We are in the process of getting Little J evaluated for ADHD. So far he's been seen by a child psychologist, who gathered information from us and his teachers and saw enough behaviors in his session with her that she recommended we see a child psychiatrist. My husband and I did a session with the psychiatrist and last week Little J had his own session with her. When she brought him out to me she mentioned that he did some things in the session that she expected, as well as some things she didn't suspect. My meeting with her is not until the end of next week and I'm very curious about what she has to say.

If she says she thinks he has ADHD I won't be surprised. If she says he doesn't have it, I will be surprised, but I'll keep on searching for the answer.

Little J has had a big leap in positive behavior over the past month but some of the problems we've had in the past - impulsivity, agression, and a lack of attention span - remain, albeit in slightly different forms. Some of his behavioral improvements correspond with his better sleep at night as well as a high dose of Essential Fatty Acids (more about this in a later post), as well as him turning 4. As those of you who have preschool aged children know, 4 is a kind of magical age. A reprieve after the trauma of 2 and 3. We've hit that reprieve.

To prepare myself better in case it turns out that Little J does have ADHD, I've requested every book my library system has on the subject. One that I've found useful is The AD/HD Book: Answers to Parents' Most Pressing Questions, by Beth Ann Hill and James Van Haren.

Beth Ann Hill, the author, is a longtime teacher and the parent to two little girls who have ADHD. James Van Haren is a psychiatrist who specializes in ADHD. Together they've created a good, common-sense overview of ADHD. It truly does answer parents' "most pressing questions." I could have used this book about a year ago when I first started worrying about Little J's behaviors as it maps out a clear path to diagnosis, explains exactly how the schools should respond to your request for testing (our school system did not respond appropriately, I've discovered), and gives resources for learning more about the disorder as well as parenting techniques for helping children with AD/HD.