Medication vs. Non-medication | ADHD Information
I do the one two three Magic program and it works. It works and then you kind to have to start over again in a couple weeks so don't be disapointed.To: Dixiepeep
Can you tell me a little more about the 1-2-3 Magic Program and what type of success you have had and a little more about the set backs that you have encountered. I understand all kids react a little differently but, I was just wondering about the program and what to expect. I just bought the book last night and have not had a chance to start reading it yet. Thank you for any further input you may be able to give me on this program.
Michelle
1 2 3 magic works but (for some reason) you have to start over after a couple of weeks. They biggest key is consistency.
Tell the child you are going to use 1-2-3
Tell the child that one means Stop
Two means you are about to go to time out
Three means TIME-OUT
There is no yelling and no talking. Explain one time to child to stop the behavior then start counting. If you can do this and remain calm it will be wonderful but if your child is a screamer you will have to ignore the bad behavior. That is the hardest part. After a couple of times of counting your child will say " I don't want you to count" that means it is working. Then with most kids they learn quickly and you only have to count to one most days. We have 3 kids one of them basically learned from her sister "testing the system" It is also very important to "catch" your children being good. When they are studying or sitting quietly, I tell them "I sure do appreciate you doing your homework" "Look at you" you are being so good, give me a hug. Hope this helps.
Use one to (tell child to stop behavior) but no ongoing conversation, Just say That is ONE.
Thanks for this. I am reading the book as fast as possible. I have always used 1-2-3 but with a lot of talking to go along with it. (ie: I said one that means enough. Don't make me say 2., etc...) Maybe this will work with my son. I hope something gives soon. Anyway, thanks again for your useful information.
Michelle
Hi albertsmom,
Yes we had the same experience. The only difference is that I held him back to repeat preschool. We had suggestions from his preschool teachers that perhaps my son was ADHD.
When my son did go to kindergarten, his teacher suggested that he have occupational therapy and possibly he was ADHD but at that grade level she did not want to label him. She worked with Brendan on issues of listening and minding rules. He had a habit of hiding under the desks. His Kindergarten teacher did well with but we did have the advantage of a kindergarten class that only lasted 3.5 hours a day.
First grade was when we were able to really determine that he had ADHD. After the first week of class his teacher sent me 
THE NOTE! We went through the battery of tests but the school itself would not say that he actually had ADHD but in this county we actually had to take him to a CHILD PSYCHIATRIST. It has been a wonderful way to go with the treatment of ADHD.
First a psychiatrist is the only one who can really diagnose ADHD. They can also better monitor the dosage and type of medication used. My son has, since first grade been changed from ADDERAL to Concerta and gone from the least to as of this date because his teacher is noticing daydreaming and distractability up another notch maybe. I will take the information from his teacher and his classwork from the past two weeks with me to our regular every third month meeting and see if his medication needs to changed in any way. I can also call the Doctor in between if there are any problems to see if his needs need changing.
The thing with ADHD and medication is this, 
IT WORKS! I also use vitamins and fish oil but it has to be together not just Fish oil or vitamines.
Oh the occupational therapy that was suggested above was for his handwriting. It seems that this is also a symptom of ADHD.
A really good book to get would be: HEALING ADD THE 6 TYPES OF ADD BY DANIEL G. AMEN, M.D.
Not all Drs. agree with the six types of ADD but it has so much information on why the ADD is happening or at least what is happening and how the brain itself is functioning with ADD/ADHD children and has wonderful advice for keeping The ADD person healthy and helping the medication be more effective.
You must understand this, not all children respond to the same type of medication or dosage. Some can be allergic to it so therfore you have to switch, but only someone who specializes with children and ADD would be able to tell you which medication will work best and what reactions to look for that could mean a change.
My son was failing first grade. He began his medication righ after the christmas holidays. The teacher did not know that he had started on medication. That afternoon I got a call from the counselor, telling me that he was not only completing his work but makeing 90's and 100's and his behaviour was excellent. "What did you guys do".
That is how drastic a turn around with just the first day of medication.
I hope that this helps you to better decide how to best work with your son and his possible ADHD. He has'nt been diagnosed yet!
You can reach me at my email
moonriverdancer @comcast.net
Good luck
Sheila
You can
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Hi ADHD Mom,
I want to address the fears that you mentioned about putting your son on medication, especially your concern he will become addicted or his personality will change. I, myself, am a 29 yr old female with ADHD. I have been taking meds, and instead of ruining my life, they have changed my whole world!!! I know that what you have heard is scary, but you have to understand that the horrible things that are said are really just inaccurate or old ideas that people had before they knew much about the meds or ADHD.
