Strattera or Ritalin
Just out of curiousity, anti-ritalin, are you only anti-Ritalin, or are you saying all disorders should be treated without medications? Not that I think you have a justifiable claim, I'm just curious.
I would be happy to send my 9 year old son, Dylan, to you for a period of one month - he is Bipolar - he rages and has meltdowns and is not able to control any of his emotions or feelings without medications. If you'd like to see if you could handle him - well, he's all yours 
Janna
Anti ritalin are You honestly on this forum stating that adhd is a made up disease?
If adhd does not exist anti-ritalin why did You put your daughter on ritalin for 10 years???? Please answer that one as You seem to enjoy posting on these threads!
DRUGS SUCK. DON'T PUT HIM ON ANYTHING. IT'S A MADE UP DISEASE THIS ADHD, IT DOESN'T EXIST. GO NATURAL, DO SOMETHING, SAY NO TO ALL DRUGS FOR ADHD OR YOU MIGHT BE SORRY LIKE I AM! MY DAUGHTER MAY HAVE SERIOUS BONE MARROW DAMAGE DUE TO RITALIN....10 YEARS!
Hello,
i am new to any forums on this topic so before i add my 2 cents let me introduce myself. I am 38 years old ,mother of twins one girl and one boy 11 years old .My son was diagnosed years ago with adhd primarily inattentive and he is also bipolar. He has been on all the adhd meds except ritalin the latest being straterra . All worked to some degree but no medicine is a cure all.
The decision to medicate is a personal one so please do not take offense ,but i have to ask if the diagnosis is mild why medicate at all ? From what my sons dr. told me straterra isnt as stong as ritalin and goes by weight and some children do well on it while others do not .Straterra isnt a amphetamine(sp) like adderall and some of the others. Before making any decison look up each medicine online just type in the name and hit search you will be able to find out what the side effects are and how each work .ritalin and adderal work immediatly while straterra has to build to theraputic levels usually 2 to 4 weeks.. No child is the same so what works for one might not work for another.
My best advice is to do research and become knowledgeable with the different types of medicines and how they work. A good Dr. will listen and want your input and thoughts on the treatments he is suggesting.
Best wishes,
lady cherokee
Ok if you are counting I vote for ritalin primarily because it has been around for at least 50 year and the effects and side effects are well known...I don't think that strattera has been studied enough in young children and we don't know what the effects of taking this drug may be down the road...
also with ritalin you can stop and start the medication ...give weekends off if you choose...you cant do this with strattera
I would try the stimulants first
I tried Strattera, and it just made me nauseous and jittery. It felt like drinking way too much coffee, only not as stimulating.
One of my previous doctors told me that in his opinion, Strattera is only on the market because of stimulant meds getting a bad reputation. He thinks that it is only marginally effective at best, and its main purpose is placate parents who object to Ritalin/Adderall yet want feel good about giving their kids *something* to help with ADD.
My current doctor also thinks it's not as effective, but he is a little more open-minded. He told me that in many cases, people conclude that it's ineffective and quit taking it before it had enough time to kick in (2-3 weeks), or before trying a higher dosage.
I'd recommend starting out with Ritalin. If it works, your son will feel better within hours of the very first dose. If it doesn't, the negative effects will also be apparent very soon, and it can be stopped immediately. With Strattera, there's less of a chance that it will help, and it'll take several weeks to find out. If it doesn't work out, it generally needs to be tapered down since quitting immediately can cause withdrawl effects.
mombytheshore - My son has tics and has successfully used stimulants. They had no effect on his tics. This is why parents should always seek out a physician that specializes in ADHD. They are very well versed in all the meds and can help make sound and logical decisions.
Why were you crying about giving your child meds? Would you be upset at any med or did it change your child somehow? If you are that upset about meds frankly you shouldn't be giving them to your child. You need to totally on board about giving the meds, why you are doing it, how they can help your child, and you need to be totally confident that you are doing the best thing for your child. That takes alot of research and talking to other parents.
Good Luck.
mommyby the shore- I have a 6 year old son who is on his 6th day of strattera after 6 months of focalin, metadate and ritalin. They all worked wonderful, but he had severe tics and cannot take a stimulant anymore. I think this is my last choice. I also feel really bad about all of these medicines , the tics, and who really knows how he is feeling. His first day or 2 he napped which he never does and there has been quite a difference in appetite, he used to be eating constantly, hardly anything now. I will be very interested to see how your son does with this as well. How old is he? It took me a long time to accept that he needed medication, but I and his teacher cannot believe the difference in his schoolwork whike on the medication and off of it. She said she has never seen such a change, like night and day. If he wasn't on any medication, he would not be able to learn like he is now. You have to look at it like it really is helping him.
