Bi-polar in Children.

I'm certainly no expert in this, so take my opinions as just that. Having worked with children for over twenty years, though, I have seen a number of different problems... mostly the ADD/ADHD diagnoses. In those I've seen many on meds that I felt would have been better off with some other inteventions to help them cope. Probably less than five percent of the ADD/ADHD children I've worked with were ones that I thought were really being helped by medication.
However, though I don't think I've ever worked with a child whose diagnosis was bi-polar, I tend to think in that case getting on the meds as early as possible will be helpful. I base my thoughts on my observation of a few adults I've known who are bi-polar. Again, this is just my opinion for whatever it's worth.

My ex-husband was diagnosed with the Bi-polar disorder a few years ago. 2 of my 3 children expressed symptoms of his dramatic ups and downs. I began to become even more concerned especially since after the divorce these emotions flared to an all time high. Because we had the children 50/50 custody it was hard to say what the problem was, the divorce, bi-polar genetically or diet habits. I decided to do something about it after reading various nutrition books on various disorders like Bi-polar, ADD, etc. Common factor was changing their diet. I was able to work out arrangements with my ex to have the children for one complete summer. I changed their eating patterns and enrolled them in sports and activities. I kept TV to a minimum to 4 hours a week and no video games. I know strict, but it was a test to see if over stimulation was a factor too. What a tremendous difference I saw in their demeanor and reactions. I swear my friends and family thought by week 3 I had night and day children. I must say that I truly believe that the vitamin supplements and the healthily food diet contributed to most of the change. Their sleep patterns were consistent, each week less and less dramatic ups and downs.

I pre-set my meals to consist of a lot of fresh fruit, 3 times a week salmon and brown rice and completely eliminated all chips (including goldfish) and cereal with high contents of sugar.

It worked for my kids and I am very thankful. I hope this may help a little. I wish you all the best!

Hi P.-

I have a very similar situation, but slightly different. I am bi-polar as is my grandmother, so obviously it runs through my side of the family. My 7 yr-old son was diagnosed 2 years ago as ADHD/ODD and has been on meds since then. I don't believe that he is, I think he may be bi-polar as his moodswings can be very violent and swift for no apparent reason and other issues.

The research I have done (and supported by conversations with his doctor) states that at such a young age bi-polar is very often misdiagnosed as ADHD as many of the symptoms are very similar. And the bad thing about that is if it is the wrong diagnosis, the meds they give him may increase and worsen the issues that are presenting themselves. But on the other hand, they may help. If he is bi-polar he may need the help of medication, but it also may not be severe enough to warrant it. I wish there was more I could tell you.

If you haven't already, I would suggest to you to check out www.webmd.com and check out the articles of bi-polar vs. adhd in children. There are a lot of them and you might get an answer or two from them. Good luck and feel free to contact me if you want to chat more.

my mother is bi-polar and we were were told that because she was Not diaignosed early and put on meds is because she had such strong swings now. It is better with this disease to start meds right away so latter in life there is no long term damage, but of course, there are different levels of the disease and a "knowledgable" doc knows best.
AM

Hi!

I'm sorry to hear this situation. I don't have a bi-polar child but my daughter went through alot in her teenage years. The one thing we learned from all of that is that a bipolar diagnosis (or even being on the bipolar spectrum) is really hard to diagnose before late teen or early adult years. We knew many families whose children had been put on a bipolar spectrum mostly because the doctors didn't know what else to call the actions/behaviors of the teenager. I would definitely get at least one more opinion before doing any medication. I don't know if the people that we know in the East Bay see children that young but you could try calling Dr. Levin's office in San Ramon. Also, if it's something more like ADD, you might also call Dr. Berman's office in Berkeley. Good luck - this has to be really hard on everyone.

Bipolar Disorder is a very complicated diagnosis to make in an eight year old and quite a controversial one. Hopefully your grandson was evaluated by a competent child psychiatrist (not psychologist). If his major symptoms are severe behavioral problems, there are a variety of other diagnoses that might be more accurate. Unless he is a danger to self or others, therapy for him and his parents may be a useful first step. However, if it is, indeed, bipolar disorder, it is important to stop the mood cycling as soon as possible, because if left untreated, it will get worse and be harder to treat. Good luck

A little about me: I am a child psychiatrist in Palo Alto, in practice 17
years. Married 21 years; two children ages 19 and 13.

Well, I have 2 sisters who was diagnosed as bi-polar at a young age. Despite what some doctors think, ADHD and Bi-polar don't manifest the same. They can be co-morbid, but I have ADHD and not bi-polar and my symptoms are nothing like theirs. Did your grandson get diagnosed by a pediatrician or a psychologist. A pediatrician would not get it right, most likely. Definantly see a psychologist for a second opinion. (yes, psychologist who administers the tests. that's what i saw for my adhd. psychaitrists are good, but not for those purposes).

From personal experience you can take your grandson to Sierra Vista, or Aspira. You can have him see a clinician to have him evaluated. Google has info on Bi-polar, there are different types. They say they are manic depressants, or lash out and hurt someone else around them. My son has been evaluated by psychologists a few times. My oldest is adhd and he's quite a handful. He has a prob with honesty. He attends a school that works with children with behavioral and social issues.
How is he in school? Bi-polar children lose their temper and yell or they try to hurt others around them.
My friends son is bi-polar with ritalin he was calm. Some kids grow out of it, others have it thru adult life. Some children with bi-polar do have some learning difficulties also. I hope you things get better for your grandson. G.

Due to family history & the likelihood of bipolar being geneticly passed on... when we saw signs in our 9 year old we put him in counseling. Over the past 6 months we've seen a LOT of changes in our son. Quite possibly our son has bipolar and OCD, but counseling is teaching him the tools he will need to be successful - meds or not - in his life (present and future).

I was diagnosed around the same age and was not medicated until age 16. I think I would have faired much better medicated. As an adult, I live a "normal" married life, mothering 3 children, and working a great job. I do believe medication is a must, even at such a young age. Good luck... and remember to be supportive. :)

if you are in the Bay area, there is a monthly support group for parents of children with bipolar disorder that meets at Parents Helping Parents www.php.com There is also a resource library and on line resource info as well. ###-###-####