Did you know that there was a study done recently (published last year) that compared kids that took ADHD meds in childhood against ADHD kids that did not take meds. After 13yrs, they looked at how many in each group ended up abusing drugs. As it turns out, the treated kids had a 75% less chance of abusing drugs compared to untreated kids. And when they compared these medicated kids to "normal" kids (non-ADHD), there was no difference between groups in the amount that abused drugs in adulthood. The truth is that ADHD is really an imbalance of chemicals in the brain, and if the imbalance is not corrected, we unconsciously look for ways to fix it ourselves. Did you know that the smoking rate for people with ADHD is something like 3 times higher than non-ADHD?
The reason is that ADHD meds are scary is because some meds have root components that CAN be abused. The difference in whether the compound is a street drug versus a medicine comes down to two necessary criteria: 1. The amount of the compound, and 2. The route of administration. In order to get a "high" from any of these meds, you have to take REALLY LARGE amounts, and you have to snort them. When we take the same compounds orally, and in therapeutic doses, they are metabolized in the stomach and gut, and slowly absorbed in the bloodstream. It is not biologically possible to get addicted that way.
The other thing to keep in mind is that these same compounds have been used for the past 70 years to treat ADHD. If there were any safety problems, they would have found them by now, and they certainly wouldn't prescribe them to kids.
As for the fear that your son will not be able to function, I am not sure what you mean by that, but I can say that the newer meds (the above poster mentioned Adderall and Concerta) are very patient friendly. You should only have to give him his medicine once a day, and they are designed to be work at a constant rate. I, myself, take Concerta, and I will tell you here and now that I would not want to be me off of medication. It is like all the best things about my personality are allowed to shine through without all of the other negative stuff.
The one bad thing about the medicine (and I think this is pretty common across meds), is that I didn't want to eat very much at first, and I lost weight. And it happened every time my doctor increased my dose (which is pretty common- the lady above who replied will probably find out that her best bet is to increase her childs dose as well). The good news is that you don't have the side effects long, usually about 1 month before they go away.
I hope this makes you feel better about your options. ADHD is not as bad as you think. You'll see.
Hi everyone, I am the mother of two children, a daughter who is 8 and a son who is 5. My question is this. I have an appointment for my son to see his pediatrician tomorrow for his first ADHD check-up. He seemed to be a "normal" active (sometimes overly active) boy untill he started Kindergarten this year. After the start of school, and a phone call from the school counselor on the 2nd day of school advising me to "Keep Albert home another year because, his teacher does not feel he is ready for school." And many numerous phone calls and visits to the school, my pediatrician had us (me and the teacher) do a Conners Scale on him and she diagnosed him with ADHD. I have to decide on whether or not to start him on medication. My gut feeling on medication is no because of all the bad things I have heard of (ie: children becoming addicted, children not being able to function, etc...). I would appreciate any comments from anyone who has had these same feelings and went ahead with medication and how these have adjusted and if your child seems okay with the medication. Thanks for taking the time to read this and answering if you have any input.Thank you for your postings. I took Albert to the Doctor on Tuesday and they have decided not to start him on medication for 6 months. They want to try him on the 1-2-3 Magic program. If this does not help him, they are going to start him on medication in August or September. Thanks again for your input. Albert's mom: Docs tell us, "No one knows what causes ADHD. It's probably genetic and the best we can do for now is control it with drugs." What hogwash. Never forget that drugs will only control the SYMPTOMS of ADHD while the real cause is never discussed, never addressed. Why? Because doctors learn to prescribe drugs for chronic disorders at medical schools supported by drug companies.Is it really any wonder to anyone that docs emerge from school prescribing drugs for everything under the sun? It's all about the money. The worst thing I ever did was give drugs to my supposedly "ADHD" son. A SPECT scan later revealed that he NEVER HAD ADHD (but I don't recommend this test to anyone - you have to give your child a radioactive liquid as part of the test) Your child has a biochemical imbalance, not a "chemical" imbalance as tv commercials would have you believe so that they can sell you some synthetic, patented chemicals. Your son deserves better than just controlling his symptoms - he deserves to have his underlying biochemical imbalance corrected. In my upcoming book, I detail five natural causes and natural cures for ADHD but it won't be out until June or so. In the meantime, I'm happy to help you find out if your son has one or more of those 5 causes. Look up "pyroluria" at www.alternativementalhealth.com www.doctoryourself.com www.askdrkaslow.com or www.restorativehealth.com There are lots of places to find info. All four members of my family have pyroluria, incuding my so-called "ADHD" son and my so-called "unipolar bipolar with psychosis" son. Trust me, there's a LOT you can do naturally for your son. Always remember, Ritalin only controls the symptoms so that the patient appears better. Then docs claim it's "genetic" which is pure baloney. ADHD is biochemical - and very treatable. Good luck, LindaMy son was in first grade when he was diagnosed with ADHD. We chose at that time to go with behavior modification which worked for him until middle school. He is now a freshman in high school and we have finally put him on Concerta because it was getting harder for him to focus. (High School is much harder) I wish now that I had put him on medication in middle school and not waited until he started high school. I think it would have been easier for him. I guess my point is that be award tthat even if behavior modification works while he is younger, you may down the road need to place him on medication.My son is 11, was diagnosed with ADHD when he was 6. He has been on Ritalin (worked great but only lasts 3 or 4 hours), Adderal (didn't work for him), Concerta (my favorate but he got very bad stomach cramps after being on it for a year) and now Strattera (works great once you get the correct dosage and he sleeps GREAT at night now). I believe in medication. It helps his concentration, he likes how he can control himself. I used to struggle to get him to take his meds in the morning, now he wants to take it because he realizes it helps him with school.Jenny,
You need to start a whole new post of your own, instead of at the tail end of albertsmoms question, so that we can reply to you properly.
