Hyperactive Kid?

There are times when I get worried about my eldest son. He can't sit still and seem to bounce of the walls (and my bed!). I keep telling him the chair is for his butt and not his head or his feet. Yes, he rarely sits down normally. He is either upside down, facing backwards or with his feet on the chair. He also always gets the "do-you-have-ants-in-your-pants" comment from me. His pants doesn't last very long. The knees always gets worn out because he likes to be on the floor (even in public). He was also having holes in his shirt because he kept chewing it. Thank goodness he has sort of stopped doing that now (after many, many angry reminders from me).

I get worried about his aggression too. Sometimes he gets sooooo angry. If he was a whistling kettle, he'd be going "WoooOOOOOOOOooooooOOOOOO" with steam coming out his ears. And his "default" way to handle it is to hit someone.

He likes to make funny sounds; you'd think he had a built-in sound effects system. His mouth can be like a radio that doesn't have an "off" button. Usually, it's on "repeat" mode. For example, he has been singing Lady Gaga's "Oola oolala, rama ramama". And it's that same 1-2 phrase/lines over and over again. (Mommy is going "aiyo-aiyoyo). Talking about yo-yo, there are times when his emotions are like a yo-yo; one minute he is high, the next minute his mood changes to an ugly low.

BUT, he is not always like that. He has his good-boy moments too. Plus, I've not had any complaints from his teachers. He can sit down and read or draw when he wants to. When I give him work to do, he can focus.

It's just those times when he seems to be out-of-control that gets me worried. Even a church friend agreed that maybe I should get him evaluated for hyperactivity.

Soooooooo........... we took him to see a pediatrician yesterday. Guess what? He was on his best behavior. He sat down nicely, quietly and spoke with the doctor decently. Of course the doctor thought me and DH were nuts to bring in such a good boy to be evaluated for hyperactivity.

Well dear Doctor.... YOU'VE BEEN CONNED. My son even admitted that he had cheated the doctor. Sigh! Maybe he is not hyperactive afterall, just very cunning and too much energy. The other day he said to me "Mommy, why are you sleeping? It's only 2pm. It's not even night time yet."

One good thing came out from taking him to the doctor. He had some good advise for my son. Doctor said "Don't watch television, don't play computer games and no fighting. Read more books and listen to music". I paid RM35 for that advise. Ironically, that's what I've been telling my kids all these while. I guess when a doctor says it, it sounds more authoritative. When mom says it, it's nagging :)

MAMA'S PARENTING TIPS FOR LESS HYPERACTIVE CHILDREN:

• No TV
• No computer games
• No fighting
• Read more books
• Listen to music
• Give them more attention