my son seems lazy.

[rockburn]

my seven year old son is having problems with reading ,writing, and math . he seems afraid to make mistakes,
he loves books but is now intimidated by reading. His math skills are also behind.
He does occaisionally complain of headaches , he is a big boy 51 inches and 72 pounds.
He is also not waking at night and wetting his bed. He acts young for his age and sometimes pretends he is still a baby.
We have had tutors helping him twice a week and we are hands on parents but it seems that he doesn't want to try too hard at anything swimming, soccer, skiing , running , skating  . He seems lazy.
How do I deal with this?

[wilson49332]

Hi,

As a social worker I want to say that this is something I would bring to the attention of a therapist. Not because I see any problems here, but more because he may have a learning disability that this starting to manifest itself, and is frustrating your son to the point where he is beginning to give up.

As to the bedwetting, you will find a great deal of resources on this from google. This is not abnormal for a child of this age, it is called nocturnal enuresis. You can curb this behavior with the use of bedwetting alarms which will awake your child as he begins to wet. You may wish to explore goodnight sleep diapers if you grow tired of changing sheets- as he is most likely tired of waking up in a cold and wet bed anyways. There are also drugs for this, but I would try the alarm first and then if that has no effect, speak to a doctor.

[specialmom]

Since it is across the board, I would not assume he is lazy.  Perhaps there is more going on that you haven't uncovered yet.  How are his social interactions with peers and other adults?  What does his school say?  Has a learning disorder been ruled out?  ADD is common but most people don't think of it for a calm child---  as ADHD gets most of the attention.  ADD children blend in but can  have problems such as you describe.  ARe his motor skills on point?  Did he have trouble in his younger years aquiring new abilities (riding a bike, using scissors, hand writing?)  My pediatrician says to not worry about a child who isn't getting up at night to use  a restroom until 8 or 9 if they are a sound sleeper.  That is why they make those underjams in such large sizes.  So that wouldn't worry me.  Most kids at 7 aren't lazy but are having difficulty with the work or the sport or whatever.  I'd want to know if there is an underlying reason why.