Summer Med Vacation | ADHD Information

My son (age 9) continues to take his Adderall every day.  I found that when he does not take it there are problems with friends, siblings, having a hard time with concentration, etc.   You should still keep your child busy but think about why he is taking it and then make your decision.  My son has been on Adderall XR 20mg for 1 1/2 years, throughout spring, summer, winter and fall and there is a HUGH difference when it isn't taken, especially around friends.  I hope I helped somewhat.  Have a great weekend.I have also given my son med breaks.  When he's home I don't usually give him meds but when he goes to the day care I give him a half dose.  He doesn't need a full dose for the concentration part during the summer but it lessens some of the hyperness so he is more tolerable to be around and easier to deal with.I plan on giving my son a break..if not a total med vacation then at least a lower dosage...I also like magnesium and omegasOne thought is that you might explore some alternatives to meds during the "break."  Many of us use either supplements/homeopathy or a combo of both to help with the symptoms.  You can check out more on the Alternatives to Meds section of this message board.  Omegas and Magnesium helped us greatly! Brandon is off meds during weekends and school holidays. He is more hyper etc. but I just deal with it. I try to keep him active so he can burn off his energy. He seems happier without them too. I think it is important to give his body a break. His pediatrician agrees with these med breaks. I am trying to decide if I should take my son off meds for June through August to let him gain weight and maybe grow a little.  He is short and skinny compared to the other kids his age but was small before meds also. I am afraid to take him off cuz he drove me crazy once when I took him off for 3 weeks.  I homeschool him and he is 6 and I will not attempt to teach much when he is off meds.  Have any of you done this for summer break and what was your experience?

[QUOTE=lovemyboy]Brandon is off meds during weekends and school holidays. He is more hyper etc. but I just deal with it. I try to keep him active so he can burn off his energy. He seems happier without them too. I think it is important to give his body a break. His pediatrician agrees with these med breaks. [/QUOTE]

 

*This year is our first on meds and I do the same on weekends and holidays and plan to give it a rest over the summer.  She is mine and I love her as she is my beautiful girl.

Thank you for your all your posts,  I am leaning more towards keeping him on it through the summer.  He is just such a happy kid and so well adjusted right now.  I don't want to wreck anything and I measured him the other day and he finally grew.  And also this week at the park I ran into a couple other boys his age and they were just as skinny as him and they can't all have the same problem so the signs are pointing towards keeping him on. 

Usually a week or two is enough to help the meds come back online better.  But since the meds are for life skills and not just education I'd think you may want to keep him on them just maybe half the dosage? 

Are you taking him in for Cognitive Behavior Therapy?  If he gets on CBT early enough in life then there may be a time where he can go med-free possibly.  They teach a lot of good life skills that I cannot emphasize the importance of enough.

 

Hi Deana, my son is never off his medicine, he just  can not control himself, and it makes for a very long day. Plus he has to go to extended school for his learning problems. But this is something that is completely up up you!We do it on weekends and every school break and during the summer vacation, with the psychiatrist's full agreement.  Works well for us.We used to give our son summer breaks off his meds.Now that he is 14 yrs old ,we dont do that anymore.I've found summer is harder on everyone when he is off them.We go away alot in the summer,so its a much happier time for us all.And we've asked him about it,he would like to remain in them also..He says he can calm down better and stay on things longer on the meds.PLus at 14 we dont worry about him growing anymore,he's 5'11 145lbs now.He started to really shoot up around 12.So dont worry so much about the weight thing.Really it will all be ok....