When/how to seek diagnosis/ support?
Our son is 6. Adhd (and to a lesser degree autism) are prevalent in our family (on my side) and I have combined type adhd.
For years we have suspected our son has adhd (probably since around age 2). There were small clues that hinted at how his brain was wired in the way he would react and engage but so many external behaviours which can be observed are common in younger children we always decided to see how things were when he was older and seek help if symptoms were present and having a detrimental effect.
Now at age 6 his sleep is still problematic. He takes 30-60 minutes to fall asleep and needs someone with him (despite no late screen time and bath/book/bed routibe). He's waking 2-3 times a night on average and coming in with us then being put back in his bed. Its like we've had a toddler for years and years- we're shattered.
He is very emotional and reactive. The emotions are so big! He's quick to anger and is often aggressive and can also be violent with his older sibling. When he's sad about something its always a big deal. Worries result in many many repeated questions seeking reassurance (which we always answer).
He is incredibly passionate when something interests him. This is usually building things (junk modelling) - I can see when he does this he is hyper focusing. Its like hes in a bubble and can engage with you to ask something like where are scissors/tape etc but wont hear if you ask him to come for dinner or some other question that's not relevant. We dont punish this, we repeat and use his name or physical touch (a hand gently on him while talking) to get through the "bubble". This attention difficulty makes tasks like getting ready for school or bed or eating meals take a long time (I have to get mouthfuls ready on the fork and often feed him even though he is physically capable of feeding himself) otherwise it takes over 1 hr.
I could write more about his "quirks" but I won't as this is ling enough. These are the main points causing difficulty at home.
He is a bright boy and school have not raised any concerns per se...it has been commented on that he is very emotional. He has received high praise for his incredible (head and shoulders better than his peers) building but I don't know if the teachers are trying to give subtle clues to prime us. I don't need subtlety tbh.
It goes without saying that we absolutely adore and cherish him and our exasperation does not in any way detract fom this. Sorry this was long but hopefully it gives an idea of our situation. Has anyone had similar with their LO? Is this the time to seek help? If so, how?