I think try the behavior modification. Also, I worry about my son having. I had ADD, no HD. I made it through school, very roughly, cause I didn't do my homework or any school work for that matter, but I was bored. It hurt me getting in a better college. I wasn't diagnosed until I was in college. I took Ritlian, and do not like it, yes it makes me focus better, and be able to do boring work, but it destroyed my creativity while on it.
Do what is best for your child, only you and your child can decide that.
I have another appointment for Albert today, the behavior modification works to a certain extent but, the not sleeping and the outbursts are continuing with no results. We are going to discuss what will help him with the sleep the most. When he is only getting between 3 - 4 hours a sleep a night, there has to be some kind of help. No wonder he is having more trouble with concentration in school - he is lacking sleep. I am discussing the Straterra vs. Concerta with the doctor. I would prefer to try one of these before I tried Ritalin. We will see what the doctor says. Thanks for all you comments - I really appreciate all your input and advise.
Michelle
Hi there.......I read your post about your concerns about putting your child on ADHD medication. First off, what would be really helpful is if you take your child to a qualified diagnostician in order to determine if in fact your child has ADHD or whether something else is going on. If in fact he does have ADHD please dont make your decision about adhd medication based on what you have heard as there is a fountain of misinformation out there thanks to media hype and other inaccurate sources of information due to pure speculation and opinion. Unfortunately, information on the internet is not always reliable and accurate as well. Whether a parent decides to medicate or not is a very individualistic choice and while trying to make those choices in terms of a treatment plan for your child, without professional advice and accurate information could not only put us in a quandry, but also delay treatment. The earlier the child is treated together with a good intervention plan, the better the outcome down the road. My child was diagnosed at age 7. Together with my doctor and the school, we devised a treatment plan. Prior to this, I tried every diet and every vitamen recommended but to my dismay, it did nothing for ADHD. If in fact a diet plan works when its allergy based, not adhd. However, I am not pro or anti medication and those that chose not to medicate know better than I what they feel is best for their child. I did chosse to medicate but only after getting accurate information and doing extensive research. Ive discovered through my own personal experience that ADHD medication is not addictive and did not change my child. It did however change his life. ADHD medication is not a behavior pill. The medication will alow the child to make a choice rather than act out impulsively. It also allows the child to focus and as a result of that, my son excelled in school, began to behave in a socially appropriate way and his self esteem soared as now he began to feel good about himself. My son is now 17, graduating high school and is no longer on medication. Through counseling, the right school setting and medication, he now can move forward and feel that he can succeed in life. My biggest fear all along was that once my son became a teen, if his ADHD went untreated, he might choose to self medicate, drugs, alcohol, etc as the teenage years is when they go through all those hormonal changes. My son no longer takes medication as he stopped a year ago. He did not become addicted to the medication and it never changed who he was in a negative way. The decisions I made for my son worked for him but my point to you is, not to push medication but get an outside professional assessment before you make any decisions, Below I have provided a link to an author who has written two very informative books called Driven to Distraction and Shadow Syndromes. If this link doesnt work, feel free to email me privately and I will send you the link. Please check it out as the more knowledge you have, the better you will be able to make such decisions in terms of a treatment plan for your child. Good luck to you.
