Thoughts?

I'm not trying to diagnose or treat, just curious about your opinions.

My son is 3. All of this started about a year ago, and I just chalked it up to the terrible twos. Here we are a year later and things are getting worse.
My son goes from one extreme to the other in the matter of seconds. And a lot of times, it's not because of an outside influence, like his brother took his toy or something like that. When he gets mad, he gets MAD! He screams to the point where his voice gets raspy, he throws himself on the ground, slaps himself in the head, etc.
But then in the blink of an eye, he's normal, laughing, smiling and being a typical three year old.
The best way to describe him is like a sour patch kid. First he's sour, then he's sweet.

I want to take him to the Dr, but I don't at the same time. I'm afraid they'll want to pump him full of medications...but he's only three. I don't want him to be reliant on medication already, and also, I'm unsure if he's still too young to effectively test him for bipolar disorder.

Thoughts and/or opinions?

Hi Colie, I'm sorry that your son is struggling right now. If you took him to the pediatrician you would still call the make the decisions on his care?

I don't have a little one at home so I don't know a lot about this issue, but wanted to say hi, let you know that I care...and I'm sure you will be receiving more replies soon. xo

Hi.

Keep in mind that terrible 2s and the meanie 3s are just crappy, and every child is different too. My advice is to take him to a pediatrician, to make sure nothing is wrong (like autism), if you feel it is beyond the meanie 3s.

I would have to agree and take him to a pediatrician. I can't say that it is necessarily a bipolar issue at this age. I hope you are able to find the issue, but kids can be really finicky at this age.

I had issues even at that age. but plenty of other children do too and don't grow up to have any major mental health issues. talking to a dr might not be a bad thing. but I wouldn't consider medication until the kid was a teen. but that's just me (and I'm not a parent).

since your son is hitting himself, and this can be dangerous as head injuries are no joking matter, I would take him to his regular doctor, explain the issue and see what they suggest. Bipolar can be a little different in kids, and I don't know much beyond that. I'm not sure what or even if your son has something. This could be a number of things. Good luck.

I went back and reread this. I want to say this is normal, because I remember thinking the same thing about my nephew. He's now seven and he doesn't have any major issues. Is he the first child?

Thanks for your response.
No, he is the third child. I also thought about that when trying to understand why he's acting this way, but he's the baby. I would think that if he were the first or second child, I could almost understand it better.
I would also like to think that it's just terrible twos, that's lasted into being three years old, but there's just something off about it.
I am hoping he'll grow out of it! I know the stress it causes me can't be healthy, and I know it's not healthy the way it effects my other two, because he requires so much of my attention, and if I don't give it to him, all hell breaks loose!

This is the main cause of my concern. And he has no limits! He will throw himself onto the floor, jerk around, and get red and start shaking from screaming (not crying, but like metal music screaming). I'm at my wits end.
I will be taking him to the doctor. I can't take it anymore.

My son has Adhd, Asd, and BP. Please take him to a developmental psychiatrist and therapist. The therapist will help develop a livable routine. We found medication agravated the situation. After a small break in therapy he's decided to go back for his depression.

My son had horrible tantrums like this at three. To the point where his preschool told us we needed to "get him tested" (for what I don't know) and get him therapy. I took him to a child therapist but I didn't like her. i only took him to three or four sessions before we quit. Anyway I thought it was from anxiety, because I had been in the hospital so many times.

Unfortunately my husband died shortly after we stopped seeing the therapist, when my son was four. I had to find a new preschool for him because his other one refused to take him back. And slowly, he started calming down. His new preschool handled his tantrums differently. Within two weeks he was no longer screaming and crying his way through school. He started behaving better at home too, despite the major tragedy of losing his father. Now he is five and a half and we've only had a few major tantrums In the last year, and he hasn't hurt himself during any of them.

I think it's way too young to think about bipolar. I agree with everyone else; if you're concerned then take him to his pediatrician and see if they want to do any tests. You could also try a child psychologist. But I would never put a bipolar label on such a young child. That's just me though.

My son grew out of his tantrums so hopefully yours will too!

Would you please private message me? I have some more questions but think it would be easier just over private messages.