Whats wrong with my 8 year old

[hell1971]

Hi My 8 year old girl has always been a difficult child since birth, until she was three we were told she had milk and soya intolerance, she used to cry for hours and clench her tummy, her mood seem to run in cycles, good one week, terrible the next, eventually at three when her tantrums were hours long and she constantly complained of tummy ache neck ache shoulder ache and she got very upset and scared all the time she was diagnosed with sensory issues with an GAD anxiety disorder, yes she suffers from anxiety but only when she is going through a bad period, now 8 and still we have periods of very low mood ie depression, she complains of symptomatic complaints, withdraws from friends, doesnt want to go to school ect.. then she can cope better and starts doing normal kid stuff but is still very contrary, one minute happy next having a 1-3 hour meltdown, she is irritable, tired and very aggressive to her siblings. During her really bad times since she was five she has expressed that she wants to die and says she wants to kill herself,  She is being assessed again and they have said its not typical behaviour for anxiety, she is having an eeg. She is an A student and she has very little problems at school ect.. sadness and not wanting to join in but thats all.  Any suggestions for me as i am desperate to help her

[MLWTR]

I’m sorry your daughter is dealing with so many challenges. Given the history of stomach pains, joint pains, and psychiatric symptoms, I wondered if she had ever been tested for celiac disease? It’s a GI disease that can present in a great many different ways, but all of those symptoms are possible. If her doctor thinks it might be a possibility, it’s easy to test for with a panel of blood tests. If they suggest celiac disease, then it is confirmed by an endoscopy.

Another possibility that occurs to me is Crohn’s disease. Again, joint pains often go along with GI symptoms, and I have also heard of kids with Crohn’s having seizure activity as a side effect, although it is not common. Anyway, these are just a couple of thoughts, in case she hasn’t been tested for these things already. Good luck.

[Rebecca Resnik, PsyD]

Hello,
    I do not blame you for feeling desperate, she sounds like a very overwhelmed little girl. While its difficult to say what the major factors are in your daughter's case, I would not rule out anxiety. Many people can be both depressed and anxious at the same time, and that does not mean that nothing physical could be going on as well to make it all the more complex. I am glad that the possible medical aspects are also being addressed, though I would suspect that the EEG will not answer all your questions, or magically point the way towards the best treatment plan for managing her emotional symptoms.

You are dealing with some very unusual symptoms, particularly worrisome are the 1-3 hr meltdowns and the suicidal ideation. I would recommend you take the suicidal ideation seriously, and make sure that she is never alone with access to anything she could use to harm herself (esp pills and guns). You have nothing to loose by being extra cautious.

I think the key to helping your daughter is more information. I would recommend a full neuropsycholgical evaluation, done by a board certified neuropsychologist as well as an emotional evaluation (more often done by a psychologist). An emotional evaluation should not just be having you fill out a couple checklists, it should consist of projective and norm referenced measures (the assessors will know what that means) It would be helpful for you to keep a 'mood and behavior' journal and to video her outbursts to show to the doctors. Your pediatrician, neurologist, psychiatrist and the psychologists must consult with each other to make sure they can get a clear clinical picture. After you get some answers, your work in therapy will just be starting. I hope all goes well.

Best Wishes
Rebecca Resnik

[hell1971]

Hi My daugher has wet herself 5 times in a week, she says she cant feel it she only knows when she feels the wet. She has been checked many times by docs for infection and has only had one known infection in her life yet she gets sore and has periods of going to the toilet and it hurting?

[hell1971]

Thank you for taking the time to respond to my posting, yes celiac was looked into many years ago when she was around 1.5yrs from memory, she had one blood test screening and also had a ph test and a alergy ***** test and I am sure those coverred this back then. She has also had a kidney scan as she sometimes gets pain when going to the toilet. I am trying to keep an open mind but as time goes on I cant beleive it can be a medical reason for this as she has been going to doctors all her life every three to six months, she also has small stature and so her height and weight have been monitored since then, our last visit we were told that her weight is consistant but her height is well behind what they would expect taking into account my husband and I, they have said they may do an xray to see how old her bones are as she may continue to grow and catch up later ie in her teens.

[hell1971]

Thank you for taking the time to respond to my posting, yes celiac was looked into many years ago when she was around 1.5yrs from memory, she had one blood test screening and also had a ph test and a alergy ***** test and I am sure those coverred this back then. She has also had a kidney scan as she sometimes gets pain when going to the toilet. I am trying to keep an open mind but as time goes on I cant beleive it can be a medical reason for this as she has been going to doctors all her life every three to six months, she also has small stature and so her height and weight have been monitored since then, our last visit we were told that her weight is consistant but her height is well behind what they would expect taking into account my husband and I, they have said they may do an xray to see how old her bones are as she may continue to grow and catch up later ie in her teens.  Again Thanks

[hell1971]

Hi Thank you for this, we have been reassured that they are going to investigate everything this time as like us they feel it has gone on too long. We have three other children who do not suffer like her. As parents we find it hard to understand and manage her whilst ensuring the other children dont become overwhelmed by the situation, we have been told that they will also do some work with the younger sibling as she is most effected, they have put it to a board and have said they have further assesments to do. I think she is baffling them also, when they do an assesment they expect her to respond in a certain way and she doesnt do what they expect so they arnt saying much at this point and I feel helpless. I feel that she has waited long enough to grow out of it and I am concerned what impact this will have on her long term. She is a very lovable child with an outstanding forward thinking intelligence, I think sometimes this is some of the problem, she doesnt have the emotional maturity to cope with her thoughts, she describes her worries as heaps of moving bugs in her head and she know what some of them are but not all of them, she also has hullucinations when she is really overwhelmed but we are unsure if these are a coping/justifying method for behaviour or she really does think she sees scarey people. Does anyone have any possible theories as I have looked at all childhood disorders and no one fits. Thank you