I Need help....my Son Is 10 - Sebewaing,MI

I had some problems with my son of 6. He had a horrible time adapting to kindergarten and there were other things
going on...
Anyway, I have gotten him into counseling at the Child/Family Psychological office. There is one on 11th street and also on centre. It has done wonders. I take him every other week and he is a different child now then he was at the beginning of the year. Hehas also had a wonderful support system in his teacher and the counselors at school also.
Hope this helps.

J. C

Hi S.
I would ask your pediatrician for the name of someone if you want to go outside of the school. I do think that it is great that you are aware of this and are trying to intervene early on.

There is a book for kids about his age called "There's a Boy in the Girls Bathroom" that deals with a child having some trouble socially and wanting to make friends but not quite knowing how that you coauld maybe get for him or read together if you do that type of thing. It has a good message, but does not feel "after school special" :) My fifth grade students love it.

My son suffers from anxiety and anger was/is his coping reaction. Since 1st grade we'd seen the wonderful boy at home compared to the child at school. We had him to several counselors before finding Judy Russell. She is with APEX and recently moved to Ann Arbor, but I would make the drive if he needed her again. The beauty of it is, he says she didn't do anything. He just "matured". That's what you want out of counseling! He's 12 now and Middle School is going better than I could have imagined. She is a counselor, not a psychiatrist so meds won't be the 1st thing she thinks of, although eventually she recommended trying Prozac. Bad reaction. She was completely okay with our decision to stop. Good luck!

Does his school have a counselor/school psychologist?
Try that first.. those are free..

If not you have to see what your health insurance will cover as far as a child psychologist.

HOw many social activities does your son participate in?? was this event that he went to so rare that he was just crazy with excitement..?

Does he need more opportunities for social interaction to practice his socail skills..

I assume he is in school with other kids..does he have issues with school friends..? can you attend some of the events with him and be ready to intervene when things get out of hand?

My friend has a son with very poor social skills. he has no friends and cant seem to get along with any children. He is 13 and has no friends. He was finally diagnosed with asperget syndrome becuase of his poor social skills.

Hi S.,
I think I'd really need more information to say what I'm about to with confidence. So please, don't read to far into my post. It could be that your son has a PDD (pervasive development disorder); more specifically Aspergers. I'd like to know more about him..if you feel like sharing? My son was recently diagnosed with Autism after years of having other diagnosis. It's been difficult for me to believe the Autism diagnosis b/c he doesn't "look" like I pictured someone with Autism to look. I know...not the way I'd like to be! I'm learning an awful lot about Autism and Aspergers and what's helped me the most is knowing that it is a Spectrum disorder - some day's they are higher functioning than others and people on this spectrum can vary greatly in their abilities and presentations. Feel free to send me a private message if you prefer..I'd love to talk more.
M. M.

Oh.. I do know of an excellent Child Psychologist (in Royal Oak) if you're interested I can share that later too.

Read Dr Ross Greene's new book, "Lost At School" for starters (www.lostatschool.org -- go there and find the ALSUP, the checklist of lagging skills and unsolved problems). You may get some answers there.

Jeffery Kertes in West Bloomfield, on Orchard Lake Road across from the Beaumont building, is a wonderful psychologist.

Could your boy have undiagnosed Asperger's?

Hi,
I do not have any experience with older children - yet, but I would suggest the school's psychologist or social worker to start with. They can give you an initial evaluation and it might help you narrow down what type of background or specialty you want to look for when searching for a professional.

All I can think of is maybe he is overwhelmed or overstimulated in large groups? Try to find out from that events leader exactly what she witnessed. Ask the recess and lunchroom parapro's to observe him and his interactions with the other kids to see if they notice anything.
Best wishes to you!

I'd check with your local Community Mental Health Agency's children's department. They usually have pretty good, income-scaled help.

At least some of what he is going through is being a 10 year old boy. :) I have one too. They give what they get and those boys are out of their minds half of the time pushing and shoving. It's really hard to help them to learn "time and place". Maybe it's more with your son...

Mine is starting puberty. Yeah, that helps. Hang in there and be sure to find other moms of 10 year old boys to talk to. I can be one if you want.

S.
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Hi S., I don't know which area you live in, but I had 2 of my sons going to Dr. McCabe on Little Mack in St. Clair Shores.. ( I can't think of the name of the practice) But, he specializes in children. I highly recommend him. Good luck.

In my experience you really get what you pay for in the mental health field. I would highly recommend Dr. John Cotter with Farmington Hills Counseling Services. He's on 12 Mile Road, west of Orchard Lake. I think his number is ###-###-####.

Good luck!

New Oakland Child-Adolescent & Family Center, in Livonia on Schoolcraft, ###-###-####, if you have insurance, and the school counselor doesn't seem to help you.

Good Luck!

Hi, I have an amazing therapist who does not specialize in children, but I know that she works with them and with their parents. The thing that is so great about her is that she is very nonjudgemental and objective. She will totally get to the bottom of what is causing your son's behavior without labelling him. I don't know about the insurance issue because I do not have that kind of benefit. She is in the Farmington Hills area, Northwestern Hwy and Middlebelt. Natalie Valentini, ###-###-####. Right now I pay $110 a visit, best money I ever spent. Best wishes.