[teacher2mommy]

My fs was placed with us a month ago. He and his sister are here for permanancy. The permanancy hearing is in Oct and they are petitioning the court for TPR.
In this month I have noticed that my fs will be standing there and stare at something and completely zone. He can't hear anything you say until you physically touch him on the arm or something. I know sometimes kids and frankly adults can do this at times but he does this regularly. I am talking several times a day.
Can anyone tell me if I am just looking into this too much or is this a symptom of something else???

[linda512]

There is something called absence seizures where people can just zone out like that. It may be worth taking him to the doctor.
Good luck.

[NJNative]

My cousin has epilepsy and had many seizures a day just like what you described. Might not be, too, but I would have him evaluated.

Good luck!

Robin

[DianeS]

My husband used to do that. "Zoning out" staring at a wall or some point in space, and if I didn't interrupt him he could do it for 45 minutes sometimes. Sometimes he could do it while looking at the TV or talking with someone - just zone out and not hear a word or see a thing of what was going on around him. Other times he'd sit down to put on his shoes and it would happen. Just about anywhere, any time. I was concerned it might happen while he was driving, but it never did. I wondered if activity he was actually engaged it helped prevent it.

He was diagnosed with ADHD in his 30s. Adderall took care of most of his attention issues, but that "zoning out" continued. When I told the doc that, he switched him to Concerta, and the "zoning out" stopped! And as long as he takes his medication as prescribed, he doesn't get those episodes any more.

Now, there are quite a few things it could be, and my husband was tested for seizures before the doc was confident it wasn't that, and he and I were talked to extensively to rule out the possibility of it being a symptom of disociative disorder. The possibility that it could be part of his ADHD was one of the last things checked.

So do mention it to his doctor and insist it be checked out. But do go into the testing with an open mind, there are several things that can cause that particular symptom.

[momraine]

There are several possibilities. Hearing issues, seizure issues or just habit. If they lived in a home where people were yelling or talking all the time, they may have learned to tune out noise and voices.

[mallory4]

I think it's good that you're wondering about it. When our fs was placed with us as a toddler, this was a common occurence with him, too.

I had read that it was common among kids recently adopted from China and was thought to be a stress behavior, because of all the losses and changes they'd been through. It is also a synptom of PTSD in adults.

Our fs was moved three times in one month, and had many other clear signs of stress and anxiety, so I thought that it made sense.

After five or six months, it didn't happen any more and hasn't happened since.

My guess is that if he responds when you touch him, it isn't seizures, but if it's possible to have him evaluated, and you're worried about it, it'd be worth it for the peace of mind. Also, if it is because of stress or trauma, it might be a handy way for you to track his recovery--if it starts happening less often, or if you notice certain conditions bring it on more often, etc.

Good luck!

[Lylac]

I agree that it "could" be seizures or it could just be his way of handling things. I would start with his ped and go from there.

Good Luck, I hope you find the answer.