I've NEVER heard of this medication before. Does anyone have any experience with this medicine?
My son's stepmom explained it as a more concentrated form of Ritalin, but with out all the crazy side effects? I'm not sure what to think. He's only taking 5mg capsules (which can be opened and put in food if necessary) which is a "start off" point. We have a Follow up appointment next Monday with the Psychiatrist.
I'm worried that this may not be the right type of med for my son. If anyone can give me any type of advice on this medication, that'd be great and fully appreciated. Thanks so much in advance.
My son (7) was on Focalin XR 10 mg for a while and I like it just fine except it only lasts for about 5 hours. We were having to add another 10mg after 5-6 hours. We are trying to find a med that lasts longer and is without the side effects. We are now trying15 mg Dexedrine capsules once a day.Methylphenidate (the med in ritalin, concerta, daytrana) is a mixture of 2 forms, 1 that is more active than the other. Focalin is just the dexmethylphenidate part (the active form). Because it does not contain the other part, you only need 1/2 the mg dose and it is thought that the side effects are less because the other part is not present.
http://www.focalinxr.com/index.jsp
vickie39041.8044675926My 6 yo son is taking 10mg of Focalin XR. It is lasting about 8 hours, with no apparent side effects. He is still sleeping well and eats ok. The Dr just prescribed an additional 2.5 mg for the afternoons ( to get the homwork done). I will update on how this does for him. Focalin is the only med we have tried. My son has improved greatly on this. Good Luck
My 4 yr old son is on Focalin XR 10 mg in the am and another simple Focalin 5 mg around 3 or 4 pm to avoid bedtime rebound.
It has increased his ability to focus tremendously. He can follow multi step instructions now. He sits with his table in class. He can color entire pictures and loves his new etch-a-sketch.
We do notice he is MUCH more emotional now, though. So, we have a follow up in 2 weeks to talk to his ped. We'll see what ahppens.
My 8 yr old son is on 20mg of Focalin Xr and we've seen astounding results. He was on Ritalin LA previous and it wasn't doing much, so we switched and it's like night and day. He actually cleaned his room without help for the first time in his life!
Also, people seem to have less of the rebound effect on Focalin than some of the other stimulants, and we've found it lasts longer for our son than the ritalin did.
My 8 year old son started Focalin XR 5mg in August 2006. By October it was like he was not taking any med, so he started 10mg. In December the same thing happened so now he is on 15mg. For him it works well for about two months then it just stops. I don't know if I should try something else, this is the only med he has ever been on so I don't have anything to compare it to. Also, it doesn't last very long, by the time he gets home from school he's hyper again. We have an appointment this month so I will discuss with doc.My 9 year old is on 10mg and we've had great results with no real noticeable side effects. He's still heating well and sleeping great.