Child Bipolar Disorder?

Not to sound like a crazy hypocrondriac mom, but could it be possible that a two year old exhibit signs of being Bipolar? There is a history in the family- his aunt was diagnosed at about 15 and I take Lexapro for GAD. My concern for this is the EXTREME anger he gets when not getting his way or just feeling mad at the world for who know what reason. He also is a problem sleeper. Or should I say no-sleeper. I can't tell you the last time he went to bed with ease and stayed a sleep all night. Oh and the screaming! We have a three year old who went through the terrible twos and fought the sleeping, but this child I'm writing about is just unreal. There is SO MUCH ANGER. And then he can be the snuggliest litttle guy- often if the same hour. He's very distructive, but can play for hours with certain toys- even preferring to play alone. HELP!!! Any ideas about what's happening in his little head? Thanks!!!!!

[wickedwanderer]

Have you talked to his ped about this?  Maybe you could start there.  I wish I had more info for you.  Maybe google "bipolar disorder in children."  Good luck!

[Mark TX]

I have no reason to believe you are a hypochondriac mom... but I believe you need to consider your actions very, very carefully.  I have no doubt you can find some doctor who will diagnose your 2-y/o as bipolar.  On the other hand, we all know that some children just throw more tantrums and don't sleep as well as others.  There's no such thing as 'normal.'  There's a wide spectrum of behaviors.  And just because a child's behavior is perceived to be difficult, or problematic, certainly doesn't warrant a diagnosis of mental illness that will follow him or her for the remainder of her life.  Be very careful.

Good luck,

mark

[NewLeaf]

Please read about Autisim.  Two - three is about when it begins to be noticeable and some of the things you have said may be due to this. Playing with certain toys for long periods, screaming and prefering to play alone, problem sleeping ..... 1 of 150 children are now being diagnosed with autisim. Caught early, it can be helped.   I have a grandson who is autistic and has all the same symptoms you have described. If you can't find a doctor then go to your school district - they are mandated by law to diagnose and have early prevention/detection/special education programs from the age of 3 all federally funded and FREE.

Best of luck  

[Rozanna]

Yes this does sound like Autism. Also you should look at a sight for children with SPD. Which is sensory processing disorder. Many parents haven't heard of this. To me it sounds like your little guy might be frustrated with life. I know my son started showing signs of BP around 18 months.  He was first diagnosed with SID around 2. If you think your child might have SID I stress to you to get him checked out. This disorder requires no medications only a lot of O.T and many hours of what looks like as playing.
As far as sleeping my son who is now 7 only started sleeping through the night (even with sleep medication) several months now. Next time he is watching TV, You can try tightly raping him up in a sheet. (Make sure it’s not around his face). See if he is calmer with my son we use weighted vest, weighted lap blankets, body socks, there are so many things that are inexpensive that should help your son. I know you want to know what’s wrong with your son like I said my son was 1st labeled with SPD, then came OCD, then came the BP, and the low spectrum of Autism. And with having him labeled didn’t help much. As far as the SPD we never miss O.T because it calms him so much that I even invested in making an O.T room at home. No matter if they diagnose your son with BP or any other mental disorder its important to remember it will not change things. My son was diagnosed at 5 when he entered a mental hospital for chocking his younger sister. (She was at the point where she was turning blue).  He would threaten things and say things that most 5 year olds wouldn’t say. I knew by the age of 1 something wasn’t right with him. He is still social behind (he is on a 5 year old level) he is smart but you half to break every thing down for him.  Speech is still hard to understand, he won’t talk if he doesn’t want to, and he doesn’t under stand danger. And the list goes on.
I will say just because I have been dealing with him for years now.  You really need to get a routine from when he get up to when he goes to bed. It helps with all kids. Set up rules and follow through when rules are broken.  If he kicks, screams, bites, ect. Punish him for that fined something that works.  I will leave you with a great SPD web site new leaf might know a lot about SPD because ten years ago SPD was once called autism.


WWW.SENSORY-PROCESSING-DISORDER.COM

[Charlie's girl]

My son is just like your's and is asperger's.  My little aspi.... He is beautiful.  Maybe we should talk.  Have you had him eval...?  Just curious, are you matching any behaviors from the research you have done on your son?  Or, is it you hubby/father?  PPD, SID, ADHD!!!!!!!!  OCD.... the list goes on.  This is on the autism spectrum in my opinion.  Just a thought

[Trialanderror]

This is all crazy. It is the behavior of a typical two-year-old. Some do have explosive tempers, many do have sleep disruptions because it is the time when they are teething again, have the occasional nightmare, catch a lot of colds and are tense about discovering their independence. They enjoy parallel play rather than socializing with peers. All this over-diagnosing of our kids and filling them up with questionable medication - it is nuts. As parents we are driven to label our kids, driven by our loss of ability and time to listen to them, feel for them. Pediatricians, psychiatrists, pharmaceutical industry, the media are feeding our insecurities as parents. Mood altering drugs are like messing with a fine-tuned engine. Once we start pouring in the "enhancements", we can not distinguish between cause and effect of performance and behavior anymore and when a child is an adolescent, all parent talk is about by how much to increase the doses of meds. So, let that 2-year-old develop without a lable for now. It will be for the better. And I promise this has been my first and last time on this forum.

[Rozanna]

please read my story and let me know if this sounds like your son..