What do you think?

Honey , i have been there. My son has been diagnosed with everything under the sun since age 2!!!!! Trust your gut. As it turns out all the docs were wrong about my son. i agree yes he does have some issues that could be contributed to ADHD or Bi-polar but at age 12 he was diagnosed with PDD ( Pervasive Developmental Disorder). Sounds scary i know , but it is not really. It is an Autism Spectrum Disorder that heavily mimmicks both ADHD and ODD. It is highly treatable , especially if treatment starts at an early age. Do some research yourself and see if any of it matches his behaviors. I would also urge you to see an Autism specialist to have him formally evaluated. When we think of Autism as a society we think , no taking , no communication and so on. it is really not all about that , trust me. another thing that runs closely with these two disorders is Aspergers Syndrome , which is also an Autism Spectrum disorder. It may also be that he is just a defiant or moddy child, some kids are just like that. I would urge you to really dive in and do some research of your own. I have been down this road for almost 12 years now, I am speaking from experience , Please do what you can to protect your child from being pinned with a mis diagnosis. I really think that he is too young for the Bi- Polar diagnosis.

I am going to go out on a limb here and suggest you take your child to a homeopathic doctor. Often ADHD is diagnosed as a catchall for anything the doctors don't know, but want to label. It could be he doesn't absorb vitamins and amino acids properly, it could be his intelligence is such that his mind is so far ahead of his body his frustrations are being acted out. I know that GABA which is an amino acid was being studied as an alternative to medications traditionally used for ADHD children. GABA is a relaxant for the brain allowing concentration for some children, and making life easier for them and all who live with them. Please seek out alternatives to chemical intervention, as a great many people I know who are recovering addicts where diagnosed and medicated as ADHD when they were children. No studies to solidify a theory that children medicated on ritalin and adderal become addicts, but there is enough empirical evidence to suggest there may be some link. At 4 he should not be on such harsh medications in my opinion. Please seek the services of a homeopath.

Since the specialists can not agree on when the diagnosis should take place,the chances that the diagnosis is right is 50-50.It is either yes or no and they are going with what they FEEL. This does not help you now as you will notice things that are normal for a child but you will wonder about ADHD or bi-polar is playing a role. Play it safe then sorry.Have the child retested when YOUR specialist thinks it is time.Ask them how they think you should be handling situations. The most important thing is that YOU are the mother and know what your child needs.Go with your instinct and the knowledge you have obtained.

I am really surprised a doctor would diagnose for Bipolar at that age. Some will for ADHD but I think it's too early at age 4. With bipolar I know we had a devil of the time getting my neice diagnosed at age 11. Both my sister and I are bipolar and could see the signs but they just wanted to treat her for ODD (opositional defiance disorder) which can be a part of Bipolar. They put her on Geodon and she was a zombie for a year. We got her in to someone new and they got her on the right meds and stated we were right all along. You above anyone else know your child. Do some research on both. The more you know the more you can help your son. If you don't agree with the diagnoses get him to a different doctor. Get a second opinion, it's your right to do.

Please whatever you do do not put him on meds at his age for those disorders. Your son is to young for that wait and have your child evaluated again when he reaches 10. 9 times out of 10 they are only in it for the money they get for refferals and using your child as a ginny pig.Please check out these websites before making any dicissions. www.adhdnews.com/natural-medicine-ADHD.html www.micronutra.com

I was diagnosed with ADHD when I was 4 as well. My mom decided to put me on Ritalin and I zombied out as she tells it. I remember having a lot of difficulty as a child and teen because I was not on meds. I think a little more patience and attention to my issue would have helped me out. Really what happened was that I learned to deal with most of it on my own. When studying I had to have other things going on around me and people who were patient with me were the people I got along with best. I wasn't diagnosed bipolar until a few years ago. By that time I had most things under control and just had to learn the signs of what was going on. If you don't want your son on meds do your best to find options and be patient with him and help him to through this. Then when he is older if he is still having problems then reevaluate things. I hope this helped.

I think 4 is pretty young for an ADHD diagnosis, since most four year olds are still developmentally at a place where they are impulsive and extremely active. I think the receomndation to do an Autism assessment is a good one. Some of the behavioral issues you describe sounds like they could be the result of sensory issues which are common with Autism ( little things hurting him a LOT sounds like that to me) or anxiety (the bit about refusing to get back on the bike - if little things hurt him a lot, hes going to be scared ... and add anxiety to that makes him refuse to try again). My son went through various diagnoses until we landed on high functioning Autism last June. Now the pieces of the puzzle are fitting in. I know how hard it is when your diagnosis isn't right:(