Sue
anti-ritalin....it sounds as if you are really having a rough time of it.
I'm sorry your daughter is having some difficulty and I hope that things get better for her. I truely do.
I do however, feel that you need to find some counseling to handle what is really going on in your life. I don't mean this judgementally but I have read many of your post and you really are crying out for help. Of course this is only my opinion and I'm not a counselor.
Quite honestly there isn't a medicine out there that doesn't have something that it can cause or do. Most medicines list potential problems. We just have to do what is best in our minds for our children and selfs.
I just posted Rx info on the med board. It is a transcript of an Rx meeting describing studies and many doctors describing the variety of ADHD patients and the variety of meds they would like available to help treat. Makes for interesting med reading and at the end they vote strattera onto their list of preferred drugs. my dr recommended stratera first because he felt my son had "tic" tendencies and stimulants would make them worse. This was his first day on stratera and I balled my eyes out, my dh is mad at me. Reading some of these posts make is WORSE for me. It is a very hard decision and too many people with too many opinions.strattera is supposed to be good......this is the debate i am also having w/ my newly diagnosed 14 yr old.....to medicate or not.....
don't know much about ritalin....but our neuro & psychologist both recommend strattera.....
WASHINGTON - The < = value='SEARCH
News News Photos Images Web
Manufacturer Eli Lilly & Co. announced that a black-box warning will be added to the drug's label in the United States. Such a warning is the most serious that can be added to a medication's label, and similar warnings will be added to the drug's labels in other countries. The company said a study showed instances of suicidal thinking were rare.
In a statement, the FDA said it "is advising health care providers and caregivers that children and adolescents being treated with Strattera should be closely monitored for clinical worsening, as well as agitation, irritability, suicidal thinking or behaviors, and unusual changes in behavior, especially during the initial few months of therapy or when the dose is changed."
Eli Lilly said it provided the FDA results from Strattera clinical trials of 1,357 patients that found five youths taking the medication reported having suicidal thoughts, while none of 851 patients taking a placebo reported having any. One young person taking Strattera attempted suicide, but survived, company and FDA officials said.
There was no evidence of increased suicidal thoughts in adults taking Strattera, which also goes by the generic name atomoxetine, the Indianapolis-based company said.
"The actual risk is very low," said Dr. Thomas Laughren, head of the FDA's psychiatric drug unit. Despite the warning, he said, "FDA still views Strattera as an effective drug."
At the FDA's request, Eli Lilly will publish a guide for doctors and pharmacists to give to people who are prescribed Strattera.
The warning is the result of a larger FDA review of psychiatric drugs and their possible association with suicide, the agency said. Old drug studies are being reviewed for occurrences of suicides and suicidal thoughts. Last year, the FDA ordered warnings on all antidepressants that they "increase the risk of suicidal thinking and behavior" in children who take them.
Strattera won praise from some doctors and parents when it became available because, unlike < = value=' SEARCH
News News Photos Images Web
A review of other ADHD drugs is continuing, Laughren said.
About 3.4 million patients — adults and children — have been prescribed Strattera since it became available, with Lilly officials saying about 75 percent of those taking the medication are children.
Dr. Harold Koplewisz, a professor of child and adolescent psychiatry at the New York University School of Medicine, said that 19 percent of all teenagers have suicidal thoughts, making "suicidal thoughts in adolescents part of the normal experience."
"There are 2,400 adolescents thinking about suicide for every one that commits suicide," he said in an e-mail. "We are talking about a medication that may make some children and teenagers uncomfortable, which is very different than a lethal situation like a gun in a house."
Still, he said, all children and teens taking psychiatric medication should be monitored.
Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder affects as many as 7 percent of school-aged children and 4 percent of adults in the United States.
Strattera's worldwide sales have dropped lately, falling 31 percent to $123.5 million during this year's second quarter from a year earlier.
Lilly warned doctors in December to stop using Strattera in patients with jaundice or who show signs of liver problems, and it placed a warning on the label and in prescribing information after at least two patients on the medication developed liver problems.
The company said Thursday it believes the drug is safe.
"While suicidal thinking was uncommon in patients on the medication during clinical trials, it is important for parents to be aware it can occur, and to discuss any unusual symptoms with a physician, " said Alan Breier, Lilly's chief medical officer, in a statement. "Lilly continues to view Strattera as a safe and effective treatment option, and those doing well on the medication should be able to continue their treatment with confidence."
Associated Press reporter Ashley M. Heher in Indianapolis contributed to this report.
FDA: http://www.fda.gov
Eli Lilly & Co.: http://www.lilly.com/
kinda scary! i'm not sure what to do?ok, i don't like to post this too much. I don't want to scare any parents, especally when this kind of decision comes up. But, since Laura posted the bad news, i'll give you my story about strattera. But remember, this is just my story, i know others that are having no problems.
