My sweet youngest of 3 has been diagnosed ADHD (no surprise there) but we've been able to manage without meds (diet/exercise modifications) however, since she came down with a NASTY flu back in Feb. she has regressed back into some old OCD habits....checking expiration dates on everything, following me around the kitchen to make sure I wash my hands, etc. I have an appt. with her DR but I would love to hear from anyone who's gone through this personally, either with your child or yourself...what helps the most? She had a horrible hand washing habit a few years ago but I thought we were over it...her hands were RAW...would love to hear from anyone with personal experience, thanks moms!!!
Thanks everyone for the quick and thoughtful replies. My daughter and I are both feeling much better after the visit with her DR yesterday. I'm happy to say that after doing quite a bit of reading and talking with her pediatrician, I'm no longer as worried about OCD. My daughter more likely has GAD (general anxiety disorder) and a specific phobia of vomiting, hence all the fear of getting sick. The PANDAS info was interesting but she has never had strep (none of my kids have, and neither have I, weird, huh!?) We are going to check into talk therapy and biofeedback. I'm especially excited to try the biofeedback because that may help her with her ADHD as well. Thanks again moms!
PANDAS!
http://intramural.nimh.nih.gov/pdn/web.htm
http://www.worrywisekids.org/anxiety/pandas.html
Sometimes, antibiotics can help. Talk to your doctor about it.
I agree... check into PANDAS! Look for a doctor in your area who actually believes in it. Even though it is research proven, there are still a few doctors that don't understand it and therefore don't acknowledge it as a real disorder. There are treatments that can help, and a good doctor will teach your child tools to help her cope.
Sending hugs your way because I know how this feels.
Christi :)
My son is 13 and was diagnosed with Tourette's in 3rd grade and by late in the 4th grade/early 5th grade we realized he had OCD also (mostly the obsessive traits). I doubt ours in PANDA related because it is fairly constant. What we found worked best was a combo of Abilify (anti-anxiety drug at low doses of 5 or 10 mg made a difference) and behavioral therapy. Nothing seems to help 100% but I think we are 50 - 80% better most days. I didn't try the behavioral therapy until a year ago when I was introduced to a local therapist. It takes commitment to follow what the behavior therapist says to do and it makes the child worse for a few weeks as the behaviors are broken down (extinguishing bursts they are called) but then a better pattern emerges. When it gets off track again from not following the new process you just go back to implementing the behavior process and follow it more closely again. We also tried exercise and diet for the first few years before we broke down and agreed to try pharmaceuticals. I think gluten free and taking NAC vitamins helped some but nothing worked like Abilify plus behavior therapy. I am in Nor Cal and if anyone has similar issues with their children I would love to connect via private message
My almost 6 year old daughter has just begun to show OCD tendencies this year. It breaks my heart because I deal with anxiety and ocd myself and I don't want her to go through how I have felt at times!! I have found by reading book after book that the best thing to do is to empower them and make sure that they know that they are stronger than the obsessions/compulsions they are having. My daughter is much more obsessive than compulsive, where your daughter seems to be the opposite. Mine has "bad thoughts" and her compulsion is constant confessing of them. She also started to wash her hands until they were raw a few months ago and I had to simply not ALLOW her to wash her hands, even when she wanted to...she would touch anything and say, oh I need to wash my hands... we are still working on it but she is getting much better now that she sees that nothing bad is going to happen if she doesn't wash her hands after touching the couch, the table, etc etc. I worry so much about her getting worse over the years... I am so scared I am going to screw her up and make things worse or something. My OCD centers around health related issues and I try very hard not to project it onto my kids but I still wonder if I have caused her to be like this somehow....anyway, know that you are not alone. People with OCD need LOTS of reassuring from people they trust to try to overcome their obsessions. If you ever want to chat feel free to PM me! :) Hugs to you and good luck...I am curious to see what your Dr says.
ETA - Since you said that she was just sick, I wanted to mention that I read about a study that links OCD to strep bacteria. You can probably google it and find the info...
I also agree that you should research and inquire about PANDAS, particularly when the symptoms reappear after an illness.
Good luck.
You didn't say how old she is but there is a book appropriate for any elementary school aged kid titled "Clippety Clop, Clippety Clop, Why Do I Do Things I Can't Stop." Great book on OCD for kids.
Also, my friend has twins and one of them had the hand washing thing. She bought her moisturizer with hand sanitzer in it. Her hands were raw so this was a better option.
There are medications but my friend decided not to go that route.
I have been using neuro bio feedback for my son that has ADD because we don't want to medicate him any more. It is a computer game. They wear a helmet that measures their brain waves, specifically the brain waves (I think the theta waves) that show you are paying attention. If they are paying attn. they will do well on the game. (ie the scuba diver will swim to the bottom of the ocean and get a coin out of a treasure chest. If not payng attn, he swims to the surface. You get the idea but if you want to know more, you can PM me. I can see how some of the games may help with OCD>
CBT (cognitive behavior therapy), specifically exposure/response prevention
is the treatment of choice. You'll need to find a qualified therapist. If therapy does not help enough, or it gets too bad before it helps, medication can help a lot; you'd need to find a Child Psychiatrist. I don't think there is a lot you can do at home.
A little about me: Child/Adolescent Psychiatrist in practice in Palo Alto for 16 years. Married 22 years with a 20yo son and 14yo daughter.
