Please Help | ADHD Information
i am new to ADHD and this forum. tell me more about stratera. i have a 5yr old boy on ritalin and he is very very moody and flies into a rage at the drop of a hat. will stratera eliminate the emotional ups and downs?My almost 6 year old daughter has just be diagnosed ADHD about 3 months ago, and is now on Folclan 5mg in the morning and clonadein in the evenings. Her first report card since the start of the meds was wonderful she went up in every thing rave reviews from teachers and the social worker at her school. Now the hard part I work until 430 so by the time I pick her up at 5 she has her evening melt down, her screaming gets so bad the our neighbor has come over before to make sure every thing is fine. I can’t calm her down; if I put her in her room shell kick the wall or the door or shot things across her room. I give her the clonadein around 530-6 but all it does is making her pass out. Her doctor doesn’t want to change any thing but I don’t think her meds are right for her. I’m at my wits end with Please any suggestions would help
I had a similar problem with my 8 year old with either Ritalin or Concerta--we switched to a non-stimulant of Strattera; her focus isn't as good as when she was on the stimulants, but we don't have the evening melt downs anymore.Good luck!!!
Focalin was HORRIBLE for my son. I would tell your doc that you want her off of it now! If the doc refuses then you need to switch docs. They need to take you seriously and respect your opinions. I agree with momoftwoboyz. Either the med goes or the doctor goes. Good luck.
Tell the doc about the melt-downs...One thing that does help with this is FOOD. Can you have a quick dinner ready for her or perhaps can you have her fed a good snack at the child care. Can the child care give her dinner?
Another thought..... is it possible to delay the time of the morning med to give you some time in the evening? Is this the long acting Focalin?
FYI - My son got very crabby on Focalin...it was all day crabby so we took him off and he is now on Adderall ( not crabby anymore)
I agree with everyone - change the meds. My son was like that on Adderall XR. He is now taking Dexetrine short-acting and doing a lot better.
I've read a lot of good things on this board about melatonin, have you considered trying that instead of the clonadine?
My son is on Focalin XR and does fine on it (10 mg- he's 12). I guess I'm lucky cause it's the first med we've tried. I don't put him on anything else at night though I'm considering it when he has evening social activities. The Focalin for him, helps him stay focused, rather than calm him.
I think every child reacts differently so you can't say one is better or worse.
Change the meds. If the child is horrid on all stims, there's a good chance that his diagnosis is wrong and he has more than ADHD, although Straterra should be tried too. If the child is very moody and prone to raging, however, Straterra can make things worse. I hope he was evaluated by a Child Psychiatrist (with the MD) or a NeuroPsych. So often pediatricians and non-MD psycologists do not do a good job of diagnosing. My son was misdiagnosed twice. Good luck. OlderMom38827.7093634259I am telling you from 4 years of experience find a doctor who will work with you!!!Katie: I forgot to mention that my daughter also had to take Risperdal. Most children take Risperdal at night but my daughter takes it during the day because it keeps her up at night. That helped with the rages too. Ask the doctor about that. Also, she may be getting the rebound effect from the Concerta. My doctor has us give our daughter a half of her Ritalin at 3:00 p.m. because she gives my husband a hard time around this time and the doctor said that the Ritalin was wearing off and it makes her irritable. Keep asking the doctor again and again. I also made a tape recording of my daughter yelling for 3 hours and made him listen to it. He finally agreed to change her dose!!Amazing how persistent these kids can be, isn't it? Your story about your daughter yelling for 3 hours made me think of our DS, pre-meds.As an infant, he hated to be put down at all, ever, and I just had to have some time not carrying him around so I would put him in a large "play yard" outside, about 2 feet from where I was working in the garden. He could see me, hear me, etc. and had plenty of toys in there on a beautiful day. Scream? I was so glad we live in a rural area, or I'm sure the cops would've been there after HOURS of blood-curdling screaming. Like I had been torturing him!
I always say that one of the great things about DS is you don't have to worry about him getting his needs met.
I know, I too live in a rural area. I think someone would send the police if we lived in an apartment the way she carries on. I saw the doc today and It seems that I have forgotten to give dd her meds some since school let out. I am ADD so I have a hard time with consistency. I am going to buy one of those alarms.Change the meds, if the doctor won't, find a new doctor. You are in control. Something is not working right.
do you take anything for your ADD
you probably forget them as well