Therapy for a 7 year old?

My daughter is in 3rd grade. She has ADHD. She's been seeing a therapisy since 1st grade when she started getting a lot of suspensions & detentions in school...but I think it had a lot to do with the attitude of the main teacher. (There were 3 teachers too!) Last year in 2nd grade she only had 1 teacher but she was SOOO good with her & was able to redirect her, she only got in trouble once. She syarted seeing a psychiatrist the end of 2nd grade. She's only been on 1 medication so far, Focalin, and it made her lose more interest in eating than she already did, so I took her off it. (She's only 48 pounds, but she's been low weight since birth & she sees a Doctor for this). She's going to be starting Methylin chewables soon, just 5 miligrams, I hope it works without the loss of appetite. Her psychiatrist also prescribed a liquid medication to increase her appetite, I think it may be working, she just started it (I forget what it's called), she only takes 1/2 a teaspoon at night right now, I need to see if it'll still work with the Methylin. Anyway, i think it's VERY important to see a therapist, I used to but I don't have time anymore, my daughter goes for 1/2 an hour every other week, it used to be 45 minutes (her therapist would like to see her every week, but it's just too much, especially once school starts, I don't have a car right now, so we have to take a medical taxi, by the time we get home from the therapist's it will be like 7, 7:30 PM, since she gets home late from school (3:45 PM)). It's good for you as a parent too, you talk to the therapist & explain what's going on with your child from your persepective &also in school, if you know what's going on there. Then the therapist will talk to your child in private. Also, it's a good idea to let the teacher know about your son's condition & ask if she/he notices any changes in behavior, especially if he's starting new medication. I thought ALL insurance covered both psychiatrists & therapists under mental health. Good Luck!I hope you'll be able to provide him therapy every other week as well as seeing a psychiatrist, if you decide to give him medication. For me, I didn't want to give her medication at 1st, but after awhile I felt her behavior became too much to handle...At that point my husband didn't agree with me & felt she was a normal (active) kid, but now, after observing her behavior all Summer, he believes she needs medication. If you do give him medication, make sure the psychiatrist can monitor his weight & blood pressure, or else speak with & coordinate with his pediatrician BEFORE starting the medication. For me, my daughter's pediatrician is too far & my daughter's schedule is too busy to see her a week after she starts the medication to have her blood pressure checked, so her pediatrician would like me to ask the school nurse to check her blood pressure 1 week after she starts taking it. Try to get medication that is only 1 dose a day, in the morning before school. Again, good luck! You can e-mail me by clicking on my avatar. Then I can give you my e-mail address. I hope to hear from you soon!

My oldest son got diagnosed with ADHD and ODD when he was 5. He's now 6, almost 7. You can't treat ODD with meds. It has to be helped with therapy. Yes the ADHD can be treated with drugs but you still need the therapy to help them learn coping skills and it also helps you discipline techniques and solutions.

Our insurance company only pays for half. Which comes to 60 bucks a session. We pay it, cause its for our child. Its for his benefit.