Hey Jenny,
What "kind" of dr are you taking your child to? Are they a psychiatrist, psychologist, or a pediatrician? When you're looking at a child with medical probs added to the possibility of adhd, I feel (and no, I don't have a medical license, just a big mouth with lots of opinions) that you especially need to be partnering with your child's pediatrician PLUS the child psychiatrist, that way, both know what's going on, and both can have input as far as combinations of drugs, dosages, possibilities of side effects, etc. Please let us know how she's doing, ok?
Oh the occupational therapy that was suggested above was for his handwriting. It seems that this is also a symptom of ADHD
Hi Brendansmom.....The problems your son is experiencing with writing is called Dysgraphia. This is also a common problem with many children that have learning disabilities. My son who is ADHD also has Dysgraphia and recieved occupational therapy at the age of 8. The earlier it is done, the better. It did wonders for him. Below I have provided a link that explains exactly what Dysgraphia is.
NINDS Dysgraphia Information Page
[QUOTE=pjcofer127]Hey Jenny,
What "kind" of dr are you taking your child to? Are they a psychiatrist, psychologist, or a pediatrician? When you're looking at a child with medical probs added to the possibility of adhd, I feel (and no, I don't have a medical license, just a big mouth with lots of opinions) that you especially need to be partnering with your child's pediatrician PLUS the child psychiatrist, that way, both know what's going on, and both can have input as far as combinations of drugs, dosages, possibilities of side effects, etc. Please let us know how she's doing, ok?
[/QUOTE] We firts took her to her pediatrician and then to a child psychologist. The psychologist diagnosed her with ADHD and sent us back to her pediatrician. He gave us a script for ritalin 10mg. up to 3 times a day. After a month of being on it she had to have a liver function test and normal is 36 and hers was 41....she only got the ritalin 3 days a week. We have now cut way back on the sugar in her diet and have put her on a homeopathic medicine called MIN-TRAN. She takes 3 pills a day crushed up in her food and she is doing very well with it. We noticed she has slowed down...the only down fall to it is trying to tell a 5 yr old she can't have the things she use to, but she is really good about letting people know she can't have sugar. We are going to keep her on this for a couple months and see what improvements we get at school and such.
...i have good news...the reduction of sugars and dyes in my daughters diet along with the min -tran and once a month chiropractic care seems to be working well.she has slowed down...better attention span...sleeps better...starting to wake up when she wets rather then sleep thru it. i'm am hoping this will continue to work and maybe for those of you that want something besides drugs for your child maybe you could try this approach.Albert's Mom.
I would be more concerned about you child developing poor self esteem from the negative reactions he/she will get from the teachers, class mates, yard duty people, etc. The message that there is something wrong with us is a constant subtle and not so subtle effect of not getting treatment for ADD.
Think about how your child will feel being treated as "special" and getting to go to the "handicapped" class for special help. All of the non-medication attempts and remadies do nothing to actually help alleviate the sysmptoms of ADD. They are accomodation stratagies that require so much effort on everyones part. It is so much simpler to accept that a simple chemical like ritalin works. It may take a couple of tries to get a workable dose. And that will change with age, environment, and people that surround them. Thom Hartman has written many books about ADD. Please, for your sake and your childs, read these books. Any book by John Ratey, or Amen are also great!
wmp
I wholeheartedly agree about keeping younger children off of meds as long as possible. Nearly all meds have not been tested long-term on younger children and they have no idea what these meds do to growing bodies and brains. Natural treatments are the way to go in younger children and you can have excellent results IF you find the correct treatments.
B-6 has been shown in scientific testing to work as well as ritalin for attention problems. You have to give all of the B vitamins together in order for B-6 to work properly. Kyle takes 50 mg B-complex as well as 50 mg B-6 per day.
ADHD kids that have been tested are usually deficient in calcium, zinc, and magnesium also. Kyle takes 600 mg calcium + D, 25 mg zinc, and 400 mg magnesium every day. Calclium is calming, and magnesium helps with hyperactivity. Kyle also takes Nature's Way Garden Veggies for two reason: Kids usually don't get enough veggies plus antioxidants help with clear thinking. Vitamins C and E are excellent antioxidants. For younger kids you can cut most supplements in half to make them smaller, and give one half AM (after eating) and the other half PM. Just make sure any supplements are dye, dairy, sugar, and yeast free.
