I am curious because I have a 3yr old who is extremely hyper. She has a very short attention span and is a big handful compared to our other daughter who is just a year younger. I haven't asked her dr because I am afraid they will put her on medication as a quick answer.

Doctors are now diagnosing ADHD as young as 2years old. However this is a terrible thing to do!! As you may or may not know there are many things that mimic ADHD. These include learning style differences, personality type, health problems, mental illness, and even just being a regular kid that is slow to mature or a bit more active than their peers.

I would advise strongly against having your daughter diagnosed with ADHD at such a young age. Try to work with her. Remember every child developes at their own rate so just because she is not like your other daughter does not mean theres a problem.

If you really believe she may have a serious problem then please look at all of your options before taking her in for a diagnosis. At the tender age of 3 some good ways to help your daughter might be things like:
a Eliminate sugar, caffeine, processed foods, and color dyes from her diet
b Make sure she gets lots of exercise (there are aroebic/yoga videos made specifically for pre-schoolers)
c Use fun and exciting techniques for teaching shapes, colors, and letters (don't try to make her sit still while doing these things, instead try something like - learning to count while jumping 1 - jump 2 - jump 3 - jump etc)

Remember children have different personality types, learning styles, and rates of maturity.

ADHD is genetic in most cases - Do you or her father have ADHD?

What are the most serious problems you are having with her?
(You said she is hyper and innatentive, but this can be said about most children her age)

I am curious because I have a 3yr old who is extremely hyper. She has a very short attention span and is a big handful compared to our other daughter who is just a year younger. I haven't asked her dr because I am afraid they will put her on medication as a quick answer.


Hello :wave:

I agree with free spirit on this one. My daughter has ADHD and she was diagnosed at a young age, but her father had it. It is genetic. Lots of things could be causing her short attention span. Allergies can also do this too, and sometimes the doctors are quick to put children on ritalin when they truely do not need it.

My daughter has struggled in school since she was in kindergarden. That is how you will be able to tell if she really has ADD/ADHD is by her teacher observing her.

When my daughter was young, I didn't know what was wrong with her either. She would go in the icebox and throw eggs on the floor and write all over the walls, from as high as she could reach. I would tell her to do something and one minute later, she would forget what I told her. And boy oh boy, if I gave her coke or chocoloate, or anything with red dye in it....she would bounce off of the walls.

She is now 14 and has outgrew the hyperness, but still has problems with the learning and focussing part. But, she has come a long way. If I were you, I would wait until your daughter was in school and let the teachers evaluate her and then decide what to do.

My daughter is on Adderal, but there are also some natural remedies you could try if you do decide.

Good luck and I hope everything works out for the best for you and her:)

Chantel :angel:

I wouldn't jump too fast on this either. When kids are that tiny....they are just discovering who they "naturally are". I sure wouldn't put them on drugs while they are mentally developing at such a fast rate at that age.

My son was just diagnosed at age 5. His pediatrician and I had talked about it through the years. After 4 yrs of observation, a teacher survey and parent survey he felt comfortable diagnosising my son. We are trying to get him ready for kindergarten so he is on a low dose of ritalin (5mg bid). The low dose is letting him focus more without losing all of his energy. We tried 10mg and 7.5 mg in the morning and both made him very depressed and inactive. I wouldn't want to medicate a 3yr old but I think it is good to be aware of the possibility.Our pediatrician does not like to TREAT ADHD until 5 or 6 but said he has treated as young as 3 in specific situations.

Victoria

Thanks for your replies. She doesn't drink soft drinks and I don't let either one of them eat candy. However they do snack on cookies every once in a while. As for processed food...does mac and cheese count as that? I ususally cook our meals since I stay at home with them. She has gooten into the fridge and has emptied out a gallon of milk on the floor. She has done the same with the eggs. she is constantly getting into trouble as soon as your back is turned on her. I can run outside to throw the trash and by the time I am back in she has already emptied the bootle dishwashing liquid. My biggest scare was when she climbed up onto the kitchen counter tops with no chair for leverage and started opening tubes of ointments and squeezing them all out onto the floor. She managed to open vitamin bottles and empty them out too. I am constantly going at high speed with her. She climbed the counter at 2yrs. Her sister hasn't even attempted to try this.

