First - Let me say I'm sorry! Second - You are not alone. That's what this site is for. Third - It took me 6 months to find a doctor that would actually help me figure out how to help my son - do not give up on finding a GOOD doctor!

Now - The constant fighting. This happens to everyone with a child that has any type of mood disorder/ADHD. What you described about the socks, brushing teeth etc - My life!! I have talked to his doctor and was told - then, don't argue with him. If he doesn't want to brush his teeth at the time YOU want, so.....He will brush his teeth when he wants. Socks, underware a sweatshirt - If he doesn't want to wear them - So. The first time his feet are cold or he has a rash from not wearing the underware, he will want to start. Personally, I thought this doc was off his rocker. But, it worked. He brushes his teeth everyday - ON HIS OWN. He always wears socks/underware etc. You, like me, are going to have to learn how to pick your battles. I have started ignoring the small things. My son seems to thrive on negative attention, so I give him NO attention when he is acting out. It has helped. At first all I wanted to do was yell and punish. Now, as soon as I start ignoring his behaviors he redirects himself almost immediatly. I hope this helped!

Hi JJLILLIE,

Thank you for your support and sharing your experience. I can see what you're saying. It seems that all of that, seems to lead to another meltdown though. He says "I don't want to brush my teeth." I say "fine then don't brush your teeth." He starts getting really upset crying and yelling "If I don't brush my teeth then I will get cavities!" So in a frustrated tone I will say "then brush your teeth!" (This is not all the time, just an example) No matter which way I go, it's never the right way.

If he is being rude and disrespectful, I will tell him "I am not going to talk to you until you can talk to me in a respectful, calm manner." It doesn't work though...just causes more grief.

I am sorry to cut this short, but I have to go. I will elaborate later. Thank you again for your support

You are definitely not alone. My daughter is 6 and we intermittently deal with the same problem. You may want to read the book Management of Children and Adolescents With Attention Deficit-Hyperactivity Disorder. We had similar problems with our daughter and we were making the arguing worse because she was learning that if she persevered long enough, we'd get so frustrated, we'd give in or revert to the over the top negative attention. The key is to extinguish the behavior by following the method in the book. It is super draining and you have to be "all in" to do it, but it works if you can get through it.

Hi welcome to the group.. First off you are NOT alone in this... I have been dealing with a child with adhd, mood disorder, and oppositional defiance disorder since he was 4. The first thing to approach is the "fits" they are way to common with kids like mine. I don't argue if he doesn't brush his teeth or put his clothes on right so be it. Yes sometimes it makes it worse but keep your ground. I do not allow my son to talk to me disrespectfully and expect something in return. When he calms down and speaks to me respectfully then we will talk. I posted a discussion on here with tips that might help you. Its called tips to try. These seem to be working around here. BUT you must know not all kids react the same way to these. You just have to try and try. Its just the same with meds sometimes one won't work but don't mean all of them won't work. If you need a shoulder to cry on I'm here or if you just need to vent. That's something all of us parents do in one way or another. Good luck and best wishes.

Again - you are not alone....my son(11 years old - ADHD combined type w/mood disorder) argued about anything....that said we finally got a mood stabilizer Rx and changed his ADHD med and it's made a huge difference. Medication isn't the only answer, you have to do the other behavior modification to back it up but it saved our family. We had gotten a new Rx and the pill changed shape and I didn't realize it until after 9pm at night (to late to call the pharmacy) so we choose not to give it to him just in case it was incorrect - our son was very "touchy and argumentative" - we all have seen a huge difference. I do think age helps and as their hormones change.

Thank you everybody.

We had a really bad day on Saturday. It's the ONLY day I had him a full day and by 10:30 a.m. he had told me that he wanted to cut me up into little pieces with a chain saw. He has NEVER said anything like that before. I think after that comment that I am going to call his old therapist again and see what he thinks I should do. Nothing seems to be working.

I will look up that thread babygurl3694 and definitely look up that book EHCMom, thank you very much for your advice and thank you ALL for your support.

He argue's with you so much because he knows he can win. If he knew that it was pointless and Mommy would never give in he would in fact give up. Plus he gets tons of attention from you even if it's negative. Don't let him win! If he throws a big fit and you give him what he wants at the top of it, all that taught him is next time he has to throw the same big fit to get what he wants. Never give in to what he wants if you say no stick to it. Be strong.He can't be argumentative if you don't answer. State the reason why you said NO tell him you aren't going to discuss it any further. Do as your told and then if he still isn't doing what you say, start counting to 3. Once you get to 3 he goes on time out, or loses video games, or friends have to go home. Good luck.

A neuropsych evaluation is typically conducted during one or more daytime appointments, at a time when your child is accustomed to doing school-type work. Appointment length varies depending on its purpose, your childs age and their mental abilities. Most children above age five require two testing sessions lasting two to three hours. Findings and recommendations are discussed with parents during a separate one-hour session. Attendance at the feedback session is required, as it is necessary for integration of test results with parents understanding of their child.

After the neuropsych evaluation, you will receive a report detailing test findings, impressions and recommendations. The report is designed to be shared with schools, physicians and others working with your child.