ADHD medications

[wdwlovers5]

I was wondering if I could ask if anyone has a child with adhd who takes meds. My grandson is very active and unable to focus in school and can't sit still long enough during reading especially. He has fallen behind. He is 8 years old and has started 3rd grade in a slower class. My niece was informed that they will not main stream him unless he is medicated and calms down becauses the classes have 25 kids and it would be too much of a distraction for him. My niece has decided to medicate him and I believe the doctor is going to try him on concerta. Does anyone have any experice with concerta or any other adhd medication? Do you think it has helped, does it really make a difference? I am supporting my niece but naturally concerned about the meds since only horror stories are reported. Thank you for any advice or info you may provide.

Mary

 

[Crystal0608]

My son has been on meds since he was 4 about 3 years now. I don't have any horror stories but these are my experiences with my son. Now I agree with the school, he needs to be on something or he can't focus at all but medicating him isn't his only issue. These medicines help him focus and calm down some, but NONE have helped him improve grade wise as ADHD and learning issues are separate, but tied together. I'm probably not making much sense, huh? Anyways:

Adderall- rarely ate lunch at school, stomach pain, no weight or height gain, reminded me of a "zombie" state sometimes

Concerta- teacher couldn't even tell he was taking anything, didn't calm him down or help him focus, only tried for a month

Vyvanse-ate lunch occassionally, stomach pain, crying spells-VERY emotional i.e. frequent calls from school, barely any weight or height gain

Focalin 5mg 2bid (low enough dose to get him through school)-eats lunch daily, no stomach pain, has GAINED 2 lbs in a month since switching to this, not too emotional, anger issues

 

[Becky2005]

My son takes medication. He was on Ritalin at first but that wasn't very good for him.

He ended up switching to Adderall and that one works for him.

He started taking it in 3rd grade. The Adderall was in 5th I believe.

We started him on a very low dose where he took 2 pills/day. He had a bad reaction to the extended release Ritalin, so he literally only had 1 dose of that. No way would I have given him a 2nd dose. He now does the extended release Adderall and that works for him.

At first it was hard for us to guage it because he couldn't really verbalize any difference. Now he can tell that it makes a difference. Just last week, we forgot his medication in the morning. I asked him about it & he did say he had a much rougher day at school than normal. He had the hardest time staying on task, etc...

We only give him the medication during the school day, not on weekends or summer. During those times, he can get up and run if he needs to for thinking or whatever. Not something conducive to happening in a classroom.

We knew it was time to look into medication when in 3rd grade we got the report that he literally got out of his seat while the teacher was up at the board teaching to go ask him a question (that wasn't even related I don't think) without even thinking about it. It popped into his head to ask the question and went up to ask the question. I think he pushed that poor 3rd grade teacher over the edge that year.

 

[worm761]

DS13 is on ADHD meds and is currently taking Concerta. Just out of curiosity....is he bored? Is the work he is doing just too easy for him? That was part of my DS problem. The rest was the ADHD but he was ahead of his school by two years when we moved here. He has been on different meds. The one we like the best was the Daytrana patch. He did really well on it and had none of the skin problems that most kids get with it. Unfortunately, the insurance decided to no longer cover it. So we went back to Concerta. Not all meds work for all kids. I know some kids that do really well on Ritalin. It did nothing for my DS. It is a process to find the one that works best for each child.

 

[BriarfoxinWA]

My DS is currently in 8th grade and has been on Adderall since 6th grade. It has made a huge difference for him. He sees a behavioral therapist every couple of months and she monitors his weight. That is the biggest side effect he has is lack of appetite. He also only takes it on school days and is off it completely on weekends and during the summer. He had gained 15 pounds over the summer and about 3" in height so I don't think it is stunting his growth

We saw immediate improvement from the day he started taking this. The school put him in an advanced math class this year which has been wonderful. He was frankly bored last year. Although his grades weren't the best in math he tested well above grade level. He also gets some special accomodations such as sitting toward the front of the class room and he is able to test in a separate room to minimize distractions.

