“He has a difficult time concentrating.”

“He’s having a hard time completing his schoolwork during class time.”

“He has a hard time remembering and following directions.

I’ve been hearing these sentences alot in the past few months. At first, I assumed it was the newness of kindergarten as well as a change in his routine. When it persisted, I chalked it up to him being the youngest in his class. I thought I’d give him some time to settle down as well as settle in.  We started working on extra projects to reinforce what he was learning in class. We’d work each day in a quiet place, free of distractions. And yet, amongst optimal conditions at home, Seth has had trouble finishing worksheets that should only take 10 minutes to complete.

We also started taking morning walks or playing games like “red light, green light” in hopes he’d burn off some of that extra energy before his afternoon school sessions.

I started buying organic, thinking his lack of focus and constant movement might be due to the plethora of preservatives found in food today.

There have been days he’s done well at school — completing tasks and keeping focused. These good days gave me hope and caused me to wonder if my worrying was for naught.  But at this point, I can no longer deny — even with a “good” day thrown in here and there? I’m still  hearing the same types of sentiments from his teachers. He’s progressing but not nearly as quickly as his classmates, and that’s with extra help provided by the school. I still see alot of the signs at home. Seth is very social. He’s very sweet. He learns quickly — when he really listens. But… he’s struggling. 

It is time to admit that something is “off.” He definitely needs to get tested for learning disabilities. Kids diagnosed with Sensory Integration Dysfunction typically have other issues that surface over time. So I’m not surprised we’re traveling this path of speculation, research, and testing again.

Is it ADHD? Is it an auditory processing issue? Is it something else? Is it a combination of issues? I don’t know. I have some ideas. But I’m not certain.

This period of limbo conjures up many memories. I remember years ago, feeling intimidated by the various channels we’d have to go through in order to get Seth testing and treatment. I remember setting up occupational and speech therapy sessions and asking therapists countless questions on how I could reinforce their efforts. The task seemed daunting. My biggest fear was I’d fail him. But day after day, month after month, this little boy progressed. Within a year’s time he had vastly improved, catching up developmentally to his peers. (In many aspects, he was even well ahead of his peers.) He was a much happier child. I was a much happier (and thankful) mom.

I now know that the unknowns are much scarier than getting a diagnosis. This quest will require more work on Seth’s and my part. There will be more power struggles and expressed frustration. There will be more meetings with the people who can help him as well as more trial and error. But there will be good days too. We may get through it clumsily, but we WILL get through it.

We’ll just have to tackle it the same way we did before — one day at a time.

Today I’m thinking of Wisconsin babes Cheryl, Ree, Dana, and Virtual Sprite. Go Packers!