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Originally Posted by meowee
Kim, did your DS act out sexually? This is what concerns me the most, b/c the child seems almost predatory when it comes to acting out sexually (waiting until the adults are out of the room for a moment/ cornering the other child/ pressing the other child to comply even after they say "no" repeatedly/ lying about it when confronted by adults). Everyone, including his psychiatrist, is 99% convinced he hs *not* been sexually abused. It really freaks me out that he is coming up with this stuff "on his own." I'm concerned that this will only increase and by the time he is pubescent/ adolescent, he will be worse.
What meds is your DS on, if I may ask? Thanks for replying. You sound like a wonderful & strong mama who is totally there for her son!
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My son has acted out sexually, mostly masturbating but once he was on meds this went away. Part of the side effects of an antipsychotic and even bipolar meds, curb this part. While it may seem this child is predatory, its mostly likely because young children do not know boundaries sexually. My child has tried to grab people's private parts, mostly adults or his siblings. Remember he is four. I have to reinforce over and over again that this is wrong, and sometimes, now that he is older he is punished. I know people here are against punishment, but often with children who mave behavioral problems consequences (and often times natural or logical ones will not matter) must take place consistently. The older my son has become, the more mature he gets, the less touchy feely he gets. He really isn't trying to be sexual in the sense adults are and I think once you see it as more of an impulse thing, its easier to deal with. (meaning the child isnt bad, he just has impulse issues and it feels good) The more of a controlled enviroment my son is in, the better behaved he is. Also, teaching young children spacial boundaries can be done with a hula hoop. I havent tried it with my child because he "gets it" in other ways, but I know it works for others.
I doubt this child has been sexually abused, but the sad thing is, hypersexuality is a part of mental illness and it can lead to this child being abused. He probably lies about it because of the reaction he sees. My son is very perceptive, so sometimes he will lie to avoid us being disappointed or scolding him. You are right, if this mother doesnt take action with her child, if this psychiatrist doesnt help her, then well her son could start acting out sexually and could unintentionally molest another child. I read about this all the time -- these children are not predators, they aren't child molesters per se -- its just they are hypersexual and lack impulse control, they just do what feels good.
My son is currently on Depakote and trileptal to control mania and rapid cycling. He also takes clonidine to curb adhd symptoms that stem from the depakote and at night to help him sleep. When he is not Manic, he is a perfectly normal child. When he is manic, he can rage, have hallucinations, psychotic thoughts, etc and hypersexuality -- however I will say that this has dissipated with age and maturity (impulse control)
In the past he has been on risperdal and zyprexa, both antipsyhcotics. He had a good trial with risperdal. The reason he was taken off of it, we were tweaking it and it caused him to go into mania. However, risperdal was the first drug we used. (he was 3 at the time) We saw immediate results. No more hallucinations, no more blood and gore, no more hypersexuality, no more intentional violence or aggression. It is not approved for use in children, but is used in children in the psychiatric enviroment. ( a lot of mentally retarded or downs male take this)
There are several books that your hypothetical friend may want to read.
The Bipolar Child (she will read the first chapter and it will sound like your first creepy kid post) The Explosive Child, and The Defiant Child. Also NAMI has parenting classes and information about kids with behavioral problems.
I also want to say, if you have hung in this far, that one of my dearest friends in the whole world has taken my son off my hands many times. I can't tell you how exhausting it is to parent a child with behavioral problems, much less mental health issues. I need respite but trust is a big issue to me, I have to know my son will not be abused for one, and that he will be in an enviroment where he will be watched. My friend has taken my son more times than you know, she has even taken him overnight and she has three children of her own. A lot of times she takes him to the park or places where all the kids are involved in activities. She hugs him a lot and has a lot of patience with him, often when I don't. If you don't feel comfortable babysitting than don't, but if you can do it and it be safe and he is supervised you may be doing a hell of a lot of good for mom and child. I definitely think this child needs some serious help. Children who are experiencing what you have mentioned are tormented and they need medical intervention. I thought I could cure it with love, diet, and prayer -- but unfortunately that didn't work. Its better to get these kids help now, so they will not self medicate or do something horrible that lands them in the system.
