Could he be misdiagnosed? I'm thinking my son is misdiagnosed because nothing wrked for him. I was told he has adhd. He started out with provigil, reperdal, aabilify, ritain for just a weekend and now conserta. He is very aggressive at school and does a lot of kicking, spitting, swearing and sexual talk. I don't know what else to do. He's been kicked out of 2 after school program because they can not handle him. He is in a behavioral program and attends a therapeutic school. Nothing is working.
He do all of these things when I'm not around, he isn't that bad at all at home. For instance, the kicking, spitting, hitting, swearing - he does none of those things at home. I don't get to see it just told about the behaviors. Could anyone have solution or another diagnosis that perhaps they've experienced?. He's very smart just unable to focus in school.
with josh he acts up everywhere,school,home,stores are the worst,i hate going to stores with him.it seems like daytrana is not doing well his school has dropped off his math time test went from a 46 out of 50 on adderall to 24 out of 50 yesterday. he did the best on concerta 54 yet not great and focalin xr but with focalin the rebound was horrible.i feel as though i'm losing my mind because i have lost the hope,i always pray that a new med will be the one yet i'm always let down.What about Concerta did not work? Did he do well in the school/focusing department, and just not so good in the impulsivity/hyper/aggression, etc. department? If so, I really think that a stimulant augmented with Tenex (guanfacine) may be the ticket...it also seems to help with rebound issues for some.
I have even seen posts that parents are able to use a lower dose of the stumulants when augmented by the Tenex (guanfacine).
Call your doctor and ask about the combination of a stimulant and Tenex.
i think he did ok not great on concerta yet the teacher was calling then too. i don't know if shes ever had an adhd student before,his last teacher used to be a special ed teacher so she was really understanding. this one instead of working with josh,his fine motor skills are horrible she just puts an f on his writing papers and moves on.i worry about starting on tenex since its a b/p med and hes sooo skinny,i thought someone said the ingrediant could be bought o/c.but the tenex helps with weight gain...so that should be a good thing, right?
Were the phone calls about behavior? Because the tenex helps with impulsive actions, helps them to deal with stuff instead of blowing up, think before they speak, etc...
The doctor would know if his weight would be a concern and you can give very tiny doses I believe...
Chase's writing improved dramatically on the Concerta...everything really but his mood and his way over the top reactions...Ok ivanhoe...this mom is asking for help for her son. I fail to see how you coming on here and blurting out statements about how nothing workson your son is going to help her..
joshsmom
I really think that you should ask your doctor about tenex (guanfacine) It is a blood pressure medicine that has been around for a long time, and is used off label to aid in the types of symptoms you are describing. It is available on the Walmart prescription list as well (guanfacine).
I would look at a different med than Stims. It IS possible to metabolize meds differently, and the same meds don't work for every person.
guanfacine(Tenex) is a 3rd line med for adhd, there are several that are not stims and do work for some.
ANY BP child should never be put on stims for any reason........they tend to have adverse effects when bp is present.
Worse on meds in our case is because of the bp. CanDo, sometimes talking with mothers here actually do help. I have learned alot from the other moms and actually used the info and talked with our doctor and if we needed, we made changes. These are just suggestions to talk with a doctor about. joemom39064.4326736111cando
The mom is saying that the stims work, but not quite good enough or there are rebound issues...so the thing that needs done is to find the right stim at the right dosage, or with the combination of the right things to augment the stim...
And joemom is right..we are just giving suggestions for this mom to speak with her doctor about. And this board has not only helped me with medication issues, but with side effects, and now with our having to switch meds due to insurance problems, armed me with good information to be an informed parent at the doctors visit. It has been a Godsend when I need an ear and a kind word.
None of us claim to be a medical professional, and if you read the posts, we all have counseled her to call her doctor or speak with her doctor on all of the things we have suggested.
