Is this ADHD?

[lucozany]

DS1 is 8.He has always been a loud,energetic child and very fidgety.It was diverted to an extent by sport but recently he has been moved sideways by his coach to a smaller group due to inability to focus,easy distractability and this is affecting progression along with the rest of his team.
At school he is a high achiever,especially in maths,spelling and reading and is learning an instrument (his request) and can read music, but since starting year 4 has problems in productivity and takes a long time to get started with writing tasks and teachers comment that he writes less than expected in a set time.Poor handwriting too.
At home; very impulsive,hits out if things are not as expected eg does not get his choice on the TV.Can’t sit at a table for more than a few minutes.Chews toys eg Lego .Has to be called several times to do something then gets angry if I question why he doesn’t listen,he often hits out at me then says sorry later on and wants a hug.
He has one or 2 close friends at school and has never been violent or aggressive there but does get into quarrels fairly easily from what he tells me.Gets party invites and some play dates though.
He gets very upset very easily about minor things eg can’t get his buttons done up and gives up easily in sports if it is cold/windy/falls over( but he is physically very capable and strong.
I have 2 younger children who are compliant and just so much easier.
He is getting worse ,not better,as he gets older so it does not seem to be a maturity issue.
What would you do next and any ideas what it could be? ADHD /ASD or something else? Or just personality?
There is ASD in the family .

I'd start the assessment process particularly because of his slow processing speed and his inability to keep up with his peers since starting year 4.

It can take a couple of years to get to dx, so the earlier you start, the earlier you may have interventions in place for him. If you have school's SENCO on board, all the better.

If you can get SENCO to write a letter to confirm the Y4 difficulties including processing speed, handwriting, inattention etc.and his sport coach to write a letter confirming what you said he's done and why, then also mention diagnosed ASD in the family, that will hopefully help the GP see the need for a dx.

We all know that school should provide interventions for his needs whether he has a dx or not, but not all schools do, so it's wise to start the path to dx now.

I wouldn't hazard a guess as to what a dx could be, conditions run co-morbidly so ASD, ADHD, ADD, SPD, PDA, Dyslexia Dyspraxia and a few others are not necessarily stand-alone, that's why dx is often done by a team.

Be prepared for long delays and to have to justify why you want an assessment, keep a note of any behaviours that are different to his peers and hang on in there. It's a bumpy ride but you'll get there eventually

Thanks Blanktimes ... I hadn’t even heard of a couple of those potential diagnoses and was suspecting ADHD but there is clearly more to consider! I just know there is something not quite right and have now made a GP appt to take this further.
I thought they wouldn’t take me seriously because he wasn’t really behind at school but there is more evidence now so hope they agree to refer.