his Psycho-Ed eval. Sometimes there are other factors that can affect the child's focus on top of the ADHD. Hearing problems have shown to contribute to hyperactivity and loss of focus. We were very anxious to have this testing done. This ADHD thing has really opened a new world to us that we didn't even know existed. It seems that we are lead from one thing and then another and sometimes feels like there's never an end.
Okay, so back to the Audiologist appointment. Her name is Maria Abramson, Au.D., CCC-A, FAAA (what all of those initials mean...I have not a clue) She was extremely nice and really seemed to know what she was doing. She had two sound proof booths, one for Cody and another where we remained to see how Cody performed for the first test. The first test was just your every day...push a button when you hear the sound test. He did fine with this one. Next Daniel and I went back to the front office while she continued with more tests. She took his snack and some water that I had brought with them and said, "he's going to need this".(luckily I brought something) About and hour and half later she appeared at the door to call us back to her office to discuss the results.

So we all know that the brain is an amazingly complicated organ. Luckily I had an good anatomy class in college so I understood everything. Most of us know that the right side of our brain controls the left side of our body. The same goes for your ears. But your speech center is on the left side. Cody has a left ear weakness which means that when he hears out of his left ear it takes more time to process the info. When you hear out of your left ear the sound has to go to the right side of the brain and since the right side of the brain doesn't "talk" the info has to be sent back to the left side of the brain to speak and process. If you have a left ear weakness and someone/teacher is talking fast or softly the right ear may be picking up noises from another source while your left ear is picking up what your teacher is teaching. The info takes longer to process and in that time you are already distracted by the other noise and therefore miss what your teacher is saying because you processed the right ear noise quicker and was distracted by it.
It sounds confusing the way I say it, but the Dr. managed to explain it very clear.
                                                             As you see in this picture the sound goes in the left ear and is

sent to the right side of the brain and then sent back to the left side to the speech center.

This condition is not caused by ADHD, but is it's own disorder that is added on top. There are ways to strengthen his left ear and we plan to try our best to correct this issue. But some reports have shown that this issue improves as the child matures. Like I said, the brain is a crazy, complicated organ.

Next step is to have Cody tested for sensory issues. We are going to cover all of our bases.

Finished with a smile!

Friday was Cody's last day of camp. He completed 5 weeks of "Therapeutic Camp" and I can report that he's made good progress and has learned some coping skills for when he gets frustrated. All of the counselors were sad to hear that Cody wasn't taking part in the 6th week Adventure week. I didn't think he was old enough to do the things they were going to be doing. Anyhow, all of them gave him a big hug or did their special handshakes. It was good to see what good relationships he built with them and a few of the kids there. This is a big accomplishment for Cody. Mostly everyday I picked him up he had a huge smile on his face. Daniel and I feel that paying the money that we did for this camp was well worth it.

 When campers have a good day they give them the award of Camper of the Day. He was pretty stoked to get this along with an Eagle award which is a big deal. I guess not a lot of campers get this. It means that the camper is making huge steps in the right direction and that they can tell. It took us by surprise but we were very proud of him and tried to make him know that it was a big deal. We celebrated with icees!!

 This is a cologe of the many activities they did in the 5 weeks. It consists of rock climbing (which by week 3 he was doing it blind folded), played soccer, went to the beach, had karate lessons by a trained Occupational Therapist, Cody was an Eagle in the short movie they put together. They went to Knott's Berry Farm and Boomers. They also met in groups and talked about the many ways they could make friends and cope with frustrating time.

We can't express enough how proud of Cody we are and how we can see changes here at home in the course of the 5 weeks. Besides having to drive to Huntington Beach everyday (most days in traffic) it was a good experience. I love my little man and I will do anything to make life as an ADHD child easier. I am really hopeful that this camp will continue to help him when he starts school again.

Week three

I am happy to report that Cody is doing very well at camp. The first two weeks were okay with a few issues but now he's a champ rock climber, happy soccer player and master at arts and crafts. They have gone to the beach were he rode a boogie board for the first time and loved it...Daddy wants to take him surfing already. They've gone to Knott's Berry Farm and this last week they went to the Science and Discovery Center. He is now having a lot of fun and getting really good reports from the counselors that his attitude has become much more positive and that he's progressing very well. I am also happy to report that things at home are running smoother as well. We are experiencing much less fits, he's doing chores, listening better, getting along with people better, and being much more independent. We've established new house rules that he's attending to very well after enforcing them very consistently. We are ecstatic with the results we are seeing. We love our little guy and always have, but now things around the house are much more peaceful and positive.

