[marykath]

My daughter came to us when she was 17 months old...we received early intervention services for her developmental delays...at 3 she "graduated" from the early intervention program and was not recommended for school district services because she had "caught up."
But...our EI worker strongly recommended we have her tested for sensory integration dysfunction. We spoke to the Regional Center supervisor who also has evaluated our daughter. The supervisor said yes - she did have some signs - but they weren't impacting her functioning so she (the supervisor) would not recommend testing.
Since then, we approached a county program for kids with "issues", and a therapist (not an OT specializing in SI) there agreed there were signs of SI, but not huge ones, and that we should just "accept" the realities of having a drug-exposed child.
My husband doesn't believe she has SI. Just thinks she is a regular 3-year-old, who has anger issues (we just started seeing a child psychologist to help work on her rages). I think she is a major sensory-seeker.
Our daugther still has Medical, and is on our private insurance, too. I found a place in town that has an OT that specializes in sensory issues but - of course! - they don't take MediCal and our insurance doesn't cover the testing/therapy.
Should we forget what the others have told us and have her tested privately?
Can I request the school district test her, even thought the Regional Center said they would not make the request? She is 3 now, so she is out of the Regional Center's age group.... Or does a professional have to make that request?
Please tell me I'm not nuts. I have read the "Sensory Child" book and see a lot of the signs of the condition in her. I think she would be so much happier if she got treatment - at least I hope so.
I also think it would lessesn, to some degree, the ADHD behaviors that are fustrating me so much at home. My husband, by the way, does not believe she has ADHD either, although we have been told repeatedly by the Regional Center, the county therapist and now the child psyc. that she is headed toward that diagnosis.
Advice?

[xxsurroundedbyxy]

To have the school district test, you would have to have a diagnosis from a professional or the child would have to be behind more than one year in skills. If she has ADHD, with that diagnosis, she can receive special services at school under what is called a 504 Plan. It is similar to an IEP in that she will have individualized goals. She can also have an OT assessment done with a request from the pediatrician to the school district.

Kim

[joskimo]

You could be living my life We adopted our daughter at birth though. She was born crack exposed and had endured exposure in utero. At 11 months of age we noticed a little agression which was cute until at 17 months we realized this just wasn't normal. We did early intervention for sensory issues which went great but I got into a panic when we got to the point that she was going to age out. What services were left?

Well just the school district services but sensory is not usually enough to get you in, so we took her to another state to get seen by a multi-disciplinary team (we took her to Portland, Oregon) She was evaluated by a Pediatric Neurologist, a psychologist, an OT, and a Speech Therapist. We left with an ADHD diagnosis (w/ Sensory issues).

That is still not always enough to get you into the school district services, but it was for us because our daughter is fairly impaired. Getting the full evaluation was the best thing in the world for us because it gaveus no doubts to our daughter's strengths and her issues. It gave us a full picture rather then one side.

Oh, and just so you know, our daughter just turned 3 in February, we started the school district's pre-K special needs classroom, she loves it. We are seeing a pediatric psychologist and starting meds for the ADHD later this month. Because her issues are so narrow we are very hopefull.

I wish you luck.

Jo

[marykath]

Thank you so much for your replies. I am so glad (well, not really, you know what I mean...) someone else has been there, too.
I called the school district to request testing and they are going to test her - that was all there was to it, no doctor referral needed. She has been seen by the district's speech/language person once, and already has a second appointment. Assessments with a psychologist, OT and nurse (why a nurse, I don't know) are to follow. I am so glad we are finally going to find out at least part of what's going on with her - at least I hope we are.
The district so far has been great and says she may qualify for Head Start, which would be a good thing. We are in a private preschool now that does not understand her issues.
Our private psychologist recommended starting adhd meds when she enters her last (?) year of preschool in August. We are a bit reluctant to start them so young, but believe they may help. Let me know your experiences once you start meds, Joshkimo.
Thanks!

[kizibits]

Ask your doctor about trying Mountain Dew instead of prescribed drugs. It's supposed to have a similar effect to ritalin on ADHD kids, but without the side effects.

[xxsurroundedbyxy]

Be careful, with a school district, if they test and decide she does not qualify for services most will not/can not test again for two years.
Kim

[teachbear]

Testing done by preschool special education, does not usually prevent testing in early elementary school. The preschol department will be looking for a deficit in one are of 2 standard deviations or a deficit in two or more areas of at least 1 to 1.5 standard deviations. Areas that are usually assesed for a significantly developmentaly delayed (SDD)eligibility are fine, gross motor, cognitive, social, emotional, speech and language. Alot will depend on how your child reacts to testing and respnds to the staff conducting the evaluation.