So, here's my story for strattera. My son was on it for 2 years. He is now 8. the med worked great for the first 5 or 6 months, then we had to up his dosage to right around 30 something mg.s then about 6 months later, upped again to 60mg! Went well, but over time (so slowly) we didn't realize how the meds were not really working Then he started getting into trouble alot at school. So, about 4 weeks ago, we took him off it and put him on adderall 10mg XR. Night and day difference. But the withdraws from the strattera were horrific! my little 8 year old was out of school for a week, was having thoughts of people killing him and him killing himself. After 5 nights of pure hell and no sleep, the thoughts slowly stopped. Now he is back to his self. with less meds and happy, and he almost never gets into trouble. This is just our story. It may not happen to any one else, but it happened to us. 
Unfortunately it sounds like you'll have many different opinions. Here is mine...
I would begin with Ritalin. Why? Because it has been used for over 50 years in children with success. Contrary to what you may hear, it is a very safe med. It is in your childs system quick, and out quick. You will see instant results when the dose is correct. Begin with regular ritalin - it lasts up to 4 hours and you can evaluation the dose easier. The side effects of Ritalin tend to be appetite suppression and more difficulty getting to sleep at night (my son started going to bed 1 hour later and fell asleep within 15 minutes usually).
Strattera is very new (about 2 years I think). So it doesn't have a long history to see any long term consequences of the med. It takes about 6 weeks at a maintenance dose to see if it works. You need to ramp up the med to a proper level based on your childs weight. Some people have had success with this but if you study these boards a large percentage of people have not had great luck. Most combine it with a stimulant anyway to control the hyperness/impulsiveness of ADHD. My son had 2 scary side effects, he had a urinary problem (kept feeling like he had to urinate and couldn't) and he had a bad "heart racing" incident during a hockey game. It also made him less competitive and his skill level in sports decreased dramatically while taking this med (I've heard others say the same thing).
So all in all if you are going to try a med, start with Ritalin and see what you think.
I have to agree with Hawks. Ritalin has been around for a long time, its efficacy is proven and you will know right away if it works for your child. I will tell you that every doc we've talked to -- ped, psychiatrist, neurologist, etc -- is underwhelmed with Strattera's efficacy. One told me -- and I don't know for sure if this statistic is accurate -- is that it only works in 40 percent of kids. If that's ture, that's an awfully low percentage for a med touted to help ADHD.To new and have been told not many people pleased with this at all. Some kids are put on this with a stim. Try caffeine in place of a stim for lots it calms them.
FDA is putting warning labels on all meds used for attention issue. I was told enroll in a Marshall arts class. To expensive as you move up though. Breaks don't happen in this either it is all year long. Our son needs breaks in things.
My son is 9 years old and he is recently doagnosis as mild ADD. Which medicine would be better Strattera or Ritalin? His dotor favors Strattera. But as it is new I am not sure about it. Please advise.
Thanks!
I would also go with ritalin over strattera. When trying to find the right med with mine, I had chose strattera because I like the idea of it not being a stim, also convenience. After a few months on it we topped out the doseage for his weight and it provided little benefit, then coming off of it was a challenge.
Right now we are taking concerta during the week and regular ritalin on days off. The regular ritalin is in and out in 4 hours.
effexor had a bad affect on me! it made me worse! maybe strattera is not the answer......especially w/ogram's & a few other stories on here!
i would chose ritalin over strattera too.
i do not understand why doctors seem so keen on strattera when ritalin
has a long history of being probably far more effective for children with
ADHD anyway --- i understand if there is a heart problem or high blood
pressure or low white blood cell count or tics etc. etc. that one might
want to stay away from the stims... but otherwise why choose strattera
over ritalin?
and far be it from me to be a conspiracy theorist (hahahaha - i love them)
but i hope the doctors are basing their decisions on their knowledge of
the meds and in the best interests of their patients as opposed to any
other (financial kickback/pharmaceutical pressure-type) reasons!
well, i guess that is pretty libelous to all doctors - but sometimes you
wonder!
strattera has a tendency to wear off after a year or two in about 1/2 the cases i know of. Some swear by it. I just wonder if the ones that have success with it are actually mis-diagnosed. It was originally for depression and some types of bipolar.
I agree, start with a stim first. Tough decisions. I'll pray for you.
All anti-depressants have warnings on them for children. Straterra is an SNRI antidepressant. If the child is already moody both stims and Straterra can make it worse, but I know kids doing really well on Straterra. It stays in your body longer than stims and there are withdrawals sometimes when the drug is removed, as in all antidepressants. Straterra is similar to the drug Effexor.Good luck!!
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