Day three

Day three of Summer Camp Quest, and thus far we are doing well. He was very scared the first day but was soon put at ease by the camp counselors. He had a good report that day. They receive points during the day that at the end of the week they get to use towards a treat from their store. The second day was the first rock wall climb day and Cody was having nothing to do with it no matter what I said or how I said it. I told his counselor that he was very apprehensive to do the rock wall. But turns out he did extremely well (he got bonus points!) and now has said that it is awesome! I was so relieved to hear that he did well and really liked it since they do the rock wall once a week. They also participate in physical ed. through a karate instructor. Another thing that Cody has really enjoyed. So, thus far, things are going in the right direction. We, as parents are also involved in the point system. He has the opportunity to earn 20 points a day at home by working towards his "at home goals". His at home goals are things such as doing his chores, and doing things independently like getting dressed, and starting his own shower water, etc...
We are so glad this is going to be a positive environment for him this summer to learn and have fun.

Cody had his first visit to the hospital (not counting the ER visits). He had to have an EKG to check his QT interval to make sure it isn't prolonged. We should hear back today to see what his results are. We are expecting everything to be fine and hopefully start some new meds to control the hyperactivity. Cody was very nervous but he did a great job. Poor kid has been through so much lately.
We also got the results of his Psycho Ed Analysis and all results point to a focus problem which we pretty much already knew. He did really well visually but auditory he struggled. Overall she said that Cody is a very bright kid but is going to need help learning. I've committed myself to working with him almost every day of the week this summer to keep him at grade level.
We were also referred to an Auditory Center which I am going to get an appointment as soon as his camp ends in August. They will be able to tell us if he's hearing things/sounds differently and how we can help him learn.

another med...

Well, just a short note to say that we went to the Dr. yesterday for Cody's annual physical/well check and spent the whole time discussing his meds. Cody now needs to have an EKG to see if he has a long QT wave length...or something with the QT and seeing if he has some heart problems before adding new meds. We may be adding a new med to tame the hyperactivity that his meds (Strattera) now is not controlling. We also discussed turrets disorder and how it's a motion disorder. We spent about 30-45min. going over what meds control what symptoms. It kind of made my head spin because there are so many different symptoms lumped under ADD disorder. I am grateful that I have Daniel to talk calm me down when I leave the Dr.'s office. He processing things quicker than I do. I need some time to let all the info sink in and then I am ready to start doing more research on the new info.
Daniel and I are also going to Cody's psychologist tomorrow to discuss the results of his Psycho Educational Analysis. I will admit I am a bit overwhelmed and am hoping we get good news that he's on track and should be prepared for the second grade. I will update after we have our parents meeting tomorrow.

We made it!!

Celebrate good times...COME ON!!

Oh what a relief...1st grade is done! Second grade here we come!!

After a short break of course!

Here is Cody's awesome 1st grade teacher Mrs. Deegan.

I felt a deep need to make a big deal of Cody's accomplishment since he hates school and struggled so hard. Cody finally stopped playing with the kids he was having trouble with. The last few days of school Cody behaved very well and his teacher said it was because one specific boy in the class that bothers Cody wasn't there. I am hoping that Cody will have a new group of kids in his second grade class to see if his behavior improves.

 I spent most of the last day of school with Cody at his class while they played in their mini gym and had a pizza party for lunch.

Cody had a spirit assembly at his school today. The kids get awards if they've accomplished something in the past few months. Cody received an award for his Perseverance. He has worked pretty hard this year and we are very proud of him. All but one reading test is done for this school year. Next we are having Cody get a Psycho Educational Evaluation. These are subject specific testing to address behavior health problems and to see exactly where he's at in his academics so we know what to work on this summer and be prepared for come next school year. We were also informed that his principal will be retiring this year. We really loved our school principal and she has helped Cody out so much. We can only hope that the next one will be as flexible and loving towards Cody. We are anxious to find out who Cody's second grade teacher will be. I have been doing my research and hope I don't annoy his teacher too much. Daniel and I have continued helping out in Cody's class and we really enjoy it. The kids are very loving and are always excited when you show up to help. It's been a great experience this year. A lot has happened. We are very grateful for everyone who has supported us!

