Andrew's Story - page 3

A few months passed.   I couldn’t find a doctor reputable enough and life was so hard.   Andrew’s teacher was so helpful but it seemed as though we’d never get beyond that point.   Then, one day, my mom called.   It was March 1997.   She was one of the few in our whole family who wanted to help somehow.   She worked for a visiting nurse association and heard of a seminar on ADHD given by a local doctor. Since her office was part of the collaborative that was sponsoring the seminar, she could go for free.   She asked if I wanted to go with her.   YES!   OF COURSE! I felt as though I had her support and that I wasn’t the only one who knew we all needed help!

      The seminar began, and slowly my mom and I kept looking at each other, laughing.   It’s funny when a total stranger is standing in front of a group of professionals (doctors, nurses, teachers) and is describing your child to a tee and your mom is sitting there saying, “I think I am ADD!”   The seminar was such an eye opener.   It taught me things I didn’t know about ADHD, medicines, foods, brain waves, chemical imbalances and heredity.   It was an important day all around.   My mom and I had shared some time and we both knew the truth – Andrew, without a doubt, had ADHD.   I was completely impressed with the doctor’s knowledge and even more with her compassion for these kids.   So, after the seminar was over, I approached her.   I thanked her for being so learned in this disorder and asked if she was accepting new patients.   She asked what we had done so far.   I told her about the testing at Children’s Hospital and the therapy we had gone through.   She asked to see a copy of Andrew’s “ratings scale.”   HUH?   “What’s that?” I asked.   She said it’s a checklist that Children’s should have had us fill out, as well as the teachers.   I told her we were asked to write about Andrew but no checklists were given to us.   She was baffled, and told me to come by the office, pick up some copies for the teachers, and us and to get them to her as soon as possible.   So, I did!   The day after I brought them to her, she called me, personally, and wanted to meet with us.   We made an appointment for 4 days later!

      We entered her office, scared to death, but extremely curious.  Andrew was thrilled that there were toys to play with!  LEGOS!  His favorite!  She sat us down and said, right off the bat, “I didn’t even have to add up the ratings scales.   Without a doubt, Andrew has Attention Deficit Disorder with hyperactivity!”   Immediately I felt this huge weight roll off my shoulders and my eyes filled up.  Even my husband took a deep breath and sat back in the couch.   We were scared but relieved; anxious but peaceful; happy but sad.   She mentioned medicine and therapy as ways to help Andrew learn to live with his disorder.  She believes that we are a “team.”   She is the coach, Andrew is the star player, and we are the fans.  Finally, someone who knew what she was talking about and helped us understand it in everyday terms!  Medicine wasn’t pushed on us at all, but we knew that it was something we needed to try.   She wanted to see Andrew once a month and said her door was always open for us if problems arose.   Then she asked Andrew to join in the conversation.   He didn’t want to leave the Legos but she insisted.   I knew I liked this woman!   She was soft-spoken but with determination.  He came to the couch and we talked about the worst time of the day for all of us.   We all said “the morning!”   As a team, we wrote down the things that needed structure during that time.   The next thing I knew, she had a checklist drawn up.   Andrew had to agree to check the things off as he did them and at the end of every week, if they were all checked, he would get a prize.   Andrew got to choose the prize – no surprise – he chose Legos!   She explained to Andrew that he had to do these things.  He wasn’t happy about it, but he agreed it would be better than all the yelling every morning.   She then said she would call our pediatrician and discuss her diagnosis and medication.  She isn’t licensed to write prescriptions, so we would all work together.   The pediatrician could also keep track of Andrew’s weight, height, blood pressure, etc.   She called the next day and said it was all set.  We made an appointment with our pediatrician for the following day.  We were given a prescription for Ritalin and our lives changed dramatically!   It was as though he was a whole new person.   He listened to us, he sat and watched one whole TV. show, he ate dinner without sitting on the floor or walking around the table 3 times, and he was a much nicer kid!

      Luckily for us, Andrew is a quick learner.   After a month, he no longer needed the checklist to tell him what needed to be done every morning before school.   We got several more checklists as the months went on, and Andrew did very, very well.   One great thing about Andrew is that he is very organized!   He even once asked one of his special ed teachers if he could clean her desk!  By the time he was done, she knew where everything was!   He always knows what everyone is doing, or should be doing, including himself.  This may sound funny, but I’m thankful for that.   He may not bounce off the walls anymore, but he can clean his room without being told to! I’ll take that any day!