8 year old has random behaveior

[trif770]

Of all the posts that I have read in this forum, none fit the description of my grandson. He will be 8 this month. His father died from a drug overdose when he was 2, and I’m quite sure that his mother used drugs when she was pregnant. He is very well behaved, does well in school and is always pleasure to be with. The problem is that every once in a while, he goes into an extreme personality change. This started last year. He becomes destructive, throw things try to kick & punch anyone he is with, and he becomes extremely agitated. This is something that come on very suddenly, and goes away just as suddenly. It could last for 20 minutes or go on for a couple hours. It is not something that is brought on by being stern with him, punishing him, or not letting him get his way. No matter how upset he gets, he always gets over it quickly and always reverts back to his friendly personality.. Sometimes, I think that it comes & goes more like a seizure. I sent a letter to the school  to make them aware of the problem, but fortunately, it hasn’t seemed to happen at school this year or last, because it is  such a random occurrence. Sometimes it will happen 2 or 3 days in a row, & sometimes, not at all for a few weeks. Last month it happened when he woke up in the morning & couldn’t go to school. He misses an average of 1 day a month because of it. His pediatrician suggested taking him to a physiatrist. I don’t like the idea of putting him on medication at such a young age. I would like to know if anyone else has a similar problem, & what could be causing it.

[Sandman2]

    I agree with AHP84.  This is something that is unusual and you need professional advice for it.  And as she said, no one can force you to medicate your child.  But, the point is that you need to know what is going on if you want to help the child.  I think a psychiatrist is a good idea, because it might even be some kind of a medical problem and they have the training to figure this out.

[AHP84]

I'd take your pediatrician's advice and seek a psychiatrist for him. Just because he gets referred to a psychiatrist doesn't mean he'll be put on medication. And the psychiatrist is at your discretion--if you don't like the therapy options they attempt with you grandson, you can seek another doctor or opinion.
I think it would be in your grandson's best interest to see a psychiatrist to rule out anything from anxiety to a personality disorder, any of which can and might affect him more often as he gets older.