Cody getting his award from the principal

Back to school

I've spent two mornings at Cody's school this week helping out in the classroom. It has been so much fun but a huge eye opener to what this next generation could be like. We are so lucky to have such a wonderful teacher this year. She does an amazing job and believe me, she has her hands full!! What really surprised me, and I guess it really shouldn't but there are some kids in Cody's class that have real issues and it doesn't seem like the parents help them. I am in no place to judge others but I just know how important early intervention is. Some of these kids have real emotional problems. It's sad and makes you want to give them a big hug and help them in any way you can. It's a bit overwhelming. One of my jobs was to help one child with his spelling test. He totally shut down and kept saying that he didn't study and doesn't know his sounds. When I heard that it made me a bit angry towards his parents. I know that parents these days have a lot of their shoulders but if you choose to have children you need to help them be successful. I know what it is like to have a special needs child and how much support and studying he needs to do.
Any how, I will definitely be back to help out and am glad that I have the time to do so. My plea...parents, please help your children be successful!

last week

We are now in our last week of the new medication (Strattera). We go back to the Dr. on Wed to discuss the results. It's hard to say if it's working or not because he's been out of school for a week. The next few days in school should tell us something. But the Psychologist we talked to told us the full benefits of Strattera won't show until about 6-8 weeks.
I am trying to become as knowledgeable as I can so I've been reading a new book that the Psychologist we met with recommended. The book suggests having your child eat a good protein filled meal for breakfast and lunch. Protein is supposed to help with the inattention, and other behaviors that come along with ADHD. I took inventory of all the food Cody will eat and checked the protein and Iron levels. As healthy as Daniel and I are, we are way more relaxed with Cody's eating...which has become a bad thing. Needless to say there are now some snacks that have been thrown out. Cody isn't the best eater so we've been trying extra hard to get him to eat new things. He now wants a peanut butter sandwich for breakfast! The book suggests to buy some type of protein powder that you can put into food or drinks. We already happen to have a chocolate protein powder that we take so we've been putting it in Cody's milk. Cody is a big water drinker so we have to force him to drink the chocolate milk!
The book also recommends that you work on one behavior you would like to change a week. That way it gives them more time to focus on just the one behavior. This book was full of good ideas and I can't wait to start implementing them into our everyday lives.

the good, the bad and the ugly

Well, we are now into the third week of Cody's new meds. I just increased the dosage today and am hoping that I see more results from the meds in the next few days. I am happy to report that we had a follow up SST with the school on Monday and it went very well. The school seems very willing to work with us. We also filled out the paperwork to get Cody started on a 504 plan. This plan will give him special accommodations to be able to be more successful with his academics. We are a little bit bummed that we didn't get this done sooner but there hasn't been very good communication between us and the school prior to me really starting to question how well Cody is doing.

Daniel and I were able to meet with the therapist yesterday that directs the camp that he will be attending this summer. We told her all about Cody and she gave us some recommendations, including that we should request a full Psycho educational evaluation from his school to see exactly where he is in his academics. We will take Cody to meet with her in a couple of weeks. We are very hopeful that this camp will help Cody.

This morning I left Cody at school fighting with another boy that he doesn't get along with and his teacher being totally overwhelmed by them and trying to get her class ready for library time. It's so frustrating because I can't do anything or stay to help until my background is cleared by the district and it's been 3 weeks now. It's not like I have some major conflicts in my past that should be holding this process up! Being a Mom you want to take control of the situation but you have to step back and let the teacher handle it. I stayed in the hallway until her student teacher came but as I was leaving I heard Cody tell the teacher that his so called friends were hurting his feelings. UUGGHH!!! I really wish he would make some new friends. This group of boys he plays with are just the worst! One minute they are nice and the next minute they are mean. So much drama for being in the first grade!

I left with such mixed feelings, wanting to help but knowing that there's nothing I can do...

Day two on new meds

Today marks the second day that Cody has been on his new meds. So far we've had no side effects. No decrease in appetite, no tiredness at school and no anger like previous days. So far things are looking up. Only one thing...no huge results with the hyperactivity so that's either telling me that the dosage may be too low or it's not working. We are hopeful that the dosage is too low. We will be able to increase it in a few days. Lets keep our fingers crossed!!

