In addition, Albert’s mother reports that he has been chronically hyperactive, impulsive, and distractible for as long she can remember. He has had low frustration tolerance since his toddler years and never grew out of his “terrible twos.” He responds to limit setting by doing the opposite of what the authority figure demands. Albert is bossy with peers and will quit playing with them if they do not do what he wants to do and will get back at other children if they do anything to bother him.
Henry’s mother states that he was very shy with strangers, starting at an early age. He was also very anxious in anticipation of situations of separation from his parents and some of his “meltdowns” occurred during these times, often prompting his parents to curtail planned activities. Marital relations between his parents have been strained. Henry has frequent nightmares about his parents being harmed and often demands to sleep with them at night. Transition to first grade was very problematic, and Henry’s “explosions” often occur before school. However, they can also occur at other times, especially when his parents set limits, refuse to give him something he wants, or are arguing with each other
Bill’s mother has noticed that since the onset of the rages, he has times when he becomes very silly and inappropriately giddy, to the point where it annoys other children. During these episodes, Bill is hyperactive; is talkative to the point at which others cannot understand what he is saying; and engages in reckless, risk-taking behaviors with his bike and skateboard. However, if he is thwarted in his desires during these moods, it provokes a major outburst. Sometimes during these moods, Bill stays up much of the night “bouncing off the walls” and can get up for school without a problem. However, his mother says that these episodes only last a day at most and happen 2 or 3 times a month, and she cannot recall them ever occurring for days in a row. Bill’s mother is worried because the child’s father has bipolar disorder and his paternal grandmother says that Bill is “just like his dad was when he was a kid.”