Mac and cheese is processed foods. Its very hard to eat all healthy foods. Margarine though less calories, is not as healthy as butter. (it has more chemicals)

As for her being a mischief maker, well she's 3 yrs old. Some 3yr olds need constant supervision. Sounds like she is one high spirited girl :) She may or may not have ADHD. This could just be part of her personality. You didn't answer whether or not anyone in the family has ADHD?? (like i said in most cases it is genetic)

You may want to get her a kid leash, they're actually pretty cool, they are like backpacks but with a strap around the waste so the kid cant get out of it, and theres a leash type thing for you to hang on to, this way she can always be near you. (my little brother used one until he was 5 or 6)

I am not really sure if anyone in my or my husband's family has it. Although my dh is very active. He cannot sit down and relax for too long. He has to be outside or always on the go. She reminds me of him a lot. At 2yrs old she was able to unlock the window, lift it open and crawl out the screen in less than 1min and a half. Thank goodness we live in the country and our home is a one story and 1/2 mile from the road. Our dog was with her and keeping her close to the house. All this happened when I was changing her sister's diaper. We have added secured locks on all the windows now.

I know just what you are going through! I had just posted my own similar post before I saw this thread. My 2 1/2 yr old can seem to destroy and reek havok in under 2 min. When he was only 1 1/2 I went upstairs to use the bathroom while the kids were watching cartoons. I was upstairs for no more than 3 min. and when I came down he was gone! It was warm outside, so I had the window open. Within 3 min. he had managed to push the screen out of the window, climb out and take off!! I was sooo panicked. He actually crossed the street (which is not a major street but a fairly busy one) and was playing in the coutyard of the neighboring senoir citizen apt. complex. When I got him I was crying and people were standing there looking at me like I had done something wrong, like I was a horrible mother. He wasonly a year and a half!!! It's so hard to watch these babies act like this... it breaks my heart!

one an a half year olds are not old enough to be left alone. Parenting is difficult, takes a lot of work and a lot of time. Young children need to be supervised 100% of the time. ADHD or not...

And as was already mentioned, mischiveous behaviors do not always equal ADHD.

Excuse me???? My children DO have proper supervision. I do not know of one parent who has not left the room for 3 minutes. I spend every waking hour with my kids... they are my entire world. Am I supposed to carry both my kids with me everytime I need to use the restroom? How could I have known that my baby would literally break the screen frame and climb out? I'm not trying to get nasty or rude with you, but your comment was very rude. I did not come to this board to be judged by someone who does not know me.

I just said that children need proper supervision.

Parents expect children to behave while theyre not looking.... its just not gonna happen, children need to be supervised 100% of the time. I didn't say anything negative against you.

If a person reads a non-offensive comment and feels offended by it, does that suggest they are feeling guilty?

I just said that children need proper supervision.

Parents expect children to behave while theyre not looking.... its just not gonna happen, children need to be supervised 100% of the time. I didn't say anything negative against you.

If a person reads a non-offensive comment and feels offended by it, does that suggest they are feeling guilty?

wow. There you go again. You play a game of words. How many children do you have? If you have kids, I find it totally impossible to believe that you have never left the room for 2-3 min. If you say you havn't, that would have to be a lie.

You did say something negative about me - that I do not give my kids PROPER supervision. You do not know me, nor know enough to pass any judgment on my parenting abililities.

Also... I just went back and noticed that you changed your post. You originally posted : Children need PROPER supervision. Funny how you feel you said nothing wrong, but felt the need to go back and change the original post. Hmmm... whos feeling guilty now? Or, did you just want to cover up your rude behaivor so noone else could read it?

I suggest to parents who have very young kids like this (and I had one and that's what I did) to either take the child with you at all times or place the child in a playpen until you return, even if it's only for a few minutes. My son had to be supervised 100 % of the time for his own safety.

My kids are too old to be in a playpen. My youngest could climb out of his crib and playpen by 13 mos. old. My kids are well supervised, but noone can stand over their children every second of everyday. Also, my older boy has C.P. and if I'm dealing with him I can not always see what exactly my other son is doing every second.
The incident I spoke of was the only one of its kind. It was a freak accident (that luckily ended without injury) and honestly could have happened to anyone.

Also... I just went back and noticed that you changed your post. You originally posted : Children need PROPER supervision. Funny how you feel you said nothing wrong, but felt the need to go back and change the original post. Hmmm... whos feeling guilty now? Or, did you just want to cover up your rude behaivor so noone else could read it?

I think you feel guilty, I edited my posts because I was asked to. If you take such good care of your children I dont see why you are getting so defensive.

I suggest to parents who have very young kids like this (and I had one and that's what I did) to either take the child with you at all times or place the child in a playpen until you return, even if it's only for a few minutes. My son had to be supervised 100 % of the time for his own safety.

