Concerta? | ADHD Information

I personally would tell the truth.  We have always explained to my son why he is taking each med we try.  BTW, he was 9 when he started Concerta.

 

Thanks Small Mom......he has been to a neuropsychologist and has been through all the tests.  He is DX with ODD and impluseness.  He does not have attention deficit. He has been in therapy with a LMC for over a year.

We hope to start the medication this week.....but I am not sure whether to tell him .....should we be honest? I hope to talk with his primary MD this week also.

Something is bothering me about your son's dx, but I can't quite put my finger on it.  I guess I'm thinking the neuropsych didn't do enough testing to give you a complete enough dx.  ODD generally doesn't stand alone; it usually accompanies a childhood disorder like ADHD, anxiety, depression, mood disorder, autism, etc.  I prefer to call ODD oppositional behavior.  My 12-year-old son's doc likes to say that when you treat the underlying disorder, you end up treating the oppositional behavior and it greatly improves.  Likewise, I don't think impulsivity stands alone.  My 10-year-old daughter, for example, has cognitive impulsivity and executive dysfunction, but they are part of her mood disorder.  When we treat her mood disorder, she is able to think more clearly and less impulsively and organize herself better.  

Are you satisfied with the neuropsych's dx or do you find yourself wondering about it?  I guess in a roundabout way I'm just saying that I would really want to nail down the dx before trialing a med that may or may not be treating the right disorder.  BTW, I'm not against meds -- my ADHD son took Concerta for 1.5 years and did very well on it.

 

oh brother, it morphed...

Misha,

    bugzappers just hasn't learned that the person he should really report is himself. LOL.

    I'm certainly thrilled that you would use "medication" as a last resort.  These drugs have far too many serious side effects to be so freely prescribed.

    Perhaps there is some good info for you at www.ablechild.org .

 

GlenW,

   Why are YOU trying to" bend her with fear" then ?!!!!

     "With OCD it generally gets worse without meds and therapy - leading often to not being able to leave home and washing hands 100 times a day, checking the door for being locked over and over, etc.  It also can lead to eating disorders, compulsive self-mutilation and other even more dangerous things like pica (eating things like nails, clay and poisons compulsively).  "

    You've obviously labelled the kid with OCD and you're warning her that without "meds", his life will get worse.

    And Glen, would you please start referring to "the few (VERY few) that are harmed by the meds".... as DEAD CHILDREN... unless you can print their names for us. It really bothers me when you refer to children who have been killed by these "meds" as  "the few (VERY few)"  or "a low...very low statistic".

TWEEDLE, AND REALITY,,

Because this FORUM is to INFORM, not use SCARE TACTICS to make people fearful. If you want to INFORM do it properly and on the RIGHT BOARD. NOT EVERY POST.

 and for your information, your concerta suicide site reads concerta SUISIDE on the HEADER BAR OF THE MAIN PAGE IN THE BLUE BOX SHOWING IT IS A LIE.

 next.

 here is how to inform

 I have another view on the medications. This is a site that does not recommend using medications for adhd. As there may be many questions about the medications that we feel are unanswered.

 then put your web site.. www.123.com, and if you have more than one, DON'T use another post, just put the link one line down and say, I also have another opposing viewpoint site at www.456.com


and then drop it. you don't fill the whole thing with crap and post all the info . let them go to it. and you don't have your alteregos post on the same board.

 I guarantee, if your posts start making the admins mad because of bandwidth waste, I bet you will be gone. I do report everyone of them that is excessive.
Hope everything turns out well.
cynthiatweedle38664.9029282407Why is this post in here? Are we fishing? not anymore. reported. bugzappers38664.89375 I registered here because you upset my mother, threatening to have her banned. Lay off, she's an elderly lady and she's here because she's concerned about my daughter, he granddaughter. She likes to be informed and worries about what is best, probably a bit too much but that's the prerogative of grandmothers. And FYI, she is for having my daughter put on medication. I am still rather iffy about it, I'd rather use medication as a last option only.

Edit- And no, I'm not her alter ego, and she's not the alter ego of anyone else. A mod can easily IP check and confirm that if you'd like.
Misha38664.9542824074I see more morphs in here than terminator 2

dmoreo

You might want to check out our post in the alternative board.  There are a goup of us trying an exercise method.  If you are unsure about medication, this might be the way to go for you.

