ADDERALL | ADHD Information

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[QUOTE=charlesandginny]Our boys have a good chance of getting bp or other mood disorders, they are currently on adderall xr , i watch them closely, cause our doctor said if they day comes where they do, the adderall xr will not work and they will act alot like how your daughter is acting now.[/QUOTE]

CharlesAndGinny

I've not read any research that Adderall will not work if bi-polar. BP meds and Adderall affect different systems in the brain. I'm both BP and ADD and the Adderall has worked well at all times.

MaxDad

Our daughter took her first dose Adderall 15 mg. on Saturday morning at 9am.  Two hours later she got very quiet and mopey.  The rest of the day was spent crying and laying around.  This is COMPLETELY out of character for her.  She doesn't even do that when she is ill.  We even tried to take her sled riding to cheer her up.  She just sat and watched the other kids.  By evening she was still crying and lethargic, ate a small amount for dinner and didn't want to go anywhere or be with anyone.  She showered at 7pm. and after was a little perkier,humming and playign in her room.  By bedtime 9pm. she was out of control...talking, singing, talking, laughing, talking and TALKING!!!....she didn't fall asleep that night until 5am Sunday.  Then she woke up at 9am and the mania continued all day.  She spent a good part of Sunday outside building snow forts, singing, playing with the dog etc. Her eyes were dilated all day.  It is now 12am Sunday night/Monday morning and she is STILL AWAKE!!!! 

Please tell me this is not normal.  Im beginning to think the doc has misdiagnosed her.

What you described is NOT normal!  My son takes Adderall, 2.5mg in the a.m and 2.5mg at lunch time, he is 6 1/2 years old.  We have tried other stimulants and this one seems to help focus and attention.

Why is your daughter taking it?  what is per diagnosis? how old is she? Is this  her first med?

Is she feeling better today?  I hope you stopped giving it to her and called her dr.

Take care.

TY all.  Yes I didn't give her any more since the first dose.  I have also gotten the name of a Pediatric Psychiatrist I am going to take her to for further evaluation.  I just am not convinced this is ADHD.  Especially since she had such a manic reaction to the meds.  I also am disappointed that her Pediatrician put her on such a high dose right off the bat. 

I thought it seemed kind of high too from the posts I have read of kids starting out on 5 mg....it seems like it would be preferable to start out too low than too high....What Maxdad said.Monkey

There are often posts such as yours. I suspect the side-effect relates to a child's subconscious trying to cope with a different sense of awareness. Heck, we adults have enough trouble trying to cope with a better realization of our actions and behaviors once we start treatment --- it must be very difficult for some children.

The insomnia and hyperactivity is all a result of the body getting used to the stimulant properties of Adderall. It gets better over time. However, the reaction you describe seems excessive.

If you are not dealing with a Psychiartrist then I suggest you seek one. Most family doctors have no idea about best practices in diagnosing ADD. Psych's generally do, and they have  vastly more experience with stimulant medicines and their side-effects.

A good way to  assess if your doctor knows how best to diagnose is easy and may seem odd to you -- if the first visit/consultation about ADD resulted in a diagnosis and prescription then your doctor is clueless. At a minimum there should be a psych assessment, testing for a learning disorder, interview with parents and a physical -- including having her heart checked. If she has a pre-existing heart condition then a stimulant med could cause a something fatal.

Best of luck to you.

MaxDad
Our boys have a good chance of getting bp or other mood disorders, they are currently on adderall xr , i watch them closely, cause our doctor said if they day comes where they do, the adderall xr will not work and they will act alot like how your daughter is acting now.If she had a manic episode on stims then it is very possible it is not adhd. If she was"diagnosed" by a pediatrician it is also possible the diagnosis is wrong. pediatricians do not have the knowledge of adhd or meds to diagnose.15mg as a first dose...that does seem high.

I am a 19 year old college student and a few days ago I was started on 10mg XR. I should also add that I am 200lbs 5'10" . I am not sure what weight/height's effect on Adderall is, but I am a fairly big guy.

I would definitely recommend seeing that psychiatrist, he should be able to re-evaluate your daughter and put her on the right meds.

Good luck

Here is the post I left at buggirls post.

 

My first reaction was WOW on the first day.  It was slightly less the following day and tapered of to ok within a week.  I think at least 2 years passed before I had a crying episode.  I was a wierd rush of emotions all at once.  I was reading in a group and the subject matter which was familiar to me struck me like never before and I got all choked up.  I never cry in front of people if I can avoid it, but this stuff flowed uncontroled.  I've had a few like that since then, I think for me it simply heightened my awareness, and if I become more aware of stuff that saddens me... like school or homework, or stuff that makes me mad... like school or homework, or stuff I'm afraid of... like school or homework.

What you mention about this stuff taking time to kick into the system & not in one dose, that is true of many anti-depressents, but a drug like adderall will kick in as soon as its in the system.  Hope all goes well, keep the doc informed and maybe help him think of cool good stuff when he starts bumming out.  peace

my 7 year old has been very upset since yesterday evening and he started yesterday with 2.5 mg at 11 am.  Then last night was upset and crying and tired.  but feel asleep and slept all night. Then this morning seems to be emotional still and crying but I still gave him 5 mg this a.m. to see if it is the meds or he is coming down with a cold.  but he is acting tired and like he isn't feeling well (Like a cold).