Thanks for that link, Luv.
SmallMom, would you mind sharing what meds your son is currently on for BP and what improvements you've seen since your son has been properly diagnosed and on the mood stablizers ? Did you notice an improvement in behavioral stuff, improvement in his ability to focus at school, etc ?
Anyone heard of this diagnosis...Bipolar w/ADHD ?
Its not uncommon for a child diagnosed with ADHD to also have co existing disorder, bipolar disorder being one of them. There are many disorders that can co exist with ADHD and it is also not uncomman for the child to be misdiagnosed with ADHD when the child actually has bipolar disorder as many of the symptoms overlap. Click on the link below which will provide you with more information.
Yes, my son has a working dx of bipolar disorder with ADHD. The important thing to remember is to medicate the BP first with mood stabilizers. Often, the ADHD symptoms improve as the mood issues improve. A lot of kids with BP have a worsening of mood symptoms on stimulants and Strattera. My son has been off of all stimulants since last March. SmallMom38931.6664583333Stardust.....I second what SmallMom says about the Adderall. Now....I'm not saying some kids don't do well on it (some do), but if you have a child with some mood issues going on, Adderall may worsen them. My son has a triple dx of ADHD Inattentive/Generalized Anxiety/Auditory Processing Disorder. Back when he was 8, we tried Adderall and it was a nightmare for him. We pulled him off it after only 5 days in the trial because he became extremely angry and agitated very easily on it. He was NOT himself at all. What was happening was it was making his anxiety worse.....and in young kids, our doctors said anxiety often takes the form of anger and agitation. We now have all my son's meds managed by a child psychiatrist who is well trained in the use of the more complicated medication combinations required for these kids who have co-morbid mood disorders going on. Okiemom
My dx son had an appointment with a Psychiatrist (took us two months to get in to see), because I was concerned that he was possible bipolar in addition to ADHD. The Doctor said that he would have to witness my son in a "rage" before he would diagnose him as such--he actually told me to bring him in when he is in this state. Then he proceeded to give me a prescription for Strattera because of my son's hyperness. I took the prescription but decided not to give it to him because of all the awful side effects, plus I knew that if my son is bipolar that Strattera could make things worse. Needless-to-say we won't be going to see him again. I have been giving my son supplements from NativeRemedies for his mood and they have helped alot--plus I give him Omega3mood.
[QUOTE=SmallMom]Yes, my son has a working dx of bipolar disorder with ADHD. The important thing to remember is to medicate the BP first with mood stabilizers. Often, the ADHD symptoms improve as the mood issues improve. A lot of kids with BP have a worsening of mood symptoms on stimulants and Strattera. My son has been off of all stimulants since last March. [/QUOTE]
Smallmom,
I am curious - my DD (age 6.5) has been dx with Anxiety and recently ADHD as well. She is VERY hyper but is now taking Adderall, which seems to help with that. BUT, her emotions are all over the place (they were bad before the Adderall but seem to be worsened by it now?) She gets angry/rude - most of the time with almost no provocation whatsoever. Her emotions seem to jump from calm to angry to sad to nice in what can seem like an instant. I am just wondering what your experience was with taking Stims. I know ppl say they can worsen BP - but in what way? Does anything I have described sound familiar to you?
Thanks for any insight!
Christina
I met a lady who's sons dx is adhdbp mix. He does concerta and Depakote. He also is in SE for all his basics.Mere, my son is on the mood stabilizers Lamictal and Depakote. We have been tweaking doses since January (it takes a while to get it right). The behavioral stuff is mostly gone -- no more raging at all. We are still working to address his depression. I will get a better sense of how his focus is in school once September comes. The stimulants either depressed him or made him anxious so we discontinued them. I'd rather have an inattentive stable kid than an attentive unstable kid, but that is JMHO.
Stardust10, Adderall has a reputation for making kids moody and aggressive. You might want to stop it if it's affecting her mood so drastically. I will warn you that ALL stimulants have the potential for exacerbating anxiety. You might want to try addressing her anxiety first. BTW, who dxed your daughter with anxiety and ADHD (those were my son's first dxes at age 9)? Has she seen a board-certified child psychiatrist and a neuropsychologist? Those are the only two professionals I'd trust to make a dx of ADHD and anxiety.
yep. I have severe ADHD and just got tested for Bipolar again.