ADHD -should I push for assessment?

[RosieLig]

My 12 year old son has all the inattention issues of ADHD and some of the impulsivity/hyper activity. He is very well behaved at school. He copes ok at school but definitely underachieves due to his lack of focus/daydreaming etc... He find it hard to organise himself and often forgets to hand in homework, loses his belonging etc...

He has been assessed for dyslexia (which he has) and the Education psychologist thought he didn't have ADHD. However I believe this has to be diagnosed by a medical professional.

I am not keen to label him but if he were diagnosed would he get extra time in exams? That would be the only benefit as far as I can see... We already try and help him with organisation and the teachers are aware of his focus issues (luckily he is in a small class so they can keep him on task better).

Any thoughts/input would be great. Thanks.

[Ineedmorepatience]

Hi rosie can I just say "labels" are for parcels and diagnoses help to point people in the right direction to help our children.

He may already be "labelled" as lazy or naughty and the correct diagnosis will help him to be understood.

I would recommend keeping a diary of his issues/behaviours and or making some notes about things he struggles with and how you manage those things. Then go to your GP and ask for a referral to a developmental paediatrician.

Good luck

[RosieLig]

Thank you both. He struggles with the idea of being dyslexic and I feel he sees it as a negative even though I try to be positive about it.

I don't want to add to his feeling of being different, only if it can help him e.g getting more time in exams etc... He muddles along OK and the teachers are aware of his issues, so if a diagnosis will not help him in practical terms then I'd rather not give him something else to feel inadequate about (his feeling not mind btw!!)

[RosieLig]

He's not sat formal exams yet, he's only 12 but no I don't think he will get extra time as his EP report scores were not poor enough (according to our support for learning teacher). He has a high IQ (top 8%)and actually quite good working memory. His reading is ok, just below average for his age. I think his challenges may well be more to do with his focus/distractability - he is also very laid back so there may be some laziness in there! A lot going on..... He scored one of the highest in his year for non verbal reasoning but ploughed his other exams, in fact didn't finish his verbal reasoning one as "it was so boring mum"!