 

[2girlsmom]

My dd is on Metadate (same as Concerta or Ritalin), but she has tried almost all of them. First reply, the one you said is one we haven't heard of, what's the deal with it? Here was our pathway:
Adderall- no appetite, trouble sleeping, EXTREME ANGER ISSUES-she was violently angry, though she managed to not act out the violence.

Strattera- slept 19-20 hours EVERY DAY, we tried this one during a summer, pulled her off before school started after 2 weeks of her sleeping almost non stop.

Daytrana patch-had NO effect on her, in fact she seemed MORE ADHD on it.

Metadate- started on 30mg, which worked for a LONG time for her, but she seemed to be struggling with it not having enough effect for her so this year up'd to 40mg. She does still have lessened appetite, she is 11 and weighs 65 pounds, is tiny, and we are continually trying to convince her to eat.

OP, we only medicate dd on the school days too, or if we are going to be going somewhere that she will need to be able to focus, like church activities, etc, she is pretty much always off meds on Saturdays for sure, though. During the summer, she is with grandma, so she stays medicated then, though. She definitely knows the difference on and off meds, she will tell me that she needs her "shields" if we are going somewhere that she knows she'll need to be focused.

 

[wdwlovers5]

I think he is frustrated because he is behind in reading and has to catch up. My niece had him in basically a vocational school for the first two years and he was taught VERY LITTLE of anything. Because she did not want him on meds the school district here in NY would not place him in a regular school. I know he is very upset over all of this and has picked up some very bad habits from the other school, in which he was used to playing, watching DVD's etc. with very little emphasis on school work. He is very smart and a fast learner. When he lived here in Queens the public school was working well with him and he did a LOT OF school work and a LOT OF homework at he beginning of the first grade and he would do extra homework and be ahead of the class. In Jan. of his 1st grade they moved to Westchester County and it has been horrible since then. With things he likes he does not loose patience and can sit for 2/3 hours putting together legos. It's like if he can't do it he gets frustrated and he looses focus and attention. I am very very concerned about the meds and that she monitors him correctly. I doubt she will take him off on weekends or summer becauseshe had no patience for his running and playing or making any noise. I appreicate any and all advice you have and will give. Thanks so much.

Mary

 

[Crystal0608]

First reply, the one you said is one we haven't heard of, what's the deal with it?

Focalin- little info on it here http://www.drugs.com/focalin.html

He takes it twice a day, at 7am and 2pm. He still is impulsive on it. The anger part is where he has started to back talk and yell "no!" and get ill, but no hitting or anything. It wears off by lunch time, so he is able to eat lunch this year. For the past two years, I fed him breakfast at home, they fed him breakfast at school, and he wouldn't eat anything til about 6pm. He'll eat all three meals with this med. I don't know if its adhd meds or my child, but he begs for sweets & sugar when off the meds all the time.

 

[2girlsmom]

Thanks for the info, Meag's major issues are distracted/forgetful and impulsivity, I am always on the lookout for info on new options that might work better for her.

 

[Kickapoo Joie Juice]

Recent studies suggest drugs for ADHD are less effective than behavior modification training:

http://articles.latimes.com/2008/jan/28/health/he-adhd28

 

[rwdavis2]

MY daughter started on the Daytrana patch (Ritalin absorbed through the skin) 3 years ago and it's made all the difference. The patch is nice because you don't have to take any pills. It's time release and can take it off anytime you want to and the effect of the meds slowly recede.
BD

 

[lemondog]

We tried behavior modification training and dietary changes with our DD. It was a waste of time. Medication is the only thing that has worked to treat her ADHD (she has the combined type).

My DD, who is now 8yo and in the 3rd grade, was dx at age 6 when she was in the 1st grade. She was falling way behind and was actually in danger of having to repeat the grade.

