matched with ADHD boys

Just a heads up-many children with attachment disorder are misdiagnosed with ADHD so be aware of that. You will want as much information as you can get about their early years especially age 1 to 3. How many times have they moved and for what reasons did they move(and it's common to blame the foster parents. If they say they've had 4 sets and its all the parents fault, don't believe it) Can you talk with current and previous foster parents? Teachers? Counselors? By whom and at what age was the ADHD diagnosed? What treatments have been tried? Were there multiple meds tried? Are the kids currently on meds? Have parents and teachers seen positive changes with the meds? If you haven't, I would recommend reading Adopting the Hurt Child(Keck). It's a very good resource for those adopting older children. If you're interested in more information on attachment disorder try [url]www.radzebra.org[/url]

I know the boys have moved 6x in 4years with 2 years in the same home with a failed adoption. I hope we are allowed to speak with previous families. They are taking med. and the current foster mom says she has seem an improvement in them with this med.

Moving 4x in 6years and a failed adoption signals more then ADHD to me. Ask lots of questions.

I would agree with Lucy. That is a lot of moves. Many children are diagnosed with ADHD when it really is something else that is more serious.

What are some behaviors that we should listen for in their presentation that would clue us that it is more than ADHD?? We have a 4yr old daughter to consider. I don't want to put her at risk of unpredictable behavior from one of the boys in the future. Is it really safe for her if we adopt older children?? The more I read, the more doubt and questions I have!!

Very frequently, among maltreated children, ADHD is diagnosed when there is actually another cause of the behaviors. ADHD is "diagnosed" based on superficial and surface behaviors. When you go to your physician with a cough, you expect your doctor to treat the cause (T.B., flu, cancer, asthma) not just the symptom (give you some cough drops). Since most practitioners do not specialize in treating children with chronic histories of maltreatment, most of the children they see with attention problems probably do have ADHD. But among children with histories of chronic maltreatment and frequent moves, attention problems, hyperactivity, distractability can be caused by sensory-integration disorders, attachment problems, anxiety, trauma-related difficulties, bipolar disorders, etc. So, are the children on medication? Which? Is there a dramatic change in behavior (like a switch going on and off) when the children are on versus when they are off the medication? Are the problems evident at home, in school, and in other settings? These are all issues to look at. In addition, you might want to look at two checklists on my website (one about sensory integration disorders [url="http://www.center4familydevelop.com/sensorychecklist.htm"]http://www.center4familydevelop.com/sensorychecklist.htm[/url] and the other about attachment disorders:[url="http://www.center4familydevelop.com/checklist.htm"]http://www.center4familydevelop.com/checklist.htm[/url] Finally, you should read the psychological evaluations and find out if the person who did those is appropriately trained and experienced in evaluating these children (is 50% of the practice with such children? What post grad training has the person had in evaluating and treating children with trauma-attachment disorders? Is the person a member of The Association for the Treatment and Training in the Attachment of Children [url="http://www.attach.org"]www.attach.org[/url] If not, I'd take the person's evaluation with a large grain of salt. regards

It's a good rule not to take children older then your youngest. Sometimes it does work out but the risk is always there. I would want to know why the boys were moved so many times. If they blame the parents for all 6 moves, run the other way. Were the kids upset or bothered when moved or did they adjust fairly quickly. ADHD kids don't do change well but kids with attachment disorder appear to settle in anywhere quickly. How many schools did they attend and what did the schools think? Were the problems as common at school or were they worse at home(ADHD would be more likely worse at school then at home and would improve with meds. AD children often(not always) act better at school then at home. Hope that helps a little.

thank you to all that are offering your advice. i really appreciate it. I am reading as much as i can on attachment disorders and ADHD before we hear their presentation. The number of times they have moved raises a large red flag for me. We are also foster parents. We have waited for almost a year for the adoption call and this will be a very difficult decision.I will post more info about their behavior and past as I learn it and hopefully I can get some help "reading between the lines". Thank you again!! God Bless