Seeking Advice on Early Puberty with a Special Needs Child

I don't know about a special needs child or the hormones, but 9.5 isn't that early to be showing signs of puberty.

I had breasts in 4th grade (9 years old) and got my cycle at 10.

I would think the synthroid is just letting her develop as she is supposed to.

My bet is the defiance is her asserting her independence which is a normal part of puberty. She sounds normal.

Hey there S.! Unfortunately, 10yrs old is not that young any more for a girl to begin puberty. And just like when I went through it and I'm sure most every other female too, mood swings are so very common. Have you talked with her doctor about your plans for her cycle? My mom works with special needs children and has several young ladies who have the Depo shot which helps to minimize and sometimes delete their cycle each month.

And then maybe there is a problem at school. You know, sometimes the child's behavior change is a sign that something is wrong.

Take Care,
N. :) SAHM homeschool 3 boys 12, 8 & 2 yrs old and married to my Mr. Wonderful for almost 15yrs. I love to help moms, who want to become SAHMs, reach that goal!

Just a few thing I have learned.
Early development is due to the hormone put in our milk, meat etc.
If I had to do it all over again with my 5 kids I would avoid it all and go organic totally!
Studies show with increased amounts of iodine put in diet of a downs child ups their I.D... but you may not hear that from a regular doc.
If you changed her diet to more organic with good amounts of iodine and good fats with plenty of yogurt,and distilled water you may be very suprised at the change!
In case you are interested, I wanted to share.
God Bless!!

I have absolutely no experience with special needs children but I did want to say that I don't think she is really too young to be showing signs of puberty. I was in 4th grade when I started budding, and I didn't turn 9 until Dec. of that year. By 5th grade I needed a bra and I got my period 4 mos. after turning 11 in 6th grade. I'm almost 39 now, so this was before the concern over hormones in food. My mom was 10 when she got her period. Some kids just develop early. I have a 9.5 daughter who is also beginning to get breasts and who I've noticed a definite change of moods in. She is much more apt to cry over the dumbest things. Seriously, there have been times where her father or I might have used a sharp tone with her when she was acting up and she completely dissolved into tears. One day she was hungry and my mom made her a sandwich and after taking a few bites she was in tears because it really wasn't what she wanted. >>rolling eyes, lol<< And yes, "the attitude" is emerging, though thankfully not often at this point. What I'm saying is that it really doesn't sound like precocious puberty* for your daughter. It sounds like she is on the early end of normal puberty. But I'm no doctor. If you are really that concerned, talk your pediatrician/physician and see what he/she thinks.

Good luck! :o)

*Precocious puberty means having the signs of puberty (development of breasts, testes, pubic and underarm hair; body odor; menstrual bleeding; and increased growth rate) earlier than usual. Precocious puberty is when the signs of puberty appear before age 8 in a girl or 9 1/2 in a boy.

Hi S.. I think that early puberty is the thing these days with our kids. I didn't go through puberty intil I was in 7th grade I think and to hear my friends and other mothers talk about their babies going through puberty at 7-10 age range frightens me. I have an 8 yo princess and I want her to stay young, innocent and sweet as long as she can. I don't know if it's the food or the water that's making our babies grow up so fast now. I personally think that your lil angel is just going through hormone changes and doing what TEENS do at an earlier age. Shoots, I have mood swings when it's time for my cycle and I'm waaaaay beyond puberty. Good luck with your situation and just brace yourself for the twin. You'll get it back to back....