Published on 12, July, 2020
Hi,
I have a 3 year old diagnosed Autistic son, he will be 4 years old in October. He's non verbal, still in nappies, and ticks all the autism symptoms boxes. He's being put forward for Pathway 1 assessment towards his EHCP.
He is also incredibly hyper, not in the usual 3 year old boy type of way. He can't sit/stay still for even 60 seconds unless he is ill/sick. His mind races at 100 miles per hour at all times. It's very hard to get him to learn anything as nothing holds his attention long enough.
I'm certain he has ADHD as well as Autism, I know the two conditions often present themselves together. I know of one child in Scotland who is on ADHD medication at 4 years old. I know in the USA they prescribe it for kids at 3 years old if necessary.
I live in the South of England. In your experience what is the minimum age that you have "actually" heard of or seen (if it's your child) ADHD medication being prescribed.
Thanks,
Chris
Hi Chris, the reason to delay ADHD meds as long as possible are two fold
1) they are appetite suppressant and the younger the child the greater the risk of low appetite affecting growth. It's the commonest reason for ceasing meds
2) Even older kids struggle to give useful feedback on how they feel on medication. Observing calmer behaviour could be a good drug response or it could be a child feeling unwell on the meds.
Having said this if there's discussion about not starting meds then you need to ask for assistance on a behavioural program... totally get how exhausting a wired kid is and I'm dealing with teens! We attended a course (we are in NZ) on behaviour strategies and we are already getting benefits...and this is with teens.
With behavioural programs you need to be a bit of a detective. There will be some things that hold his attention. What are they? Use them and visual prompts in learning e.g. a poo chart with a reward for sitting after a meal on the potty with a something that interests him (e.g. a spinning toy) for a few minutes and a reward for a poo.
If he's non-verbal consider using BSL so he can connect the visual sign for a poo and the action. Likely you will have to use the sign several dozen times but with luck he will eventually use it to tell you he needs one!
QF,
Thanks for the informative reply. I assume my sons pediatrician won't prescribe the ADHD meds anyway due to his age. The vitamins Jo mentioned look worth trying, with fish oils helping brain function and a number of people reviewing them saying them help with their child's behavior etc
I need to learn more about bringing up a child with Autism, got a lot of other stuff going on in life at the moment so hard to make time... but that should be changing soon.
He's being assessed by the councils special education team at the moment. He's on Pathway 1, which is for children with Complex needs. They've not decided to do his EHCP yet, which is a statement declaring what support he'll require at school. But anyone who's seen him says they will agree to do it when they have all the evidence they need... so when he goes to school I guess his education should be more extensive.
But I will work a lot harder at it myself... in terms of toilet training. He hates sitting on the toilet. I try to time it after he's eaten... I even give him a spinning toy such as a fidget spinner or helicopter for sitting there. But it's like he holds it in, and two minutes after being taken off the toilet, his nappies full.
I'll persevere though... eventually it'll sink in.
You can get omega 3 oils made from algae that are much easier to hide in munch bunch yogurt. If you do want to try omega 3 there is a recommended dose per kg to try, I would have to look it up!
The good news is that you can mix up to 5 ml of oil in 1 TBSP yoghurt before things start getting suspicious (yep, we checked). Get a non flavoured one that gives at least 1000mg of omega 3 per 5 ml, aiming for 500mg per day
The main thing is with all these interventions, they work for some kids and not for others.
My own experience as an ND adult is Omega 3 oils only have worked for me when I've not been anaemic and that means they've only worked since my early 40s when my current GP was confident enough to decide the hormones and anaemia were a worse risk for depression than the risk incurred by use of the oral contraceptive pill over the age of 35.
My SO is also ND and the only thing fish oil does for him is to give him fishy burps ;)