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Diagnosed with ADHD and Bipolar Disorder

Question:

I was told to contact your organization in hopes of helping 8-year-old my son. He has been diagnosed with ADHD and bipolar disorder. My husband lost his job and we can’t afford my son’s medication any longer. We have tried keeping his conditions under control through diet. In the fifth week of school, he is now up to his fourth citation. He is on the verge of being kicked out of school. He is in the third grade. I wanted to get him into some kind of counseling, but again, we have no money — we are losing our house and my health is declining with Crohn’s disease. I don’t know what else to do with him. I can’t afford to send him anywhere and I can’t afford $300 a month for his medications. How can we help him?

Answer:

 

You may be at a point where going to see the school counselor or a school administrator is a good idea. Start by talking about your financial situation and that your son is capable of doing well in school, but he is not being medicated right now. They may already know this, but go in looking for alternatives. Public schools, especially, should have some background knowledge about getting your son some kind of financial aid. Depending on the resources available in your state, there might be a lot of help for him.

If the school has no ​financial resources to help him, then it might be a good time to start working with a social worker. Try contacting the Department of Health and Human Services, the National Alliance for Mental Illness, or the Department of Education.

If your son can’t be treated with medication, then you could consider an alternative school that is more prepared to deal with behaviors like this. There are counselors and schools all over that offer treatment funded by the state or on a sliding scale.

Ultimately though, it’s important to find a way to get some kind of support for you and your husband. There’s no way your son will be successful in your custody if you aren’t able to support yourselves.

Start at the school and then give us a call or write back with some information about your city and state so we can start looking for specific referrals in your area.