Aa
Where do we turn next?
First off, let me thank you for running this forum and taking the time to answer our questions...its much appreciated.
My wife and I are at our wits end over what to do with our 4.5 year old daughter. She is extremely obnoxious, demanding, loud, bossy and disruptive. She curses constantly, does absolutely everything you can imagine to upset us, and goes out of her way to cause trouble. We have tried seeing a psychiatrist, we have had home visits from a regional mental health centre here, we have tried ritalin and amytryptlene to no avail. We give her time outs in her room when she is misbehaving, which does no good at all, as she is CONSTANTLY behaving inappropriately and we can only put her away for so long. We reward her when she is good, which is NOT very often. We have had EEG and Cat Scans done, which showed nothing. My wife and I are constantly bickering with each other now as we are forever on edge and only get occasional peace and quiet once the child is finally asleep. Our stress level seems to go higher on a daily basis. I am now suffering from insomnia, my wife is ready to have a breakdown and we dont know where else to turn. We are tired of people telling us, 'Oh, she'll grow out of it'. I mean, she has been this way since about 1 year old and is only getting steadily worse! It seems our next step, on the advice of a pediatrician we see, is to try Prozac. Now, that seems a little extreme to me, espescially after all the bad things I've been reading about it. If anything, my wife and I will be the ones going on Prozac. Oh another thing, she also refuses to attend school. We had her in JK for awhile, but for some reason she would no longer go. Her only explanation was that she is scared. We attempted to force her to go, but that only seemed to traumatize her. With school starting again in only a few short months, we have to figure out something. Please give us any advice you may have!
My wife and I are at our wits end over what to do with our 4.5 year old daughter. She is extremely obnoxious, demanding, loud, bossy and disruptive. She curses constantly, does absolutely everything you can imagine to upset us, and goes out of her way to cause trouble. We have tried seeing a psychiatrist, we have had home visits from a regional mental health centre here, we have tried ritalin and amytryptlene to no avail. We give her time outs in her room when she is misbehaving, which does no good at all, as she is CONSTANTLY behaving inappropriately and we can only put her away for so long. We reward her when she is good, which is NOT very often. We have had EEG and Cat Scans done, which showed nothing. My wife and I are constantly bickering with each other now as we are forever on edge and only get occasional peace and quiet once the child is finally asleep. Our stress level seems to go higher on a daily basis. I am now suffering from insomnia, my wife is ready to have a breakdown and we dont know where else to turn. We are tired of people telling us, 'Oh, she'll grow out of it'. I mean, she has been this way since about 1 year old and is only getting steadily worse! It seems our next step, on the advice of a pediatrician we see, is to try Prozac. Now, that seems a little extreme to me, espescially after all the bad things I've been reading about it. If anything, my wife and I will be the ones going on Prozac. Oh another thing, she also refuses to attend school. We had her in JK for awhile, but for some reason she would no longer go. Her only explanation was that she is scared. We attempted to force her to go, but that only seemed to traumatize her. With school starting again in only a few short months, we have to figure out something. Please give us any advice you may have!
MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL
Dear Frustrated,
First of all, you are very welcome re: the Forum. We're glad to try to offer some guidance.
You have your hands full; the situation with your young daughter sounds very stressful and difficult. But take heart - these situations can improve, though I really can't endorse the notion that 'she'll grow out of it'.
The symptoms you describe certainly are well beyond the normal spectrum, and they call for professional intervention without doubt. The key at the outset will be to clarify the diagnosis. The symptoms your daughter displays can typify a number of childhood emotional disorders, chiefly focusing on two major categories of disturbance: Disruptive Behavior Disorder and Mood Disorder.
Let me refer you to a book that you might find useful: The Explosive Child, by Ross Greene, published by Harper Collins. You will 'recognize' your daughter in his depictions of these challenging children.
It might well be that Prozac, or an antidepressant from the same family (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors) might be useful at some point, but I wouldn't proceed too quickly, particularly without the involvement of a child psychiatrist. Pediatricians in general should not be prescribing such medications for children - they don't have the background or expertise.
You have already sought out some appropriate help, but I'm going to head you back in the direction of wiping the slate clean and trying to clarify the diagnosis. If need be, secure the involvement of some new clinicians who might offer you a fresh perspective, with the added benefit of hearing what others have thought. None of what I am saying will give you immediate relief, but might set you on a course that will be useful. And there are some medicines which, prescribed in low doses for a short period of time, might be useful in quieting/containing your daughter. But you'll definitely need to be guided by a child psychiatrist.
First of all, you are very welcome re: the Forum. We're glad to try to offer some guidance.
You have your hands full; the situation with your young daughter sounds very stressful and difficult. But take heart - these situations can improve, though I really can't endorse the notion that 'she'll grow out of it'.
The symptoms you describe certainly are well beyond the normal spectrum, and they call for professional intervention without doubt. The key at the outset will be to clarify the diagnosis. The symptoms your daughter displays can typify a number of childhood emotional disorders, chiefly focusing on two major categories of disturbance: Disruptive Behavior Disorder and Mood Disorder.
Let me refer you to a book that you might find useful: The Explosive Child, by Ross Greene, published by Harper Collins. You will 'recognize' your daughter in his depictions of these challenging children.
It might well be that Prozac, or an antidepressant from the same family (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors) might be useful at some point, but I wouldn't proceed too quickly, particularly without the involvement of a child psychiatrist. Pediatricians in general should not be prescribing such medications for children - they don't have the background or expertise.
You have already sought out some appropriate help, but I'm going to head you back in the direction of wiping the slate clean and trying to clarify the diagnosis. If need be, secure the involvement of some new clinicians who might offer you a fresh perspective, with the added benefit of hearing what others have thought. None of what I am saying will give you immediate relief, but might set you on a course that will be useful. And there are some medicines which, prescribed in low doses for a short period of time, might be useful in quieting/containing your daughter. But you'll definitely need to be guided by a child psychiatrist.
Sounds like your child has control of you....Where did this little girl learn all this fowl language????
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