What is this?

[D.Grimes]

My daughter is 6 years old, soon to be 7.  She is in 1st grade.  The following are some of her symptoms:  

At school:  The teacher says that she frequently goes into a trans like state (or you might want to call it zones out).  She will do this mostly while sitting at her desk but will also sometimes get up and start walking around.  When brought out of this state (which usually requires physical contact to get her attention) she is asked why she has gotten up from her chair and she will reply that she does not know.  When she comes out of it while sitting at desk, she has to look around to see what she has missed.  She will do this numerous times throughout the school day.  She is not hyper at school but when excited she will get vocally loud.  If she does not "zone out" she does well with school work.  Also at school, she does not seem to make friends.  She is shy but also aggressive (if that makes sense).  The teacher is very worried about her "zoning out" and her father and I are additionally worried about her social problems.

At home:  Even though she is not at all hyper at school there are times when she can be very hyper at home.  Fidgets at the table, can't stay still while standing in a line, etc.  But at the same time she will sit still through numerous books being read, will sit quitely throught a movie, etc.  We have a lot of children on our street and even though she is not the most popular, she does play with them.  The only time she seems to "zone out" at home is when she is watching TV and she has done this "zoning out" with TV since she was very young.  Also at home she gets VERY loud when excited.

Is this some sort of disorder?  How concerned should we be?  We are worried that she will start to fall behind with school.  The teacher cannot keep spending time to make sure that she is "with" the class!

Thank you for your time!!!

[Kevin Kennedy, Ph.D.]

The most important possibility to consider is that your daughter might be displaying a type os seizure disorder. Many people associate seizures with obvious involuntary movement of limbs and extremities. But some types of seizures (often referred to as absence seizures or petit mal seizures) have this quality of 'zoning out' without apparent awareness of what has occurred. It is also possible that she displays Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, but I'd investigate the possible seizure disorder first. You can do this by arranging an evaluation by a pediatric neurologist.

[jc390]

A related discussion, ZONED was started.