ADHD kids tested are also low in DHA, an essential fatty acids, and scientific testing has shown adding an EFA helps with ADHD symptoms and behavior problems. Kyle used to have extreme behavior problems (tantrums and rages) and we tried Efalex May 1999. After only two weeks on Efalex these problems stopped, and he became calmer and obeyed. He still takes it; an EFA deficiency is never "cured". The key is geting 480 mg DHA per day. Kyle also need AA because he cannot convert the long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids into AA and DHA. You cannot simply take DHA though; you have to take the correct balance of Omega-3 and Omega-6 fatty acids in order for DHA to be absorbed and work properly. Some kids improve on fish oil alone, while others need more complex products such as Efalex or Coromega. For some kids taking fish oil plus evening primrose oil works. Again, each child is unique and this is a trial and error process. Fortunately the first product we tried was a miracle.
Some excellent books you can read are "The ADD Nutrition Solution" by Marcia Zimmerman, "The LCP Solution" by Jacqueline Stordy PhD and Malcolm Nicholl, "Vitamins and Minerals - An Illustrated Guide" by Karen Sullivan, and "Healing ADD' by Dr. Daniel Amen. Education and observing your child closely is the key to getting improvement with natural treatments just as educating yourself about meds and their side effects.
After having said all of the above about natural treatments, it is rare that you can keep a child off of all meds. Even though I have kept Kyle from having to take lithium or depakote by adding essential fatty acids, he still needs a low dosage of ritalin during school. He does not take it on the weekends, during holidays, summer, etc. I have found that what he eats influences his attention and behavior. He reacts to dairy products, anything with artificial dyes, corn syrup and chocolate. The only soda that doesn't cause hyperactivity for him is Pepsi Free. I can tell when he eats something he shouldn't because his ears get red and hot and he gets allergy "shiners" under his eyes. If this is happening with your child, cook from scratch and use no preprocessed foods. Limit junk food and let snacks be raw veggies and fruits. Reactions can come from anything, so whatever your child craves the most eliminate it for at least two weeks to see if you get improvement. Try reading "Is This Your Child?" by Dr. Doris Rapp.
Kyle's Mom38052.2279513889YES, Awesome Book by Daniel G. Amen...Great reading and you will leave it feeling like you've understood the why's and how's and have a direction to take. I have it and am re-reading it!I saw you guys mention the book 1-2-3- Magic and it is a great book. Another great book for behavior problems is SOS Help for Parent by Lynn Clark, Ph.D. Our psychologist suggested SOS Help for Parents and our Family doctor suggested 1-2-3 Magic. And I found if you combine the books together, you will find a sollution for just about every problem you run across. With two books I also didnt feel discouraged that the kids just werent getting it, so to speak. And different things work on different kids. My daughter (6 years) really takes good to the ideas of 1-2-3 Magic but my other kids (3 and 5) really take well to the SOS "tricks". Hope this will be helpful for other parents. Good Luck!!
I'm the stepmother of an 18 year old who was first diagnosed with ADHD (and language based learning disabilities also) at the end of 4th grade. By the time our son was diagnosed, we had already moved him to another school because he was miserable. It was difficult for us to 'see' the problems the teachers were reporting because they didn't exhibit themselves (in any extraordinary way) with his at-home behavior. My husband was extremely reluctant to medication (Ritalin for the first 4 years including the sustained release). And quite honestly, we had mixed results with the Ritalin (it did help him focus, but he would be down for about the first hour, peak with focus, and then be fairly hyperactive a good hour before his afternoon dose). However, we had him reevaluated just before high school, and the psychologist recommended Adderall which we've found to be satisfactory. We also saw fewer side effects with appetite loss or insomnia. The one regret we have about starting medication is that we didn't have him evaluated sooner and start the medication earlier. By the time we knew his diagnoses, we had missed the opportunity to begin to address both of the disabilities; and his self-esteem and reading abilities were already negatively impacted. Despite our efforts to help him overcome some of the earlier deficits in these areas, it became increasingly harder when he entered high school (and remains a struggle). My advice..if you truly accept the diagnoses of the pediatrician and teacher, I think it's in his better interest to get whatever supports he needs as early as possible (including medication). You can always stop or change the medication along the way; it's much harder to redress the academic deficits created (if he has other learning disabilities), and the damaged self-esteem caused by constant treatment like the 'bad kid' in class.
The question of medication or not is one that I think is different for each family, and has to be made based on individual situations. We used meds and they worked for several years, but in the end, the side affects were greater than the benefits, so we stopped. Someone posted earlier that natural supplements can't do as well as meds, but in our case, he is actually better in all aspects than when on the meds. Yes, it has taken much research and problem solving to find what we need. But I feel like I am treating the problems, rather than the symptoms. So, yes meds work and if they work in your situation, they are a good alternative. But if they don't work or if you would rather choose other options, those options can be very effective also. Good luck in whatever you choose.