8 yr old Dd, on the go ALL the time, ADHD ? Diet related ? I'm going mad..

[Willowisp]

I wonder if anyone can offer me any advice for Dd1 who is just over 8yrs...ever since she was a baby then toddler she had been hard work. I've posted her countless times but have never got to the root if the provlem. She rarely walks, usually bounces all over the place, she literally forces herself out of sleep in the morning - I've seen her do it. She's always touching her younger Dd (5). She's like a big bouncy labrador puppy. Crashing, loud, can't listen, talks ALL day long. She is driving me mad. I end up telling her to be quiet, sit still, leave DD2 alone & she can't do it.
I'm at the point where I don't want her near me, which is horrible.

I know she suffers from low blood sugar & needs to eat as soon as she is up or else she is very bad tempered. At school she manages to hold it together but literally growls at me when I collect her from school. Within about 10 mins of eating she is better.

I've always thought that mothers who left their children were terrible, but find myself plotting to do just this .

My 9yo DS is like that, up at 5.30 most mornings and all go from then on. I solved the early food problem by moving the breakfast stuff to a low cupboard, he gets his own breakfast and I get up at 7am to find him fed and dressed. I then release him into the garden for a run before school. Generally he's much nicer if he gets a good run about. Porridge or weetabix are good for slow release sugar, fruit's a great after school quick sugar source.

Thanks, she does have an excellent diet - porridge for breakfast, fruit, veg, fave snack is an apple. I wonder though if it's a but too carby as she's not keen on protein (tuna/chicken/nuts).
This morning she's kicked off, I think due to the low blood sugar.

I've been reading the hyperactive sites & she's got all the traits, can't sit still, fiddles constantly, low attention span, talking loudly. As soon ad you say don't touch she is compelled to touch it.

I'm at breaking point with it

Go see your GP, and ask for a referral to a child dev paed because you are concerned she might have ADHD.

She sounds a lot like my dd1 who is 7 and was dx at Xmas with ADHD. She drives me insane somedays and I could quite happily pack up and leave at times! Go to the GP and speak to school x

sounds like a twin to my ds.

ive been looking at jobs in saudi for 3 months as i struggle so much with him. Leaving him with dh who is brilliant with him. I feel at times i cant cope with him.

teachers have told me that he does not have any kind of disorder, he is simply the boy who cant sit still.

Its hard hard work

Chundle - what did solutions or assistance did the dr come up with ?

My DD1 is very, very energetic. I agree with going to your GP if you are concerned. I don't think my DD1 has ADHD but I read a book called 'Raising Your Spirited Child' which really helped and had lots of practical ideas on how to cope.

High dose Omega Fish Oil is a good thing to try. For some kids it makes a huge difference.

teachers have told me that he does not have any kind of disorder, he is simply the boy who cant sit still.

Yes, that's what my son's teacher told me. She also suggested (in the nicest possible way ) that, if we were to discipline him at home, he would behave better at school - wtf.

I ignored her and asked for him to be assessed and he was diagnosed with ADHD and I now wonder how we ever thought his behaviour was "normal". The same teacher scored him very highly for hyperactivity on the conners questionaire (part of the assessment)

To be diagnosed with ADHD she would need to display the behaviour in school and at home. It would be worth an assessment if you are worried.

I think it's very common to assume that if there was a problem school would have noticed it, told you about it, and acted on it.

Sometimes they do - but very, very often they don't. The SN children board is full of parents who have been failed by school.

In my case school strongly suspected my DS has ASD - but they didn't bother telling me.

Teachers aren't health professionals, and often have no more knowledge than joe public.