It has been a month since my last post...a lot has happened in a month!
First off I want to start out by correcting a mistake I made in my last post. I mentioned that Mikayla was put on an IEP back in January. Well, I was wrong, it isn't an IEP, it's an RTI, (which I still am not sure what that one means). It is the precursor for an IEP. We have an EPT (educational planning team) who we sit down with and discuss progress and interventions. The IEP (individualized education plan) is what we're looking into getting Mikayla on next. I will get into that a little later.
This month has been busy for us. We started out with our initial interview at the Psychology clinic at Shand's. The doctor wants to do a full evaluation on Mikayla...this will take about 4 hours. She says she will focus on her intellectual and cognitive functioning, looking for specific learning disabilities, her attention levels, and her phonetic and reading levels. We are awaiting the appointment date for that right now.
In the mean time, we were asked to come in and discuss some things with Mikayla's teacher last week. They still haven't received the FCAT scores in, but I was told that regardless of her scoring, they want to hold Mikayla back to repeat the 3rd grade. This is really hard for us because we want to do what's best for Mikayla and that includes what's best for her academically and emotionally. Academically, this might be good for her. But emotionally, we aren't so sure. She is very sensitive and emotional and she has already been upset about the possibility of being held back. The doctor has said that it wouldn't do any good to hold her back because it would just be a repeat of this year. But then we think, how can she be successful in the 4th grade if she hasn't grasped what she needs to in the 3rd grade? I think it will all come down to what her FCAT scoring is.
So we are really carefully thinking about this. We will have a big meeting once the FCAT scores are in and discuss this further with the principle and guidance counselor.
We had our appointment for the neurodevelopmental specialist scheduled for June 7th, but they called us on Tuesday and said that they had a cancellation and asked if we could come in the next day, so of course we jumped all over that! The doctor went over with us the scoring that they do to determine certain conditions and learning disabilities and showed us Mikayla's scores. Mikayla's scores are through the roof on attention and focus compared to an average child. So the doctor proceeds to tell us that she has ADHD. Which I immediately started asking questions and being skeptical because Mikayla is not at all hyperactive and she has absolutely no behavior issues. Well he explained that there are different categories in ADHD and she is the "inattentive type" meaning she basically has ADD. They just don't use that terminology anymore, it's all ADHD with a certain "type" now. So he wants to put her on medication to help her focus. He also said that she has a learning disability, possibly dyslexia, and she needs to be tested to see how extensive and what types. He is putting in a referral for the testing but he doesn't believe that our insurance will cover it because it is for academics and they feel that the school should be responsible for the testing. So he gave us a bunch of literature to read over about ADHD and the medication options. He gave us a note for the school so that hopefully they will start the process of testing her and getting her on the 504 and IEP plans.
Now, we were initially very upset because we have always been almost nonbelievers of ADHD. We don't believe in medicating children plain and simple.
We have always felt like it is overly diagnosed and abused by parents and doctors. It has been used as an excuse for bad parenting and a way for doctors to have a pay day.
But we see how much our child is struggling and we see her scoring on the chart, it's obvious that she has a problem with keeping focused and on task. She isn't hyperactive and she has no behavioral problems, so it isn't the same situations that you see time and time again with these kids and their "helpless" parents.
The doctor told us about non-stimulant medications that are non habit forming and have less side effects. It is really such a hard decision for us to make! We can't continue this way. We can't keep going the way we have been. We just want our little girl to succeed. So we are seriously and carefully considering the medication and our options.
I went up to her school yesterday after the appointment to speak with the guidance counselor about getting her tested. Of course, she was busy and I had to leave a message. This was upsetting because we have not had it easy so far with dealing with the school and Mikayla's progress. We just knew that it was going to be a fight to get her tested and put on these plans!
Well, this morning I got an email from her teacher who said that she was just thinking about Mikayla's diagnosis and situation last night and is going to speak with the guidance counselor about getting Mikayla on a 504 plan before the end of this school year so that next year when she starts the new school (they are rezoned for a new school just being built for next year), she will already have it in place. This was amazing to us! A big answer to prayer!
So later, the guidance counselor calls me and agreed that we need to have a meeting and put her on a 504 plan and also get her tested for an IEP plan. We won't be able to get the testing done until the beginning of next school year because there just isn't enough time, but we are going to get it all set up so that it can be done right at the beginning of the school year! This is wonderful because now Mikayla will have extra help and accommodations for tests and school work. She will have access to certain services that will cater to whatever her disabilities may be. Our meeting is next Wednesday morning.
I have been sick over this whole thing and when I saw that email from her teacher this morning, I felt like a huge weight was lifted! God is good and He knows what He's doing!
If the doctor's office didn't have that cancellation and hadn't have called us in, then we wouldn't have gotten her diagnosis and we wouldn't have been able to get all of this stuff rolling with the school. It can be quite a process and there is no telling how long it would have taken if we would have had to wait until the fall.
We are still having to make some tough decisions concerning medication and whether to hold her back to repeat the 3rd grade or not, but we are praying and trusting that God has it under control. It will work out according to His plan!
We have heard a LOT of different opinions in the last 2 days regarding ADHD and medications and we really appreciate all of the input. Having said that, I didn't write this blog post to ask for everyone's opinions regarding this topic. Like I said before, we were always firm nay-Sayers when it came to ADHD and medicating kids, but until it is YOUR child and YOUR struggle with your child, then you really have no idea. We have learned this the hard way.
We still are not 100% decided on what we're going to do, but we would appreciate your prayers and encouragement. Just not so much your opinions on this particular topic (unless they are positive and encouraging). Thank you so much! We have really felt all the love!
Please continue to pray for us and Mikayla...we still have a long road ahead with testings/evaluations, getting her learning disability diagnosed, everything that comes along with that, and getting everything in the right order for her at school.