Pedi started her on Adderall 8mg in the morning, with 2.5 mg. ritalin in the afternoon to get her thru homework. Miracle drug. She focused and sat still at school, her grades rose vertically on the curve. However, she does not eat well on the Adderall. She pretty much never ate lunch at school, and picked at the other 2 meals. She lost about 4 lbs. and her height stalled.

So pedi switched her to Concerta. That did nothing to help her impulse control and she more or less stopped sleeping. We didn't stay on that drug more than 2 weeks.

Now we are on ritalin 5 mg. once in the morning and once after lunch (at school), with 1/2 pill in the afternoon as needed. She is doing WONDERFULLY on this! The morning pill wears off enough to give her an appetite for lunch, then that after-lunch pill gets her thru the rest of the day.

She does have trouble falling asleep sometimes, but a 3mg. melatonin does the trick for that. We do not medicate her on the weekends or in the summer, btw.

Good luck!

 

[wdwlovers5]

so much - looks like this is a trial and error thing. I certainly hope whatever meds they settle on are a help. Behavior problems with him are more along the lines of growing up - wanting his own way and learning he can't always have it. He does have some anger issues which he has inherited from his Mom. Unfortunately he does not socialize very well with kids because he is loud -another inheritence from his Dad if his Dad laughs you will hear him from NY to California, and it sometimes scares the kids. But he LOVES kids. I think if he can settle down in school and be able to focus to learn there will be a huge improvement overall. personally I think he needs a lot of self esteem. No matter how much I may tell him how good or smart etc.he is he must see it for himself. In the one month of school even with him not being able to focus and basically having a one on one with the teacher he has some a long way in reading. So with the help of the meds and more importantly with the help of God he will succeed. I just wish I could get over worrying so much.

 

[Pembo]

Another Concerta mom and wife here. As my dr said, it is a smooth drug. It works very well for both dh and ds.

We used Focalin for ds for a while and it caused him to be mean especially when we upped the dose.

Behavior mod works some but when you have a chemical imbalance, like you do with ADHD, you need to take meds to balance.

There are alot of things that have the characteristics of adhd but are not. As a dr told us, if you take the meds and you are hyper...then you aren't adhd. Best wishes to your family

 

[minkydog]

I guess my first question is, Is he inattentive and active in other places besides school? Is he just as active at home, in the store, at church, at Grandma's? BEcause ADD/ADHD doens' happen just in school. If it's only confined to that setting, then I would believe that ADHD is not the problem, but there might be learning disabilities. My second questions would be, Who has diagnosed him? A child psychiatrist? A teacher? BEcause it's really not the school's purview to diagnose a neurological disorder. And they sure as heck can't require you to give him medications.

While the stimulant meds that are used to treat ADD/ADHD can be very helpful, they can also have serious side effects. My oldest has severe ADD w/learning disabilities. He couldn't sit still ANYWHERE. And he didn't learn to read until he was 8--third grade! But once he matured a little more he turned into a good reader. His learning disability is not in language arts, however, it's math--he excels in reading and writing.

John took Ritalin, Adderall, and Strattera. Ritalin worked the best for him, but it took his appetite away completely. He ate breakfast, took his pill, and never ate again until his meds wore off around 8pm. I chose to give him med breaks just so he could catch up on growth. Adderall worked well at low doses, but the higher doses that he needed to concentrate in school caused him to be extremely angry and explosive. Strattera did absolutely nothing.

The thing that worked best for John was homeschooling. Really! I took him out of school in third grade and taught him to read and write. He couldn't sit down so he stood at the table and rocked from foot to foot for an entire year (and that was WITH ritalin.) We found that in the home setting he needed far less medication and he was a lot less distractible. I'm not saying thats what your grandson needs, but it was the answer to our prayers. In fact, John did go back to school a few times,but he always ended up returning to homeschool to catch up. He ultimately graduated from homeschool and went to college for 2 years. He still has ADD,although he no longer takes meds because he doesn't like the way they make him feel. But he uses ADD to his advantage writing music, producing plays in community theater, working with computers. Anything that doesn't involve a lot of math.