Yes! Exactly Palms! Many young kids need supervision 100% of the time, and it is the parents job to give them that. Good going for realizing that and being a responsible parent!

Why were you asked to change your post? Maybe because it was out of line? I do not feel guilty, I did nothing wrong. I take very good care of my children. Its sad when a person comes here for advice and ends up getting insulted for no reason. You, my friend, are a rude person. Also... you didn't answer my question - Do you have children of your own?

Why were you asked to change your post? Maybe because it was out of line? I do not feel guilty, I did nothing wrong. I take very good care of my children. Its sad when a person comes here for advice and ends up getting insulted for no reason. You, my friend, are a rude person. Also... you didn't answer my question - Do you have children of your own?

Not out of line, only honest. You cant leave toddlers alone AT ALL. They need supervison 100% of the time, if you dont feel guilty then YOU HAVE NO REASON TO BE ACTING SO DEFENSIVE. I'm rude huh lol. I only made an obvious statement, It wasnt rude, if you are offended by it, like I said, thats your problem.


Edited to add..
I raised my brother... and I never ever left him alone, because at my young age I knew better. And as mentioned by others, young children need 100% of supervision!

You must not have children. You keep ignoring my question. Someone who does not have children should not go around telling people how to take care of theirs.
Like I said, you are rude.

You must not have children. You keep ignoring my question. Someone who does not have children should not go around telling people how to take care of theirs.
Like I said, you are rude.

I'm not rude. You are the one running around here calling names Lisajh, not me, all I said is that some children need supervision 100% of the time and you trip out. It's not even worth disscussing things with you apparently.....

Like I said over and over, if you dont feel guilty you have no reason to be defensive, so why are you so defensive that you feel you have to keep going on and on about such a simple and true statement?

I never called anyone names. I only said that you are rude. You are going on and on yourself. Obviously if you were ASKED to change your post, there was a reason for it.

I'm now done. I will not continue to take your insulting remarks.

I never called anyone names. I only said that you are rude. You are going on and on yourself. Obviously if you were ASKED to change your post, there was a reason for it.

I'm now done. I will not continue to take your insulting remarks.

Lisajh - I did not insult you at all... I dont need to defend what I said ... I am perfectly willing to retype it.. here ya go.

Children need PROPER supervision. You cant just leave a one an a half year old by themselves. They need to be supervised 100% of the time!!

There ya go... That is not an insulting remark, unless you choose to take it that way, and like I said, if thats the case, its not my problem.

P.S. How about taking Palms advice!

OK... last post. It is NOT as if I left my son home alone, or left him unsupervised for any long amount of time. It was only 2-3 minutes. I am a very good mother, no matter what you (a person who knows nothing about me) thinks. I'm done now, so you can go ahead and try to defend yourself... I could care less at this point. Obviously, it was a mistake to come here looking for advise, when what I get is a petty argument. I think you should seriously work on your people skills, try to be a bit more polite.

OK... last post. It is NOT as if I left my son home alone, or left him unsupervised for any long amount of time. It was only 2-3 minutes. I am a very good mother, no matter what you (a person who knows nothing about me) thinks. I'm done now, so you can go ahead and try to defend yourself... I could care less at this point. Obviously, it was a mistake to come here looking for advise, when what I get is a petty argument. I think you should seriously work on your people skills, try to be a bit more polite.

Lisajh - CALM DOWN - I never said that you were a bad parent... I knew you were feeling guilty...otherwise why would you continue on and on with a stranger. First off, my comment should NOT have offended you!!! If you dont care what I think then why are you so worked up about it? I did not start an argument Lisa. So you admit it was a mistake, then why were you defending it to the end? I have not been rude, you are trippin out about a little common sense comment I made. Its not my fault that you got so upset by the truth.

P.S.
I have not been rude, you are obviously being overly defensive. Anyone can see this. You are the one saying bad things about me, I never said anything bad about you, all I said is that you are obviously feeling guilty.
So why dont you take your own advice about people skills and being more polite. I would also suggest you work on your self esteem, its a bad sign when you get offended by things that 1. were not meant to offend 2. were said by a complete stranger

Both of you are wrong.

Lisajh,
Defensiveness on the boards is always inappropriate.
The statement that kids need supervised 100% of the time
is neither a personal put down or a comment on how good of a parent you are.

*born~free*
Report an offensive post to me or else simply stop replying.

AGREE TO DISAGREE.