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ADHD DD and I'm exhausted

1 reply

feelingmywayinthedark · 07/02/2025 03:39

Hello

My 8 year old has finally been assessed and diagnosed with combined type adhd. It's no surprise, life has been a continuous struggle with her in areas typical of a child with ADHD. She is loving, caring and creative and intelligent but also so wilful, deceitful, emotionally unstable... any "no" she cares mildly about she will not accept. She is constantly moving and has consequently broken 3 bones already! she never goes to sleep without an enormous fight and she comes out of her room multiple times screaming and throwing teddies insisting on one more story or cuddle etc. It's never enough.
But I just feel so beaten by it yesterday. We both work. My DH works nights we hardly see each other and have 2 other young kids with their own school issues to manage. I'm new to the ADHD world and I'm trying so hard to understand it and DD, but any tips would be welcome.
Any books to read? I've ended up on anti anxiety medicine because I've not been coping and started having panic attacks always worrying about what would happen if I'm not there with DD- will she act out at school? We never get any play date invites although she is popular and loves friends, I think it's because she is "a lot" but to deal with.
Any parenting tips would be helpful. I'm at my wits end, craving wine or chocolate
Or both by the end of the day when by 9 pm I will finally get her to crash out until she wakes again 6 am

OP posts:
TinyMouseTheatre · 07/02/2025 07:31

Firstly I'd ask @MNHQ to move this over to the SN Children section as you'll get responses from MNers who have been through similar.

I do know exactly what you're going through though Flowers

Has she been assessed for ASD as well as ADHD? When my DC2 was being assessed for ASD I had to really push for them to be assessed for ADHD at the same time. They finally received a AuDHD diagnosis.

Do you think there's a chance that she has PDA? Even if she doesn't, I'd try and treat her with PDA strategies. The Explosive Child is a good book to read.

As for the sleep. Does she do a sport?

I'd try to find one that she enjoys and let her do it as much as she can. A weighted blanket and an audiobook to help her drift off might help bedtimes too.

Is she medicated for her ADHD?

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