 

[BriarfoxinWA]

I think it is a trial and error situation. My DS takes Adderall as I mentioned above, but he also goes to a behavioral therapist. She's been great help to me as well - helping me understand why he does things. Kids with ADD/ADHD don't real social signals well and my DS was being picked on alot at school. She really helped him handle this and not just get mad and explode. He's made huge progress but I think it is a combination of medication, therapy, and diet. We found that caffeine can make him be really irritable so we avoid that...

 

[CharityLynn]

My son has been on Concerta for a while now but he has tried many of the different drugs available. It is very much a trial and error thing between different drugs and different doses. Hang in there if one doesn't work the next may just be prepared to try many different things.

 

[Colleen456]

I think its a trial and error thing for each child.

My son started on Adderall, and the stomach pains were too much for him.

Focalin seemed to help at first but after a few months he because extremely depressed so we switched to Metadate.

After about a year on Metadate he started having anger issues and was then put on Zyprexa. Finally I switched to a psychiatrist (we were seeing his pediatrician) because nothing seemed to bring back my happy, but hyper boy.

After 6 months with the new Dr we finally have our boy back. He takes Abilify 2 times a week. We played with dosages for months, we started with 10 mg daily at bedtime. But it was causing him to have very vivid dreams & nightmares. We changed it to a morning dose and most of that went away. Again after a few months it seemed to stop working. So I backed him off the meds and he started to get better. After three weeks of no meds he was back to being out of control and mean. That's when I started giving it to him a few times a week, usually Wed and Saturday or Sunday. This seems to be perfect for him....for now.

Last week I went over this with his psychiatrist and he said it appears my son's brain is fighting the changes the drug are trying to make so basically I have been tricking the brain. He said keep it up as long as it works, its not common but not unheard of either.

I was worried because I went against the doctors suggested plan of action but he was very supportive. The one thing our new psychiatrist stressed to me was this "I know my son better than anyone." Stick to your gut feelings when dealing with meds. Just because its supposed to work one way doesn't mean it will. And just because something isn't listed as a side effect doesn't mean it isn't a side effect.

 

[wdwlovers5]

so much I can't thank you enough. My grandson/nephew (long story - by blood he is my nephew but I raised his mom, my niece so am treated as a grandma) is due to start on meds sometime in Oct. Honestly I don't like the idea but I will support his mom in her decision. She is not one to take advice easily so if I see the drugs are having a bad effect (which she may not notice at first she is so concerned with his schooling) I have to be careful how to mention it. I am not sure if she knows what side effects to look for or if the doctor will explain them. Unfortunately some doctors are much better than others.

Mary

 

[3boymthr]

Oldest DS has ADHD and takes concerta - the only med he has ever taken (wow I feel blessed the first med worked after reading all the meds most of you have been thru )

He only takes it for school and Boy Scout camp (where he takes classes). We've had only a one noticeable side affect - mood swings (for a while I wondered if he was morphing into a teenage girl ) but we reduced the dose which helped alot and as he has grown these have abated even more because we are slowly weaning him off the medication. As he has grown we have not allowed his dose to be increased. He takes the same dose at 13 that he took at 8 - 27 mg. But we have noted that it has the same affects on his school work.

He also has a learning disability called a Disorder of Written Expression whereby he has great difficulty putting written word on paper even though he can express himself on a college level verbally; he can dictate a 1 page report in 15 minutes that will earn him an A but if he has to work directly with pen and paper the same will take days generate and will usually get a C.

The biggest problem that I have found is that many teachers seem believe that his problems with school work lie with his ADHD and that this is what is causing his problems with writing when actually the reverse is true. If he has a written assignment he can't get it done but if he is allowed to dictate it's done in minutes even without meds.

Sooo... make sure that your grandson is tested not just for ADHD but for learning disabilities. The school can do this testing but won't if they think they can push your grandson onto meds and avoid having to make accommodations.