Next bit of good news is that I found this summer camp that is offered to kids with ADHD. It's called Quest Camps and is directed by what seems to be a very well qualified Psychologist. I spoke to her today and already got Cody all registered. They do 36 hours of therapeutic exercises made into a day camp. They also have little outings to Knotts Berry Farm, Wild Rivers, The Aquarium of the Pacific and other little adventures. The camp is located in Huntington Beach and we are very excited for Cody. I think it sounds like a lot of fun. We were contemplating putting him into the after school/summer program at school just for the socialization practice but this will be much more productive. The camp has research and is backed by studies that have shown these kids have great improvements made in a summer. I had to fill out a very detailed questionnaire about Cody's behavior and goals to make at home and at the camp. They have a good reward system too. They also do some type of therapy sessions through rock climbing...interesting in the least. We are very excited also that it will keep him busy for 6 weeks (give me some rest time)in the summer and make some new friends. Above and below are a couple of the pictures from the website.

A doctor visit

Well, here we go again...we are switching meds again. At our SST (student success team) meeting the school psychologist suggested that we look into switching Cody to a non-stimulant medication. Shows how much I knew and did my homework...I didn't know that there were non-stimulant ADHD meds. Right now Cody is on Adderall which is making him react very emotionally to every little thing and he is still getting distracted in class. After hearing that his Dr. talked to us about switching to Strattera. The only down side is that this med only works for about 50% of people that take it. It doesn't affect sleep and appetite like the Adderall did. We are keeping our fingers triple crossed that it works on Cody because it would mean that his emotional issues will at least be a ton less intense and frequent. It could be 1 week or up to 4 weeks before we know what the full benefits could be if any at all. We are really hoping this med does work on him. His teacher counted how many times Cody would get angry at the other kids in his class for things such as kicking the leg of their desk or tapping their finger on their desk. The total was a whopping 24 times in 6 hours. He's having sensory overload. There are some days where he doesn't react so many times but I was blown away. Daniel and I are still waiting to be approved to work in Cody's class. I am very anxious to see how he behaves when we are there helping. Please keep us in your prayers that this new med works for Cody. It's hard to know how upset he gets and sometimes at night when we talk about things that happened that day he tells me "I just couldn't help it, I can't control my body". On a brighter note, we are happy to report that Cody has passed all of his tests and is on his way to graduating 1st grade.

Like a lamb to the slaughter house

Today I sent my son to school knowing that he isn't getting along with his friends and hates recess time. We had a talk last night before he went to bed. He feels like his friends are mean to him and the other kids don't want to play with him because they think he's a bad kid. It's heartbreaking but what do you do...he has to go to school. He's been suffering socially and it's affecting his school work. Last week report cards came out. He hasn't made any improvements socially from last semester. We have our follow up SST (student success team) in a couple of weeks. I am frustrated with the slow process of trying to get my child on a 504 plan. All of the hoops you have to jump through are ridiculous. I am trying to help my child succeed in school and the school year will be over soon. I have been working an extra hour a day with him on things that he needs practice on and he has a tutor session once a week. He has improved his reading up to grade level which was a concern a month ago. It seems like you make progress and then there's something else that comes up like this friend thing now. I left him this morning and he was walking with another kid to class so that is hopeful. It still feels like I am sending him off to the slaughter house.

Welcome!!

I decided that it was time to set up a blog to journal my family's experiences dealing with ADHD. I am not an experienced writer nor a medical expert. I am only a protective Mother who loves her son with all of her heart. I make mistakes just like everyone but am trying to give my son the best life he can have. Life with ADHD in your family has it's own unique struggles. I hope to find others in the same situation. My son who is 7 years old was diagnosed with ADHD when he was 5. We always suspected something was up because he was always very hyper/active, didn't sleep well, had many ear infections which we believe set him on a path to be speech delayed and led to aggressive behaviors. As he aged he began to show more signs. He wasn't very socially comfortable. He hit, pushed, took toys away from others and really valued his personal space. He also wasn't able to convey what he was trying to say through words so he would try to show by actions. His vocabulary was very limited. He was very impulsive. As his Mother I tried to shelter him and avoid play groups so that we wouldn't have to face any difficult situations, like a fight with another child, but come to find out that wasn't helping him. He had a wonderful Preschool teacher that put us in the right path to get him tested for ADHD. What is sad is that there are still people out there who do not believe the disorder exists. Just spend a day with my family and you will change your mind. I invite others to share their stories and struggles. We can learn so much from each other.