Unsure whether to seek OT help for dreamy 5yo boy

DS1 is in prep this year. His lovely teacher has already identified that he's very dreamy and finds it hard to focus and pay attention to what she's asking him/his class to do. It is already evident that he's one of the few who is still coming to terms with his letters, numbers and writing his name etc. Probably 70pc or more of the class seems to form letters well and can write their name easily. He is getting there very slowly. This morning, DS1's teacher said he was particularly dreamy yesterday, to the point that she was getting quite exasperated with him. Also, several uni students studying OT have been assessing the class all of term 1, and are about to deliver individual reports. DS1's teacher said my son was "at the top of the list" regarding kids the uni students felt would benefit from OT. I've already spoken to the teacher about DS1's strengths and weaknesses, and she knows I'll do whatever I need to in order to help him. She believes he'd benefit from OT in regard to his attention span and concentration.

OK, so earlier this afternoon, I had to go the GP for other reasons, and I raised the above with her in light of getting a referral to an OT for DS1 (DS2 has also been seeing an OT for the past couple of months). But the GP's take on DS1's dreaminess is totally at odds with the teacher. The GP says he's a normal five year old boy, that while he might well be dreamier than the other kids, he'd be considered "normal" within the spectrum. She believes I should led time take its course and not jump to taking him to see an OT. I respect my GP but am now confused as to what to do.

My gut says to go to another GP and get a referral. I'm sure dreaminess is normal among 5yo boys, but my concern is he's falling behind the others because he can't concentrate. He's not disruptive or problematic in the classroom otherwise.

I'm interested in thoughts of others with dreamy kids. Do they snap out of it eventually? At what point do you intervene ... is prep too early? Logic tells me to "catch it" the earlier the better.

If he were my son, I'd be getting him to an OT. It's best to do it now, and even if they tell you yeah, he's fine and he'll be OK in his own time, at least you know that and have had it confirmed by an OT. Otherwise you risk him falling too far behind at school and then having to catch it up. Listen to the teachers and the uni students who are actually studying OT - when they graduate they WILL be OT's so I would listen to them instead of a GP who probably doesn't have much experience in that area. The difference between kids who have had that early intervention compared to the ones that have never had it is quite obvious by the time they get to the end of primary school and it's much harder to catch it up.

you dont need a referal!!
if you think he would benefit, then take him
has he had his hearing and eye sight checked professionally????

Your GP does not sit with your son for a day trying to teach him. I'd trust your own heart and the teacher too. What's the worst that could happen? The OT says, hey, you know, I think he's doing ok, lets leave it a bit. Or you get the chance to help him earlier than later?

You aren't asking for him to be diagnosed, or placed on a spectrum, are you? You just want to see an OT.

You're the mum. You know your boys best.

My DD is 'dreamy' and sounds like your son (except she has managed to do well with her schoolwork). Her lack of focus has always been an issue though and she was diagnosed with ADD in grade prep/1.
Now that puberty is on its way, her dreaminess is getting worse IMO.

I don't know anything about OT but have you had him tested for ADD??

Just wanted to let you know, if you are going to go to an OT privately, you don't need a referral from a GP.

Yes. Get the referral. I wish someone had paid more attention to DD1 because she's now 14 and still doesn't have a clue - except now the behaviour is 10 years more ingrained in her. The penny has now dropped and she's on a waiting list to be assessed for ADD/ASD, except at this age it's a ****load harder to get help for her.

Also - get him a thorough medical check up, including screening for sleep disorders, eyesight and hearing.

DS1 has been seeing a speech pathologist in blocks for 2 years and about 18 months ago she introduced an OT to our appts as DS1 can't concentrate he gets easily distracted and can't focus for long. We have seen improvements but still a long way to go. I am concerned about him starting school next year (will be 5 and 1/2) as he can count but doesn't know numbers if he sees them, he only knows a few letters by sight and can only write J and H (his and his brothers inital).

I am about to take him for another eye check, as he had 1 last year but lost concentration but she thought was ok. Has had a hearing test and was fine.

Good luck it is very frustrating trying to help children concentrate and I have bene guilty of getting annoyed and shouting.

you dont need a referral but if you have one then you are able to claim back a certain amount of the costs from the consultations. i think its a certain number each year. Not alot but still something!

Thanks for the replies ladies.

I know I don't need a referral, but via a mental health plan (I think it's called) I can get him 10 sessions with a decent Medicare rebate, which gets us considerably more back than our private cover. So that's why I'm going down the path of a referral.

Re: ADD. Interesting. I hadn't thought of that. And that's why I should have an OT assessment. He's not hyperactive, so I guess that rules out ADHD??????? But yes, I think I'll pursue this and go to a different GP for a referral.

No, there are three elements to ADHD - hyperactivity is only one of them. The other two are inattention and impulse control. I'm not saying that your situation is suggesting this, but it's one possibility to bear in mind. IMO the label is less useful than the help/additional strategies you might be able to get, so if you can fast forward straight to the additional strategies (via an OT or whereever else) without the label then that's a good outcome too.

