Rad

Just chiming in because no one else has replied yet. I do think a month is probably too early to diagnose, but it's not too early to know that something isn't quite right. If the child truly had RAD, you might (as someone not living in their house) never know it. I think that most kids from trauma have some level of attachment issues, and that sometimes it gets labeled "RAD" when maybe they are more mild on the spectrum. But, in my experience, doctors are very hesitant to diagnose attachment issues, not over-eager. I have two kids adopted at that age, and both have attachment issues that I wouldn't call RAD. On the other hand, we had a kiddo here short-term with signs of RAD that were immediate, but since his behaviors all fell within the "that could be normal for his age," everyone thought he was fine.

Thank you for replying...Yes I agree that I don't live there so maybe there is something else I am not seeing, but when I talk to her the info that she points out seems "normal" to me. It seems normal that a older child would miss and long for the home they use to know, even if it was not a good place for him (he was removed for drugs, etc but not physical abuse). I just think it is too soon to say he has an attachment issue because he misses his birth mother and family. I read somewhere that most older children are diagnosed with some form or RAD. I just wondered. Anyone with this diagnosis who found out as time passed it wasnt RAD?

Yes, that does seem like a normal reaction for a kid. I think he hasn't bonded with his adopted family. Adopted parents freak out, then he got label with Rads.

I believe the RAD diagnosis is not given freely. Doctors are hesitant to give it because it is such a serious disorder. Nothing you mentioned points to RAD, so there has to be something else.

Be aware that the way RAD is being diagnosed has changed with the American Psychiatric Association's Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition (DSM-5). What most adoptive parents know as RAD is no longer RAD. It's not that the behaviors have changed, it's what it is called that has. The only RAD that is still recognized is the inhibited, withdrawn type (kids who refuse to be comforted). The indiscriminately social/disinhibited type (kids who are affectionate with everyone) is now called Disinhibited Social Engagement Disorder. This is a good article explaining the changes: [url=http://drgrcevich.wordpress.com/2013/06/13/dsm-5-rethinking-reactive-attachment-disorder/]DSM-5: Rethinking Reactive Attachment Disorder | Church4EveryChild[/url] RAD tends to be more of a term used to label foster and adoptive kids who have a specific set of behaviors (lying, stealing, aggressiveness, acting out, lack of empathy) but that has nothing to do with the way RAD is diagnosed by psychiatrists.

I have found it hard to get the diagnosis, and actually the child would be more likely to be diagnosed with it if they had jumped into her arms when she first met them. What you may be hearing about is a diagnosis that was present before the adoption, that either she wasn't told about or she didn't tell you about. I have met many adoptive parents who don't believe the diagnosis in the child's chart until the child has been with them for a few weeks or sometimes more.