Another option would be to see if insurance would cover a neropsychological exam to determine if there are any nuerological basis for her issues. You could then choose if you want to share the evaluation with the school system, and to be used to help determine if she qulifies for services due to SDD.

Students with ADHD and problems in school academics or behavior can also be served by an IEP if the committee determines that the health impairment is the main reason they are not succeding in school. Alot depends on the staff at the school and district level. Some schools and systems want to help every child and others don't want to have any more "special ed" students then they have to.

Research has shown that the younger services are provided the better the child performs in school and life.

[maricela]

Originally Posted by kizibits

Ask your doctor about trying Mountain Dew instead of prescribed drugs. It's supposed to have a similar effect to ritalin on ADHD kids, but without the side effects.

How much Mountain Dew do you give your child?

[rottymom]

We have the same problem...by luck my hubby works in a college of OT's and one offered her services pro bono for the summer. It has been a huge help.

One thing I wanted to comment on though was your husband's lack of support...find a good child therapist and take your husband with you. Then let the therapist explain (in black and white if needed) that your daughter needs help and has issues. I had the hardest time convincing my husband our kids were not normal and needed more. We found a great child therapist for the kids and soon my husband began to realize how much he didn't know about the kids. It was a great help to me because so much parenting is all on me. To finally have my husband's support was so great.

[marykath]

An update -

Since the first post we have had an IEP - they say she does not have sensory integration issues. But why does she do all these wacky things? Why do I have to pry sand out of her mouth - she is 4 - every time she opens the sand box? How can they not see this? Actually, what they said, is that she may have issues but they are not impacting her ability to succeed at preschool.

The maddening thing is that she tested "average" in all areas, except fine motor skills, where she was a bit low. She did not qualify for services. But I still think we need them.

She has started having what could be seizures, or disassociation episodes, or something. We have been to a neurologist and had one eeg. We are in the process of having an MRI approved by our insurance. Also working on a referral for auditory/visual processing tests. Insurance is awful!

Working with the child psyc has done wonders. Best think we could have done. The psyc also made it clear to my husband that there were issues - thanks for that advice above. His acceptance of it continues to be a long process, though.

And we're on several waiting lists, both here and in the city, for sensory evaluations. Hopefully, we will get to the top of a list in the next couple months.

We've also started her at a new preschool. (The IEP results did not qualify her for Head Start). Much more structured and disciplined. Her school behavior has improved enormously.

I appreciate everyone's comments and support.

[rottymom]

Originally Posted by marykath

An update -

Since the first post we have had an IEP - they say she does not have sensory integration issues. But why does she do all these wacky things? Why do I have to pry sand out of her mouth - she is 4 - every time she opens the sand box? How can they not see this? Actually, what they said, is that she may have issues but they are not impacting her ability to succeed at preschool.

I am sorry...my daughter is borderline as well and cannot qualify for early learning. We have enrolled her in a private preschool this year in the hopes she will interact with other children her age. But we have also explained to the teacher some of her issues and that if she does not do well we will pull her out. Emotionally she just isn't up there with other 4 yr olds.

I am not sure what an IEP is but I assume you had her tested through the school system? We have a severely tough school system and have found to get any help we must go to someone private to get 'real' testing. I suggest finding a O.T. through your primary care doctor. If you can get the doctor on your side at least you can get help.

I didn't know what to expect with the OT because she told us as well that our daughter wasn't really a candidate for special service since she can function in a normal situation but we have gotten so much help from her. And temper tantrums have gone down dramatically. And for the first time ever my daughter played with a child her age two weeks ago. It was an amazing experience. So I wish you well and keep fighting for your girl.

[o2b30again]

Isn't it frustrating when no one seems to understand SPD. We just had our 3 children placed with us and we noticed right away that there were issues. Nothing that we couldn't stand but a few things that we realized were going to be issues in the near future, if not already, when school started. We brought them to our family doc asking for a referral to the clinic nearby that does the testing. First off I brought 3 kids ages 4,3 and 2 into the clinic at the same time. I think that I overwhelmed the poor Dr. He kept telling me that the issues I was explaining were typical children behaviors. Keep in mind that he really didn't know what Sensory Processing Disorder was when I mentioned it to him at the beginning of the appointment!!! I just simply asked him "what is a referral to get the testing done going to hurt" Guess what...we got the tests done. All three children have SPD and a couple of other OT delays that they will be receiving services for. Keep in mind that they are completely different in their needs. Now we are waiting to see if the Dr. will sign the tests so that insurance will allow the therapy. Hopefully our Dr. isn't so full of himself that he can't admit he doesn't know everything. I wish I could see his face when he reads the report...even if he won't sign and we have to find another way to get services I know that I am not off of my rocker!!! Just keep after your providers... mom's know what is best for their children. Stay strong and know that you are not in your boat alone. There are plenty of us rowing alongside ya!!!