My DD has no behavioural issues (puberty moods aside :lol: ) She isn't hyperactive. She just has problems focusing and is easily distracted. "Away with the fairies' and 'in her own world' is how teachers invariably describe her.

I was away with the fairies as a kid, teenager and often as an adult. I managed to finish school and get a postgraduate degree, before I was diagnosed as inattentive type ADD when i was 35.

It's not the end of the world. ADDers are pretty creative types and can come up with some amazing ideas. We just need others to implement them ;)

He may well be learning, but just by thinking his own thoughts in his own time. Obviously, if he's falling behind though, it wont hurt to see a professional for some help. I cruised through school until about year 10/11, when the need to actually apply myself hit me and I fell behind.

My DS is 7 and recently diagnosed with ADD being predominantly inattentive. OT and speech therapist spotted it before the Peadiatrician. There are heaps of things they can do to help out in class, and if they don't work perhaps medication could be another option. You could ask the teacher (or school learning advisor if they have one) to write a letter including the report form the OT's in the classroom and take that with youth the GP or try to get a referral to a Peadiatrician to see what they recommend. Good luck - it's a long road with little people with extra needs but so worth it when you see the results coming through.

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My DD has no behavioural issues (puberty moods aside :lol: ) She isn't hyperactive. She just has problems focusing and is easily distracted. "Away with the fairies' and 'in her own world' is how teachers invariably describe her.

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The exact same things that my son's teacher is saying about him! Oh, and the phrase "la la land" comes to mind too!

Mardydean - thanks for the heads up re: the types of ADD, I'm a rookie (although thanks to DS2 I now know about sensory processing issues!). And I couldn't agree more about the strategies/coping mechanisms being the most important thing resulting from assessment and diagnosis.

L&B ... Thanks for your thoughts - I love your take on it :) If he does have ADD, I'd be quite ok with it. I don't think labels define what/who the person is, but I guess having a label (as such) helps in regard to having strategy/plans to assist manage it.

Sorka ... There's medication for inattention! Wow! Think I need some of it from time to time ;) Thanks for your thoughts as well.

This is all building a bit of a picture. His teacher did say this morning that he's fine one-on-one, but he has trouble staying focused and concentrating in a group situation. Goodness knows if it means ADD ... I guess only an assessment will tell. Thanks again ladies for all your input :)

Oh yeah, La La Land :lol: DD lives there!

I've just read this article and thought you may find it interesting. It links AD/HD type behaviours to sleep problems. I've always had sleep problems, so now I wonder if this may be related.
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/28/op...g-deficit.html

Sleep problems are common. DD's paed recommended melatonin for her but I decided against it.

Thanks for the thought but DS1 sleeps really well - asleep within minutes of the light being turned off around 7pm, and down for the count till 6am pretty much every day.

I spoke to DS2's OT today who thinks it would benefit DS1 to have an assessment. She agreed that his teacher would have the best insight given she sees him daily. She actually said the same thing his teacher said to me several weeks ago ... that because he's dreamy and not focussing well AND is also quiet and not disuptive in class he can easily overlooked and therefore could "slip through the cracks". I don't think that will happen this year as his teacher is all over this issue, and we've already had a couple of one-on-one chats about what DH and I can do at home to help. But, as the OT indicated, if we get on to this now, it could well save him some grief for future years. She said being dreamy didn't indicate ADD, but I guess that's what a formal assessment would be about.

AndiE - you wouldn't necessarily know by looking if his sleep is good or not. I've always believed myself to sleep like a log (and am difficult to wake, even) but it turns out when I did a sleep study that my brain wakes itself up dozens of times a night. My sleep "looks" normal to an observer but I am massively, massively sleep deprived, and probably have been for most of my life. FWIW as a child I fit the description of being away with the fairies. And I was referred for the sleep study in the first instance because of cognitive difficulties. Obviously, it's not the first thing to investigate, but do bear it in mind as time passes, especially if he develops any other signs of tiredness, fatigue, lack of motivation, or even depression.

Thanks Marydean - given what you and the other gals have said I will keep it in mind (... I had no idea, he doesn't wake or twist and turn much so always assumed he slept well! Obviously he might, but he might not!). Cheers :)

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Your GP does not sit with your son for a day trying to teach him. I'd trust your own heart and the teacher too. What's the worst that could happen? The OT says, hey, you know, I think he's doing ok, lets leave it a bit. Or you get the chance to help him earlier than later?

You aren't asking for him to be diagnosed, or placed on a spectrum, are you? You just want to see an OT.

You're the mum. You know your boys best.

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Good advise there. Hope it all works out for you and DS

Get him checked out if you have concerns by all means (if anything it will put your mind at rest). But you know he just may be a normal 5 year old boy who finds sitting in a classroom full of people dull.

As an aside, I'm a little anti "diagnosing" children (and pigeonholing them) because they are at a different stage to their peers, so apologies to all if I offend.

Do it. OT is fun so it's not like there is any harm in going along. Have you tried modifying diet too? It may be that something is giving him brain fog and making it difficult to concentrate.