Fustrated Mom

by Angela
(Wisconsin)

I have a 4yr old that i believe could be bi-polar and also odd i have been researching for about 3 months and have not took him to get help hoping i could try to change things myself only to get disappointed each time i try, the last resort i want to take is putting him on medication .With behaviors like this in such a small child , is medication the only way to make things better in our lives?

Hi Angela:

I am not sure what the signs and symptoms and behaviors are, so I am assuming you have a diagnosis of bipolar disorder from a doctor. If that is true, and it is accurate, than the remedy would be medication. Unfortunately we have no good alternatives to medicine for children with bipolar disorder at this point.

I understand how scary and frustrating it must be to contemplate giving your child these serious medicines. I also have seen many sick children get better with mood stabilizers and the transformation is amazing.

Oppositional behaviors which look like ODD could be related to mood instability. There is a book called the explosive child which may be helpful for you. If your child's moods are stable, the oppositional behavior may go away.

I would focus my energies on ensuring your toddler really has a bipolar disorder diagnosis. Make sure to get a full medical workup and his or her thyroid checked. Good luck