Coming apart at the seams | ADHD Information
My 4 year old does the same as above. Im taking him back to the doctor in a few weeks for a meeting. I hope to get rid of crash time. He also gets moody and uncontrolable after 3pm everyday. Your not alone.At a higher dose, coming down could be worse, or take longer and be easier (everyone is different). Sometimes it takes time for the body to adjust the the changes (but sometimes things are so bad you cannot wait). Some people do better when they have some med still in their system at bedtime; it helps them fall asleep. Good luck on your journey though med optimization. We start optimizing in about a week.Regarding the higher dose....you'll just have to try it to see how it will affect her. Maybe the rebound will be later. I can tell you that our bedtime is chaotic. It always has been, even before meds. To sum up, all I can say is lower your expectations for her behavior. And take care of YOU. If you are having trouble coping, GET HELP. I did, and I wish I had sooner.If you are in tears on a daily basis and yelling daily, not good, get help. Also educate yourself on ADHD. Read all you can and join a support group. Hang in there!
Well, I found that when my son was on the focalin, he crashed by 3:00/4:00 and it was just whining, anger, and miserable until aroung 7:00 p.m. However, with the higher does of Concerta, he doesn't have any crashing. It really last (right now) for him about 10-12 hours. I think, though, that his issues in the a.m. are his crashing times. Sound funny, but that is the only thing I can contribute it to. However, I would rather have that than the evening crash because he gets up at 7:00 and by 7:30 he has meds so by 8:00 I am golden for the day. I mean we still have some issues, and I still feel like I am loosing control some days.
Try the higher dose and see what happens. Remember, it might not be the right meds so don't get discouraged.
Mars
Thank you, both, so much. I appreciate the support. Now that my daughter has at least come out of her room, I'm feeling better. I'm going to make her some dinner and try to talk her into going for a walk to calm us both down.
I do have a question though. Maybe one of you or someone else knows the answer. I realize that there's no way to predict how my daughter will respond to the higher dose until we try it, but if we're going to the higher dose to help with the afternoon crash, then does that just mean she'll be crashing later? I mean, we suspect the mood is because the med is wearing off - so isn't it reasonable to assume that a stronger dose will mean the meds will wear off later? It's bad enough that she's behaving/feeling this way after school. I can't imagine having to deal with this stuff at bedtime.
Thanks again for all the "hand-holding" and support. I'm usually not so needy! *grin*
Hi and sorry she is crashing. We have all been there, believe me. We experience this too, and so we give another dose, a booster, in the afternoon. Try not to panic. She may have to try many different meds before you find the right one for her. It may turn out that the patch isn't going to be the right one. It is all trial and error and the worst part is that it takes time. Hang in there!
Heyboo,
Been where you are and some days still am! My son was on focalin xr 10 mg first and after a few weeks on it, I was like if this is what meds do, I don't want them. He may have been able to focus better but his attitude was just aweful..he was mean to everyone and cried a drop of the hat. I gave it a good month and things did get somewhat better, but we decided it probably wasn't the right med for him. We even tried upping the dose, but 15 mg, just made him off the wall wild!. We are now on concerta 54 mg. for the past two weeks. Started out on 18 then to 36. On 18 no change, 36 saw a change, but he was very bosey (more so than normal..see my post) and I did more yelling and punishing than I did before meds. Dr. raised to 54...much better as far as not getting into trouble, still a little bosey (might be personality). Anyway, you might need to adjust dose or like the post before said..it might be the wrong med. My dr. said it may take a year before we find the right one. I thought meds would be a miracle, and they are when the right one is found, the process is slow and stressful!!!! Hang in there.
Mars
I don't know what to do. For the last five days, my 9 year old, who just started on Daytrana this week, has "emotionally crashed" in the afternoons. I posted my concerns on the meds board and got a couple of good responses (thanks) and today I talked to the doctor. She thinks the meds are wearing off and that's causing these late day breakdowns. We are going to try the 15 mg patch just as soon as the pharmacy can get it in (Tues.)
But right now I just feel like crying. Today, is the worst day of all. My daughter has retreated to her room and every time I check on her, I'm met with "Go away!" and general verbal abuse and slamming doors and major attitude. I get that she's cranky and that it's probably the meds but since we're brand new to the diagnosis and the meds, I'm suddenly feeling panicky - wondering what the heck is going on. And I'm so worried about everything!! Things like - Am I just imagining my daughter's issues? Is the diagnosis right? Should we do the meds at all? What's going to happen if we DON'T do the meds?
I'm so overwhelmed and doing research doesn't help. It just makes my head spin.
Is what I'm feeling normal?
And if it is just a nasty reaction to medicine wearing off, anybody have any ideas of how I can hlep her until we can try the stronger dose?
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