Why is My Child One of the Mean Kids?

Is your child one of 'those' kids? Are you ashamed? Maybe you or someone in your family are/were mean too. Some kids have a mean streak. Sometimes they even grow out of it after puberty. Has your child been mean since he/she was a toddler or maybe an infant? There are a lot of questions to ask. The very young children who are mean, tend to be boys. Do you want your child 'labeled'? Can it be avoided? There are differences of opinion when it comes to how a parent should handle this.

Your child may simply need direction and/or maybe you need some direction too. Maybe your child is this way because you're not around due to working and he/she is acting out. Or he/she has picked it up from someone else due to you not being around to stop it. There are a lot of reasons that can explain your child's behavior, but it's up to you to get him/her to the doctor for a diagnosis and the help that he/she needs. It's very hard for some parents to handle this. Some parents are working their butts off to make ends meet and truly cannot be there for their kids like they want to.

There are lots of websites that give lists of symptoms of negative behaviors. The one I have used for this article is www.pbkids.org and clicked on About Pediatric Bipolar Disorder and found what I was looking for.

For this disorder the symptom behaviors include:
*an expansive or irritable mood
*extreme sadness or lack of interest in play
*rapidly changing moods lasting a few hours to a few days
*explosive, lengthy, and often destructive rages
*separation anxiety
*defiance of authority
*hyperactivity, agitation, and distractibility
*sleeping little or, alternatively, sleeping too much
*bed wetting and night terrors
*strong and frequent cravings, often for carbohydrates and sweets
*excessive involvement in multiple projects and activities
*impaired judgment, impulsivity, racing thoughts, and pressure to keep talking
*dare-devil behaviors (such as jumping out of moving cars or off roofs)
*inappropriate or precocious sexual behavior
*delusions and hallucinations
*grandiose belief in own abilities that defy the laws of logic (ability to fly, for example)

There have been historical people who have had this disorder like Abraham Lincoln, Winston Churchill, Theodore Roosevelt, and Hemingway. This disorder has been around for quite some time. It is highly genetic and can be treated, however, there is no cure as of yet.

If left untreated or improperly treated, the results could include:
*an unnecessary increase in symptomatic behaviors leading to removal from school, placement in a residential treatment center, hospitalization in a psychiatric hospital, or incarceration in the juvenile justice system.
*the development of personality disorders such as narcissistic, antisocial, and borderline personality
*a worsening of the disorder due to incorrect medications
*drug abuse, accidents, and suicide

Suicide rates are very high with this disorder if not treated, or treated properly. There are other disorders that sometimes can occur with or cover up this disorder include Conduct Disorder (CD), Oppositional-defiant disorder (ODD), attention-deficit disorder with hyperactivity (ADHD), and intermittent explosive disorder. There are more listed on the website. You can look up the information to all of these disorders as well and see what you think your child has, if anything. Your child may not have anything mentally wrong with him/her, just high strung or a mean streak.

Be careful and choose the right doctor for you. Not every doctor will be good for your child. He/she may not be up to date with these disorders, or just not good with a child in your child's age group. Know what you want your doctor to know and find one that has the same requirements. Please pick one you and your child like and vice versa! You should check out this website for this disorder, it is very helpful.

My troubles include my youngest boy who is three yrs. old, whom I believe has a medical condition called Pediatric Bipolar Disorder. If he does, it was given to him by his father ( not a joke or lashing out talk ). His father was diagnosed with Manic Depression when he was a teenager. Which is now called Bipolar Disorder. My son used to wake up three times a night due to nightmares. He sleeps better now, even though he still gets nightmares - just not as often. Although, I couldn't imagine what they could be. He is very defiant, argumentative, purposely disobeying, no regard for consequences ( this is slightly better now ), dramatic mood swings, destructive, he yells at adults, and others, he tells me and other adults what they or him will do or not do. The list does continue.

He floored me yesterday with what he said; he wanted to burn up his sister, her face and back! I was speechless for a moment. Not to mention that I was driving!!!! I told him "that was very mean. You don't say things like that. Why would you say that? That would cause her a lot of pain, if she didn't die from it! I love you Daniel, but I don't like you because of what you said. That was very bad." I didn't get an answer from him, but I'm not sure If I was expecting one. I really don't know what to do with him. I will be making an appointment with a specialist for next week. I'm actually scared of my 3 yr. old son! Have you ever heard of such a thing?

I hope this article has been helpful to you.