focalin | ADHD Information

We will be starting our 11 year old daughter on Focalin soon...anyone out there tried this one? My 6 year old ds is on focalin (short acting). Focalin XR didn't last that
long with him. It wound up lasting 3-4 hours so we went with the short-
acting pill that lasts the same amount of time. Anyway, it has been great
for him. We tried several medications - dex??, ritalin, adderall, concerta.
Adderall was horrible for him - made him really moody. Concerta was
great in that it lasted so long, but he had major meltdowns and was very
anxious. My ds has anxiety, and the focalin makes it a little worse, but
managable. He has a fear of bugs (fly, bees mostly). It's not too bad like
he won't go outside, but it is annoying. Regardless, we found that
adjusting the dosage helps. Focalin lets him be himself and interact with
his friends well. He is so excited to start Kindergarten next week. I am
happy for him. Focalin has been great. He sleeps well now and eats well
(but very picky). He is basically a vegatarian with the exception of
chicken nuggets, otherwise he likes carbs, fruit and dairy.My son is on F xr and is doing wonderful. No side effects.  We're very pleased and he seems so much more happier.My nearly 8 year old son was put on Focalin XR 1 1/2 weeks ago.  It was the first medication that we have tried.  He was started at 5 mg, but there were no effects, positive or negative.  It was a small amount and it was like he was given a placebo.  With his docs permission, we increased it to 10 mg, which I thought should be a better dosage for him.  After 4 days of that I still see little effects, not enough to attribute anything to the medication at least.  I am going to increase it to 15 mg. to see if that does anything.  If we don't see positive effects, we will have to move onto another stim, because I don't think his ped would be willing to prescribe him over 15 mg. based on his age. Even though I understand that some children do need more than most, I think his ped is a bit on the conservative side.  I hope Focalin works for your child, and I hope it will finally work for mine!

My son was on Focalin XR last fall.  It helped his focus and attention at school.  But it also made him anxious (he has a mood disorder and anxiety in addition to ADHD) so we stopped it.

i trie it and i also got very anxious. so i had to stop taking it.We just started the meds., so I am unsure of the duration.

Unfortunately, with these meds it is really a matter of trial and error to see what works best with the least amount of side affects. Focalin gave my son extremely severe dry mouth and nausea. By the third day he was vomiting. Adderall was a little better, but constant nausea, weakness and dizziness. Concerta (a form of ritalin) was great, except that it lasted too long and was interfering with sleep and eating at dinner (I didn't expect much during lunch). So now we will be trying Metadate, which is another form of Ritalin but doesn't last as long as concerta.

Other kids do great on Focalin and horribly on Concerta, so it really is all body chemistry. Good Luck.

 

My son was also very moody on Focalin and the crash coming off of it was horrible. He was about 8 when we tried it. He's 10 now. He's been on Ritalin, Focalin, Strattera and Concerta with some EEG Biofeedback mixed in for good measure. The Concerta use to be the drug of choice until facial tics kicked in. It's back to the drawing board and school starts in two days. What a ride this has turned out to be. UGH!Agreed that it is body chemistry, and what works well for one doesn't work for others; we're going through the before school meds puzzle so we can get the dosages right for when my daughter starts back in 2 weeks, and although short dosages of ritalin don't bother her, focalin made her REALLY moody.   Thanks for all the advice, I guess it is a wait and see thing for every child!

 

Does the metadate last longer than the Focalin XR?  My 8 year old son was on Focalin, but it only lasted 4 hours, maybe 5.  He is now on Concerta, which last longer is seems to be working (only on for 4 weeks), but he isn't eating well and isn't sleeping well unless I give him Melatonin.  Would like to find a med. that last longer than Focalin, but shorter than Concerta. 

Mars