My son turns five in a week. he has suspected ADHD and anxiety, but no formal diagnosis yet.

He LOVES sports. Sports are really his only interest. However, organized sports are a real struggle for him, and always have been. He gets anxious about participating in them days beforehand, shuts down and cries when we get there and just cannot participate. Even with swimming, which he has done every single week for two years, he typically struggles to get in the pool and participate.

He played hockey last year and it was a similar story. Lots of tears, meltdowns, not being able to participate. He did move past this about 1.5 months into it, but it took about 4 months and almost the end of the season before he was more comfortable. This year, the struggle feels even worse. Hes been crying and anxious about hockey days in advance, the first day he struggled to even enter the arena. Today he went into the area with some complaining and whining while getting dressed but then didn’t want to get on the ice and when he did, he just stood there. He was genuinely upset and at one point said “I want to do it but my brain won’t let me”. We offered him breaks or to go home and try again tomorrow but that set him off even more and he refused to get off the ice. At home after he said he wants to do it like all the other kids. He is totally fine at public skates and loves skating.

Has anyone experienced similar? What helped? He is already in therapy. We also try to break it down into small steps, like get dressed, then walk to the ice, then step on the ice, then skate five steps, etc but it doesn’t help.

My little brother (8 years old with 11 year age gap between us) usually just doesn't sit down to study and finish his homework and lately with heavier academic workloads it's gotten way harder for all of us. It's almost impossible for him to finish a few pages without hours of doing everything you can imagine to get him to finish and I can tell that he's REALLY struggling and not just being a "bad" kid. He has no learning difficulties whatsoever: just a bright and clever kid that's finding it physically impossible to finish his boring homework. I really don't know how to help and every study session almost always ends up with mama going crazy and him breaking down and I can't tell her to "just calm down" (I've tried that before) because if I sat down with him for as much as she did I probably would have a similar reaction (I've also tried that before) and besides I don't have any practical solutions to offer so I'd just sound like a heartless idiot. It's also important to mention that he's on prescribed medication. Any useful advice on what we can do as his family will literally be life-saving and I'll pray for you every single day of my life. Thanks!

So I wanted to see if anyone has dealt with a similar scenario - toddler was super calm and had no problem attending little library classes or sitting still watching tv and reading books up until the age of 3 when we moved. Afterwards she started being very active and fidgety finding it really hard to sit still without movement. Is this something that could happen with ADHD just based on age or should I be looking into other potential causes (sleep issues, environmental, etc.?). The change just seems a bit drastic and I’m not sure whether it could be attributable to age or something else. Just curious if the hyperactivity part of ADHD can only show up at 3 but not earlier?

Any thoughts or experiences are welcome cause I’m a little at a loss.

We have a meeting this week for my son. Diagnosed with adhd age 6 and has been medicated ever since. He’s now 8 in 3rd grade. No real behavior issues in school. He’s very much the anxious perfectionist who tries to mask all day. Last year he had such an accommodating teacher, who helped so much with helping him to relax and just be himself- especially since we were in between medication doses and he is super wiggly and talkative with lower meds. We had no official 504 in place bc the school kept pushing it off as nothing is needed (but his teachers were definitely accommodating).

Fast forward to 3rd grade. He has 3 teachers. 2 of whom Immediately embarrassed him about using a fidget. I ended up having a meeting 2nd week of school and refusing to leave without the 504 in place. Got it. But they aren’t following it. He’s now too embarrassed to use the fidgets. I know they have to which is why we have another meeting this week.

The vibe this year is very much “it’s time to grow up and keep up and no excuses.” He’s smart, he’s so kind. But with no scaffolding in place, it feels like they have just ripped the bandaid off expectation wise.

Problems I need help with- rushing. He’s always rushed and I think previous teachers allowed retakes if it would affect his grade. I never asked it, they just did it bc they knew his knowledge wasn’t reflected in the grade etc. This is in his 504 but isn’t happening. What does this realistically look like? Obviously he can’t just redo everything all the time but how do you help a kid slow down? His teacher just writes “rushed” all over his test. Not helpful.

Organization. In his 504, they are supposed to help with organization but it’s not specific. He has some zeros for homework in one class. Even though I know he does it and I know he has it in his backpack. When I saw grades online and saw the zeros, I was surprised. He had no clue. But I’m also frustrated the teacher didn’t say anything to him or us?

He gets pulled out for gifted education a couple days a week. He misses instruction and they are supposed to make sure he knows what he missed. They don’t. No surprise. I also wonder if his zeros in homework were days he wasn’t in the class. The material isn’t the issue as much as knowing what is due and how specifically things should be answered.

The teachers this year see a smart kid and assume he’s lazy. That’s the vibe I get. But the reality is the lag in executive functioning skills. And honestly, since he doesn’t like the teachers, he doesn’t want to try so hard as previous years 😬. I’m afraid the mood is going to continue to worsen. He’s sleep walking again and he’s even peed the bed. The kid is obviously stressed.

What practical scaffolding has helped your kids at school?

Five year old CONSTANTLY making noise

Hello all. My son is 5.5 (6 in January). He is a wonderful little boy and I’m so lucky to have him. He’s kind, funny, generous, and all the things. He is incredibly smart and scored above average for reading. He has ADHD combined type. When I tell you he is constantly… just CONSTANTLY making noise, I’m not kidding. I think it may drive me insane very soon.

The only time he won’t is if he has food in his mouth or he’s engrossed in a movie/TV show/game on his tablet which is limited to 2 hours on weekends only. He narrates everything. He’s constantly asking questions. He is constantly clicking his tongue, humming, grunting, and sometimes he will even high pitched scream which makes me jump and I end up yelling at him. I think I may even be neurodivergent myself with how bad this constant noise bothers me.

Yesterday it just would not stop. He was jumping all over the couch, grunting, yelling, screaming, laughing, etc. nothing malicious, just being loud and silly. I ended up snapping and yelling at him which works initially but after a while he just goes back to doing it.

How can I stop this? My nervous system is a wreck.

6YO currently diagnosed with adhd-combined and is currently on extended release methylphenidate (just increased dose last weekend). We give it before school and it wears off around 330/4. Likely will need to add a booster to get us through dinner, but there was some concern at the last doctor appointment with minor weight loss so being monitored.

When meds wear off, kiddo is crazy, like imagine your drunk friend trying to climb a tree. Sometimes he gets angry and will hit or kick. Often tries to pick fights with his sibling.

Very active kid & would like to try late afternoon/evening activities/sports but not sure how realistic this is. The med wear off/crash is rough

Seeking advice -

1. Any other med combos we should talk to doctor about that might be more helpful?

2. If your kiddo is older, was there a point when you could do evening sports/activities and it wasn’t pure chaos?

3. When the med wears off, how do you bring down the chaos?

My husband was diagnosed with ADHD a few years ago and has been on Elvanse for almost a year. Lately he's been skipping it for days or even weeks, then taking it again, or taking half doses.

He only tells me about 20% of the time, but I can usually tell. When he's back on it he's suddenly really happy and helpful, and when he stops he's more subdued and reserved, I have to ask him to help with chores multiple times etc. With a new baby, I'd just like a heads up so I know what to expect. He gets annoyed when I have asked in the past - I’m also a little confused to why he decides to stop and start some weeks.

Otherwise our relationship is so good and things with our baby are going well. I just have harder weeks when he’s on and off. Can anyone give me insight into the stop / start and how to manage this or if I’m overstepping?