well to clear up a few issues,first i did take josh to a neuro,theres only one in my area and he did'nt accept the insurance so i paid the hundreds of dollars hopeing for a answer,yet all he said was adhd,preliminary dx,i can't afford to go back. as for psych,i've taken him to 3 now,one i felt was not listening he kept incresing his stratera and i knew that strattera is weight based. another one i took him to when he was 6 told him she was thinking of putting him in a jail hospital. i don't expect him to be perfect,i would just like a somewhat normal calm life,its so hard to deal with him doiong the things he does and destroying my house. as to what else could be causing this i do not know and no one has ever mentioned anything else. i just cannot understand why a 40 lb skeleton cannot have any meds work or if they work its not for long.The blood pressure effects of guanfacine (tenex) do not seem to affect most kids like it does adults (buying a blood pressure monitor can help monitor the child if this is a concern). Guanfacine has been tested by Shire and they had good results with ADHD. They have submitted the data to the FDA to get approval to market their form of guanfacine for ADHD. Because of the positive effects for behavior issues, they are now in trials for ADHD + ODD. Here is some info on it:
http://www.peacehealth.org/kbase/topic/detail/drug/hw164961/ detail.htm
http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/061117/shire_guanfacine.html?.v=1
"Guanfacine is an alpha-2A-adrenoceptor agonist compound, meaning it binds to receptors that control a part of the brain responsible for memory, inhibitions, attention and the ability to orchestrate thought and action."
My daughter is on concerta and guanfacine and is doing great. Prior to meds, she was failing school, anxious, depressed, defiant and having rages. She now is getting As and Bs in school, is happy and helpful. We use meds with a behavior plan (ograms marble system at the top of the parents board). The guanfacine was added to the concerta because my daughter is so skinny so the concerta could not be increased to the most effective dose. The doctor basically has had me increase the guanfacine until weight stabilizes and increases (to know we are at the best dose). My duaghter's psychiatrist likes this med because it is so versitile and can be used on any schedule needed (and times of the day when stims are not appropriate). And it is a generic so is inexpensive.
I know this is a tough journey and I am hoping for a positive outcome for you and your child. I hope this helps you have the information that you need to talk to the doctor about if this med is one worth trying with you child.
vickie39064.3712615741NON STIM DIDN'T HELP DANIEL.Does your son have focusing issues, or is he mainly the hyper type? I am wondering if Tenex (guanfacine) would help..it is good on the hyper symptoms, and aggression, anger, etc...just not too well on attention. Sometimes doctors add it to the stims to help augment them. It also helps with weight gain, so that is also a plus.
The manufacturer is even going to market a long lasting (time release) form as a first choice med in the near future..
google it and research it..it may be what your son needs..
today with the first day on the patch he is so hyper,he can't sit,won't stop talking,driving me crazy. i thought he did so/so on adderall but the teacher called the other and said he for the past half week had been running down the halls,writing on the desk,writing on his shoes. making noises. she threatened him to try to stop or he would not go on the class field trip that did'nt work even though he was looking forward to going. with focalin xr his rebound was horrible. on adderall he was emotional and angry. i don't know what else to do.i am crying as i write this.I am so sorry you and your son are having som much difficulty with this. It can be very discouraging.
I agree with chasesmom79,
Discus Tenex (guanfacine) with the doctor. It may be that this non-stim med may be a reasonable choice for your son. It helps with impulsivity, hyperactivity, defiance, calming, and the weight and sleep issues of stims. If it helps but does not give him enough focus at school, try adding a low dose of stimulant. My daughter (10yo, 60lbs) takes 2mg guanfacine AM and agian PM with the option of adding an after school dose. She takes concerta 27mg in the morning as well.
I do not know what kind of doctor did the diagnosis or is managing the meds, but if you run out of resonable med options, you may need to take another look at the diagnosis.
Hoping you get to a good treatment soon.
ok ivanhoe we KNOW that no medicine has helped your son. But each child is DIFFERENT!!!! So let this mom find out for herself what works for HER son....
Just because it did not work for daniel does not mean that it will not work wonders for Josh!
Even 2 children in the same family may react differently to the same med.
my son is 7 and very underweight,he is 41 lbs. he has been on so many diffeent adhd meds i don't know why with him being so small that the meds are a let down. i seems like he does good when first starting a med then his body gets used to it and then its back to square one. he has been on ritalin, focalin xr,concerta,medadate,addeall reg not xr. and today is the first day of the daytrana patch,i put it on a little after 10 am and its now 12:30 and hes worse than ever he cannot even sit down.i can hear the teacher calling me now. i just don't understand why the meds are this way.everytime he starts a new one i pray that this will be the one and yet its always a let down.i am losing my mind.My son andrew is also adhd. He is 6, is about 43lbs. We have tried concerta we got up to about 27mg and he got worse. He has been on adderall for about 2 mos 20 mg and it isnt working at all. He is still hyper, impulsive, has some serious aggression and anger. THe dr also put him on zoloft for some anxiety/ obsessive compulsive he was having.