My 7 yo was diagnosed as ADHD combined about a month ago. We have started Concerta and have played with the dosage. We are scheduled for a psych evaluation next week. His teacher used the word "miraculous" when I followed up with her after he started meds. She said it is almost like he has taken a deep breath and relaxed. Handwriting, spelling and test taking has all improved - good things!
My concern is his behavior at home. He is usually happy and cheerful but talks non-stop while wiggling or running around. This type of behavior I can tolerate and can work with him on. What I am having difficulty with is when something doesn't go his way or turns out different from what he expects. He will get a sour attitude, stomp his feet, whine and whine. From that point on, everything is wrong, nothing anybody does is good enough or right, he is doing everything fine - it is everyone else. This can be set off by something as small as the loops on his shoe laces not being the way he wants or the volume on the TV. He dominates everything in the house with his sour attitude. Sometimes, not always, they will grow into a "fit", an emotional temper tantrum.
I try to not engage with him, but I will chose my battles. Sometimes I just do what he wants and it ends - most of the time if the sour attitude starts it doesn't matter what I do. I feel like I and my other children are being held hostage. I often make him take a "two minute attitude adjustment" on the stairs to help him calm down. Sometimes I have him do a more significant time out. I have tried discipline, removing priviledges, rewards for good behavior - but once the sour attitude starts it is pretty much over.
Does anyone else see these types of behavior in their ADHD child? I feel worn down and emotionally drained
YES, BUT OUR SON IS LANGUAGE IMPAIRED ALSO.I HAVE A ADHD KID IN OUR SCOUT DEN HIS DR. SAYS KIDS NEED TO LEARN SELF REGULATION AND ONLY MEDICATE FOR SCHOOL. WHAT IS YOUR THOUGHT ON THIS.
ivanhoe39049.3953125I am glad to hear you are getting good results at school; you now will need to work with the med to get optimization for your son's needs. You may be seeing rebound or your son having trouble readjusting as the meds wear off. There are several things you can discuss with the doctor for tayloring the meds to your son's needs. A dose increase might increase the amount of time the med is leaving the body, allowing for you son to better adjust. A second dose of concerta (posibly lower) might help with the homework and evenings (some kids sleep better with the med in their system other sleep worse). A low dose of short acting form of the med might extend the period for homework and ease your child during the period the meds are leaving the body. Guanfacine (Tenex) may be added to augment the concerta (it is effective for many ADHD symptoms).
My daughter was this way as well (but before meds). She is on Concerta and guanfacine and is now getting As and Bs in school (last year she had mostly Ds and Fs) and she is now pleasant, more confident, happy and not moody.
Also look into the marble system by ogram (first thread on the parent's board). It is a positive reinforcement behavior plan that has worked well for us an others on this board.
No, my son does not typically have the behaviors you described. We did have a hard time getting the meds right and during that period he was crabby and moody but not to the extent you describe. It turned out that he did not do well with any of the meds in the ritalin family ( concerta, ritalin, focalin, ritalin la). He is on a different stimulant ( adderall) now and is generally a good natured kid.
I am having some of the issues that you describe but on a somewhat smaller scale. Chase does not blame everybody else for things, but gets frustrated to the point of tears over little things, and his older brother's incessant chatter makes him irate almost immediately.
After asking a lot of questions of other parents, and researching the drug on the internet, I have decided to ask my ped for a trial of Tenex (guanfacine). This drug seems to help with these issues.
Chase is on Concerta as well.
He sounds a lot like my son. We've found that 123 Magic helped a lot with this stuff. It's a simple behavior plan in a short book (perfect for those of us parents who have ADD too). The only hard part is being consistent. [QUOTE=ivanhoe]YES, BUT OUR SON IS LANGUAGE IMPAIRED ALSO. [/QUOTE] If there is a speech delay, you should make sure you have him tested by a NeuroPsych for Autistic Spectrum Disorder. This is not a part of ADHD. The two disorders can mimick one another and I would not be surprised if some day soon, ADHD is seen as a mild spectrum problem. Until then, I'd check it out just to be safe. The interventions are different than with ADHD.
My daughter's doctor has suggested we use the guanfacine 24/7 to help with social issues. The hyperactivity does not bother me, but it and the impulsivity really affect my daughter's ability to make and keep friends (and thus her self esteem). We are working on social skills and will reduce meds as appropriate, but not at the expense of her self esteem.
In school, she is now taking all but her spelling tests in the regular classroom (spelling is too noisy with the kids giving each other individual tests), and she is learning to deal with the distractions. We will try to transition her for this test as well in the future. This is part of helping her learn to deal with these things, but not in a way that may be harmful to her self esteem (again).
He was on 36 mg then they reduced it to 27 mgs because he wasn't sleeping well. I am going to make an appointment with a child psychiatrist because I feel they will be better equipped to manage his meds than his ped. We have always had these "issues" with him, but they had gotten better as he got older.
The frequency and intensity has returned, however, with the new medicine. The advice regarding Tenax and Risperdal are good ones and I will take them to the psychiatrist.
I am just concerned that there is something else going - I was just curious if other parents of ADHD kids saw these same types of behaviors.
Just curious as to what mg. of Concerta is he now on! The reason I ask is because I have been dealing with this for a little over a month now and my son was having the same problems at home but was doing ok at school. He was on 36mg. of Concerta and the doctor thought that maybe it was to high and that was what was causing him to get so upset over the slightest things. It was like his little "nerves" were just all balled up and everything just bothered him. So she lowered his dosage to 27mg. and also added Risperdal .25mg. at night. The Risperdal was added for several reasons. One was to improve his appetite the other was to help him sleep better and the last was that even though Risperdal is not intended for ADHD they having been prescribing it because it seems to be helping with mood disorders such as a "calming effect" but not a zombie. My son is now doing so good. At home and at school. (still not for his sleep pattern or appetite) He started this last Wednesday and so far I can see a very good improvement with his attitude.
Now this is the case for my son. I don't know if was because of going down on the dosage of Concerta or adding the Risperdal or a comb. of both. But it is working. Every child is different and what works for one my not for the other but I thought my experience so far might help!
Best of Luck.
We are also going to the psychiatrist this Thursday because of the same thing. Even though we have seemed to find the right meds. now from his ped. I am also afraid that something else is going on and so is my pediatrician. good luck and keep us posted!You may want to ask your doc about anxiety. Anxiety is often a co-morbid with ADHD.