We went into the appointment not really knowing what to expect. This was a new doctor that we've never seen and all we knew was that it was a woman. She was a lovely lady, in her late 50s. She came out to call Liam in on her own and immediately engaged him in a conversation. Hilary and I just trailed behind, looking like sherpas, carrying all of our coats and knapsacks.
She spent the first 25 minutes of the appointment completely focused on Liam. Getting him to talk to her, asking him questions, having him write out his name, numbers, drawing shapes and pictures. She didn't even acknowledge either Hilary or I for the first ten minutes, when she quietly whispered that she would talk to us after. She wasn't being rude, but just giving her full attention to Liam. She did a physical exam (he's gained 5 pounds since Christmas! Yeah tonsillectomy and dental surgery - my boy is eating again!)
After her time with Liam she turned her attention to us. She wanted to know what prompted the appointment, what we saw at home, what our concerns were. Her "unofficial diagnosis" is "He is PERFECT and ready to start school and I don't see why his teachers should have any concerns." Her outlook is that if his behaviors (fidgety, not focusing, not listening) are interfering with his learning, then yes, we will need to look at doing something about it, but if they are not interfering, then she doesn't care, that is just who he is. Since it was the teachers that first raised the concerns, she did send home the Connor's rating scale questionnaires for both us and the teachers to complete, and she will do some follow up appointments with us to ensure that there is nothing interfering with his ability to thrive next year.
Her suggestions were for us to continue to work at home to help Liam develop concentration skills and working methods. To ensure that he has lots of physical outlets, to always try and do any "desk" work after a physical activity and to start with small increments of time, like 5 minutes, before letting him go do something physical for 5 minutes. Gradually we can increase the time that he is sitting and doing work. She says that if the school can incorporate something similar that he will have even better chances of excelling. Both us and the school have already recognized that he does his best after recess, or after playing hard, so this was not a big surprise, and I think the school will be very open to helping him work out these strategies while he is there to.
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4 comments:
See...you know your boys best...don't put too much into the Connor's Questions...an article...http://www.adhdtesting.org/conners%20rating%20scale.htm
I am so glad that she said all those great things about Liam and I have a friend who has finally convinced her sons school that if he stands to do his work as long as he stays put they should let him...they do and he is progressing so much better now...
DebiP
Wow, she sounds like an excellent doctor! :)
I was LOL at the sherpa description - that's exactly how I feel so much of the time, trailing behind Emma with my arms loaded down!
I wouldn't put too much stock in the Connor's either, as Debi said (hi Debi!). They did that for Em last year in advance of her CPSE meeting to help bolster our case for getting her extended OT services. According to that scale (and only partially completed - the teacher and school psychologist did their portion, we never did the parent part), Em was off the charts for ADHD, which simply is not correct at all.
who is this Heather...I am lost...do we know each other from the boards and I am forgetting...so sorry
That doctor sounds great!
I think a lot of teachers forget that kids have lots of energy and need physical activities or they don't have time with the increased academic expectations.
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