Re: Not new, but starting over again

[Guest guest]

Welcome, Melinda. So sorry you are seeing signs of OCD in your daughter too. I

can imagine you are scared. OCD does horrible things to our kids. It can be

agonizing to live through. The good thing though, is that you've been through

it with your son so sort of know what to expect. Yet, it can be different for

everyone and she might not need any medication.

I would think you could start with a psychologist. They can diagnose, but they

can also treat. The only reason that I can think that you would need to bring

in a psychiatrist is if you needed medication. But, if you find a therapist who

uses CBT/ERP therapy (cognitive behavioral therapy and exposure and response

prevention), it can be as effective as medication, as it retrains the OCD brain.

Scans have shown that it make positive, permanent changes to the brain.

Did you son ever use CBT/ERP for his OCD? If so, could you possibly take her to

the same therapist?

Glad you found us and are here.

BJ

>

> Hello,

>

> I started on this group because of my now 17 year old having OCD when he

reached 6th-grade. He's now in 12th-grade and doing well thanks to medication.

Still have occasional question regarding the " safety " of things. (Contamination

fears.) But overall, he has done well.

>

> My 9 year-old daughter has just started recently having some obsessive

thoughts. I took her to the doctor yesterday to start the process of having her

dignosed. This is a new doctor for us (because of insurance and our current

doctor has been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer.) I am not sure if the

insurance is going to require a referral from the doctor, so that is why I took

her. (and to say that I had.)

>

> Anyway, he has recommended that I see a psychologist for her because of

possibly having dyslexia. Can the psychologist also see her for her ocd? Or do I

need to see a psychiatrist for that (and possibly meds)? I am a little scared to

start her on meds already. But I am seeing increasingly more and more obsessive

behaviors. Mainly contamination fears like her brother.

>

> I am just looking for where to start. I know with my son, we saw a

psychiatrist to start his medications. I am getting skeptical when dealing with

professionals because they all seem to have different opinions of things, so

it's very tricky. I know with my son, they started him on meds and they kept

switching them to suit the issues, but he was switching over and over and over

again. I wondered what it was doing to his brain to keep switching them so fast

and furious. So we left that guy. Our world was a nightmare before we left him.

We were close to hospitalization because he was so out of control. But we found

out it was the medications that were making him be so out of control. Once we

took him off all meds, he became manageable again. We finally found someone who

knew what to do and since then, we've had very little issues with the

obsessiveness.

>

> So I am a little afraid of going through all this again.

>

> Thanks in advance for any advice/help.

>

> -Melinda,

>

> Mom to , 17, AS, ADHD, OCD

> Casey 15, NT

> , 9, Speech-delay, possible dyslexia and ocd

> Zac, 3, who knows? LOL!

>