I have done it both ways.  Medication helped me quite a bit.  I wouldn't discourage someone from using it if it is helping.  I know how much it helped me.  I tried Adderall and that helped me the most.  I tried Concerta this summer and that didn't help me very much at all.  It made me feel depressed.

I am trying an exercise method from the book Stopping ADHD. 

If your son or daughter has these symptoms, they might be helped by this book also.  It is helping me very much without meds.

Are they more comfortable spread out? Can they concentrate better when they are standing? or lying down?  Is their handwriting bad?  Do they lean back in their chairs, or stretch out their arms when writing?  Do they wrap their legs around the legs of their chairs or sit on their feet? 

These are all signs of an immature STNR.  An STNR is a reflex we are all born with and that most people mature so that it doesn't bother them.  When it is not mature, it can bother you without you knowing about it.  It feels normal to you because you have felt it all your life.

It is a very interesting theory and it is proving right in my case.  You can read more in the "crawling" thread in the parent post and the "Crawlers Unite" thread in the alternative post.

Cynthia - that's actually not very helpful.  There are millions taking these meds - the few (VERY few) that are harmed by the meds are MDs not taking set-out precautions to monitoring and pre-screening for these meds.  Like all meds - they should never just be stuck in the parent's hands with a Ta-ta and good luck.

Meds CAN help - especially with Obsessive/Compulsive Disorder.  Alone they only control - therapy with it can actually retrain his young mind to not follow the same track.  With OCD it generally gets worse without meds and therapy - leading often to not being able to leave home and washing hands 100 times a day, checking the door for being locked over and over, etc.  It also can lead to eating disorders, compulsive self-mutilation and other even more dangerous things like pica (eating things like nails, clay and poisons compulsively).  Measuring the potential benefits and risks are the choice of this parent, her child (who should know the facts) and the pediactric specialist TOGETHER.  We here have no right to bend her with fear - only to aid by our stories of successes and failures.

 

She has the right to weigh the benefits and the risks and I would think would at least know about all of them.   I'd say the choice is hers - it is - not yours and not mine.  I don't see why you are upset about a news story.  That comes under successes and failures.  

Read her post again:
He was tested but is NOT ADHD except for implusive behavior.

She doesn't say he is OCD.

I know what she is talking about when she says he can't stop it because at times I have a simular behavior that drives me crazy.  But I am not OCD.

Also, how do you know they are seeing a pediatric specialist?  I hope they are because many doctors don't do any testing just hand meds out without looking at what else might be wrong.

I'd say she needs to see a pediatric specialist and look at all of her options.  Read and read and keep reading.   Only then can a person be informed.
 
Here is a reference regarding Concerta by the news media:

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/6952353/

Benefits vs. risks
Over the same time period, the FDA’s reporting system logged seven sudden deaths of children taking other ADHD stimulants -- Concerta, sold by Johnson & Johnson and Ritalin, made by Novartis AG.

Also see ADHD Events on this board.  It is very alarming.  If you do a search on Yahoo or Google with "Concerta FDA suicide"  you can find the above reference and others.

You are right to be concerned.
cynthiatweedle38664.5095833333

I will try this message board...I have already posted in ADHD Parents board.

Doctor wants to try Concerta to control my son's impluseness.  He was tested but is NOT ADHD except for implusive behavior.

He is 9.  A hockey athlete.  Good kid.....but sometimes cocky to parents and peers.  Taps his pencil and sometimes it is hard for him to control certain behavior......stopping when told.  He has said "Mom, I can't stop it.....it is hard to stop."

Any suggestions or input would be appreciated.  Success stories or nightmares? Should I tell him what it is he will be taking or just say it is a vitamin?  Should I even tell his teacher?

We are reluctant to go with medication.....but at our wits end. 

Thanks in advance to all who answer.

I saw your post on the other board and answered once, but never fully got back to you.  What kind of doctor diagnosed your child?  What kind of tests were done?  Are you convinced he has ADHD?  Generally, a diagnosis of JUST impulsive behavior does not a dx of ADHD make and therefore may not merit treatment with stimulant medication.  If your son has not been evaluated by a neuropsychologist, I would strongly recommend you set up an appointment.