Homework help
Thanks for all the great advise. I am glad someone knows were I am coming from. Most people don't understand until thay have a child with this disorder, everyday is a challange.
God Bless.
Angie
Do you have any official accomodations in place at the school? The school fought me tooth and nail on anything extra I asked them to do until we had set up a section 504. They didn't want to do that either, but once we had it - things just automatically get taken care of for the most part.
One thing all parents have access to in middle school in my district are weekly assignments on the internet. Why they don't provide these in our elem. schools is beyond me.
I would meet with the psychiatrist and discuss the problems she is having with meds and school issues. Ask for a letter for the school outlining these problems and what accommodations your daughter needs. Ask for a meeting at the school. Look for an advocate or someone with a lot of experience with your school district to help you in dealing with the school. You can even get an accommodation for help with or copies of notes. There are many here who could give you more help than I can on school meetings, but also try to find someone in your area.
Good Luck and keep posting!
Angie, your doctor should let your daughter go back to Concerta. Ritalin LA and Concerta are both the same substance -- methylphenidate -- but they have different lengths of time they last (8 hours for Ritalin LA and 10 to 12 hours for Concerta) and are delivered differently into the blood stream. That's it! I have no idea why he would let you use Ritalin LA and not Concerta. If he can't explain his reasoning, I suggest you find another doctor. If you don't want to go back to Concerta, one other option is to add a dose of short-acting Ritalin right after school to help out with homework.
That's strange, the proposed black box warning from the FDA committee was for all stimulants, not just concerta. Concerta and ritlan LA are both methyphenidate so if the black box warning was to be applied, it would be on both medications.
I agree with smallmom, ask to go back to the Concerta. ( Unless it gave your daughter problems.) If he is leery, it might be time to change to a more educated Dr. in the field of ADHD.
BTW, I know that in light of all the information, I am asking for yearly, heart checks, differentials and platelet counts. Black box or not, I think that medication along with proper care is important.
I believe the stimulants are relatively safe, but, if in the statistically small chance that meds do cause a problem, then it can be caught before it does any real damage.
Sherry
We have ask him to change Autumn back to Concerta and he keeps telling us to try something else first. Autumn did great with it and her friend Amy has been taking it every since it came out and no problems. Last time Autumn went to the doctor I was not able to go her dad had to take her. I would have ask him why Ritlian and not Concerta. I know they are the same.
Thanks for the input I needed it.
Angie
You can try dosing with fast acting Ritalin as soon as she gets home from school. (Ritalin LA during the day and fast Ritalin in the late afternoon should not be too much of a strech for your doc), several people on the parents of children with ADHD board are doing that to get through homework.
More to the point, it may be time to consider switching doctors. Your doc should listen to you (!!!!!!!), since you are the one who is most familiar with your child's behavior.
IMHO once you find a med that works and are just doing med checks, it can be prescribed by any MD, not just a pdoc (unless you're doing councelling with them). We got our 2nd opinion from a pdoc and had them help us find the best med match and level, then we transfered to our GP for med managment (though it was mostly because of $$s in this case as pdocs are not *really* covered by our insurance and we were breaking the bank for frigging med checks).
Hello everyone.
I need advise....My daughter has been taking Ritilin LA for about 2 months. The problem is that it wears off around 2:30 or so. Last during school hour but time at home is very fustrating. It takes us hours to get 15 minutes of work done. She tried Foclin Xl and it only lasted 4 or 5 hours. So it was not helpfull at all, plus made her real emotional. Before that she took 36 mg of Concerta which worked great, but the docotor wanted to change because of a black box warning.
We have ask him for something for her to take mid day or afternoon and just keeps changing her meds to something else. Does anyone have any suggestions on what meds work long enough to cover homework time or should she be taking something twice a day? She have even begin lying about having her homework done and it is "at school". Her teacher says he thinks the meds are just not lasting long enough too. The only problem she has is not turning her homework in and that is killing her grades. We want to believe her when she says she is done or she don't have any. But we just can't. I have ask her school serveral times to send me her work schedual for the week home so we will know. But never have also I have ask them to email me every week for an update and have not.
The school really doesn't seem to want to offer her the extra attention she needs. I have emailed her teacher and he emails me back sometimes. I want weekly updates and I have told him that. I don't think they understand that Autumn needs extra help. Especially taking notes. She will be in the 6th grade next year (hopefully) and it is just goin got get harder. But I don't know what to do.
HELP 
Angie
I agree I go through homework nightmares every evening and my child is only 6 and in 1st grade. She takes Ritalin LA. To get homework done I have to bribe her threaten and anything else that would work. Sometimes we even have extra homework the work she does not get done in school and it is not always work she cannot get done in class it is work while she is out receiving PT, play therapy, etc not fair.
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