Pls can anyone help with ADHD/ADD experiences...

[Blossom4538]

Dd is under diagnosis for ASD and I feel ADHD/ADD is ruled out but we're not so sure. She can sit still at school but can be very hyperactive at home and I feel I can't always get her to focus/can be avoidant. Not sure if she's just being a normal 6 year old, she seems more hyper and her behaviour is sometimes erratic, compared to her friends and cousins I would say. But also, in public, with her anxiety, she can shut down and appear very calm, quiet and detached.

????

[Allthewaves]

I have an adhd child and one with asd - with possible add. I think adhd/add that symptoms had to manifest in both school and home for a diagnosis as adhd'ers cant mask like kids with asd.

[Checklist]

They may not be able to mask, but girls with ADD can control themselves or cover it up in front of friends; and they can get overlooked in school!

[Waitingforsleep]

I started a similar thread a few weeks back and your Dd sounds very similar.

Checklist- could you expand on the - not being able to mask but they can control themselves etc..

Blossom- had she a dx of asd, do you think that's correct? Would you mind letting me know what difficulties she has?
Thanks

[Checklist]

I was responding to Allthewaves comment that children with ADHD can't mask, because I don't have experience of that! However DD with ADD could hide it and once she was diagnosed, she explained to me how she had covered up her lack of attention in conversation (and therefore no comprehension of what had been said) by using empty words such as "cool" to give the impression she was listening. She also faked attention while daydreaming. Her friends did not see her emotional dysregulation, because she kept it under control with them, but let it all out at home! She must have spent a lot of time acting!

[Waitingforsleep]

Thanks for that, wow she must have been shattered! Could you remind me how old she is checklist? Sounds familar to
Me all of this, how did she show the emotional dysregulation? My Dd keeps her temper at bay except at home which is proving a real sticking point for camhs etc.

[Checklist]

DD is 23. No teacher ever made any comments to us at parents' evening about lack of attention, whatever.....all they ever talked to us about was how she needed to speak up more in class! Apparently, her biology teacher told her in the 6th form that she was "scatterbrained", and the head of geography said she wrote too much in her work (lack of planning, organisation....). Apart from that, the school appeared to have no inkling she had ADD, and I had a considerable argument with them to get her extra time in her A-levels, as by this time I had an ed psy report identifying the difficulties, caused by the ADD, although she obviously did not show the lack of attention in the assessment (she is very good at covering it up and she uses hyperfocus on subjects she is interested in), as the school told me there should be a level playing field; i.e. they felt she was getting an unfair advantage!

She only got diagnosed at university, as the problems impacted more and more the higher up the education system she went - and she is not the only girl at her university to be diagnosed there!

[Waitingforsleep]

How about the temper or behaviour issues? We get horrendous temper at home as she is so impatient amongst other things (in a rush as at work)
Did you Dd have these problems?
It's so useful thank you

[Blossom4538]

Hi all,
Dd has had aggression/temper at home, impatience, she can be calm too but can easily "blow up" very quickly, anxiety, some interaction problems, Selective Mutism and sensory struggles (mainly avoidant, not seeking so much). Also a possible motor and processing delay. She can be very lively at home, sometimes v difficult to get her to listen to is and we find we have to say her name lots to get her attention. She can however also sit and focus on something (if she wants to) for long periods of time. She can be quite avoidant.

[Checklist]

Dd had frequent tantrums at home - she told me herself girls with ADD tend to suffer from hyper-reactivity as opposed to boys, who tend to have hyper-activity!

Life with her is always an emotional roller coaster!

[Waitingforsleep]

Oo hyper reactivity. Not heard of that! Who said this?
Am sor sorry to ask all these questions but for year we have be put down the asd route and now I think it is add and as such we are looking at going private.
Just want to get as much info and make sure we go to the right person.

Sorry to hijack but I figured you would be interested in all the info too.

The only thing that struck me in your post blossom was the interaction bit- this sounds a bit asd like? Obviously I have no idea but just wondered.x