help, i am in tears | ADHD Information

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Hi, i am new to this board. I have a almost 5 year old recently diagnosed with ADHD and ODD. I am having trouble finding the right meds for him. I have tried ritalin and that made him angry when he came off of it. Next we tried dexadrine, and that made him cry uncontrollably when he came off of it. I just went to the doc. again today and he gave me adderall, as well as risperidal for sleeping and I thought that would be good. Well I went to fill the prescriptions and our plan only covers about 60% of both. That was for one and for the other. I cannot afford this, I was told there were no generic brands. the ritalin and dexadrine only cost around . Does anyone know if there are generics or anyone with small children and meds that worked for them? I need help, I have a 6 year old and a 1 year old and am so overwhelmed!! I almost cried at the pharmacy when they told me the price, i had to leave it there. He is being evaluated for pre school in three weeks and i need him to be relaxed. he is so uncontrollable and i am so stressed and tired constantly just trying to keep up him as well as the other children. i know this is a long post but i need someone who understands what i am going through to give some advice. Please any suggestions. Thank you so much!!

Oh Ky, this is a terrible upset for you, I know how you feel, we are pretty broke at the moment, and I have to try to find, beg, borrow or steal for some psychiatric appointments for my son.

I cant give you the answers you need, but I can give you a big cyber .

Have faith that you will find a way, believe in you.  Talk to support groups in your area, perhaps there could be some church groups that may help you out.

Ask your dr, what to do, who knows he may have a trick up his sleeve.  Ask Ask Ask - see what you can find out there.

 

thank you so much rae, i am in tears right now, i am only 25 with 3 children and a new house. i am so overwhelemd right now. i dont know what to do, but i will use your ideas, thank you so much. i cant even explain what its like to hear from people in the same situations.

I'd say he could do without the risperidal, does this kid really need an antipsychotic drug?

Shire has what they call the Adderall XR Achievers program (1-800-828-2088) the Shire people have an offer of the first month free.Call the doctor ask for the card and get the script re-written for 30MG XR take the pills apart and divide the dose into 3 parts (10MG each) that's 3 months for free.  @ 15MG 2 months for free. Also, if he's crashing from the Ritalin - don't let him crash, time the last dose to wear off at bedtime. A Ritalin crash makes me cry too and I'm all grown up :-)

Have you explained to the child what is going on? Try and make him understand that his medicine is what is making him angry and try to get his input. If he (I know he's only 5) can feel like he is part of the program he might be easier to deal with. (Who knows on this)

Stay the HELL away from anti psychotics . One side affect of xanax is sleep - if a child takes a higher does, according to our MD. He said that the worst that would happen would be sleep ; then we would know the dose was too high!

Also, university medical clinics can be helpful

The better educated you are - the better your chances. There is NO med out there for ODD - period.

 

Call the drug companies directly; look for the websites for an email address or an 800 telephone number

Secondly - Concerta which is XR works quite well; J&J has a foundation which might help.

for ODD - were using xanax and celexa; celexa is a new antidepressant: older generics may work as well - try to get on that handles panic and anxiety also. The broader - perhaps - the better. (? effexor  - ? generic)

xanax comes in a generic form; its not XR, however; there is also a klonopin generic.

 

 

 

Ky 101,

I just wanted to say that you are in good hands here.  I know that this is very overwhelming for you right now but things WILL work out.  I think that the other posts are right on.  ASK, ASK, ASK.  You never know what you might find out.

I wish you luck with everything.  Keep your chin up - you are doing your best!  I know this can be hard I have three children myself all of which have been diagnosed with ADD/ADHD.  Imagine my house without the meds - lol.  Anyway, I will keep you in my thoughts and prayers.

 

My ADHD children are Precious gifts from God!

thanks to all who have responded. i am waiting to hear back from the docs office now. i know the risperdal has bad side effects, i know a little girl who used to be on it. she slept constantly. as far as xanax, i take that myself, i didnt know kids could take it. i will look at other options, and see if i can find a lower price for the adderall. thanks alot, i will keep you posted on what happens.

Ky101,

My ADHD challenged son is taking Risperdal to deal with anxiety, anger and rage.  I've never heard it used for sleeping.  In very low doses, it is effective with minimal side effects for this purpose.  But, it was not prescribed by an MD, rather by a trained psychiatrist.  We have to return to his office every month for the Psyc to verify that there are no side effects.  If in fact it was a pediatrician who prescribed Risperdal for 'sleep', please get an immediate referral to a child psychiatrist. 

I realize that it is costly to go to the doctor and if you have to pay for a second opinion, it's even more costly. But in the long term, it's actually cheaper because a trained ADHD specialist will be able to zero in on the right meds quicker than the family doc.  Additionally, a pharmachological Pscyhiatrist will have plenty of samples in his office.  They are usually willing to give you enough to verify that the prescription will work before you have to lay out the bucks. 

Paul

ky101

I feel your pain. I am the mother of three, (3,8 &15). My 8 yr old has ADHD, anxiety, and depression. I also realized when he was small. The psychiatrist tried my son on Adderall and that was BAD!!!!! He a horrible rebound effect. He has been taking Concerta and it works! He is also on Risperdal but not for sleep, in fact, it makes him a little hyper (we call it "the happy pill"), he is also on Clonidine .1mg 1/2 am & 1pm. The clonidine was given to him to help him sleep. He did have alot of bad nights w/the clonidine alone but when we added the Risperdal, so far so good!!    I have been through so much w/my son and it is hard!!   He knows that he has a problem and asks "why me mom" and it hurts when I don't have a good answer or a way to make it all go away  All I can say is stay strong for all of your children for ADHD can cause a household to be CRAZY     I am hear if you need to talk.

Kelly kponsfamily@yahoo.com

 

 

Ky I guess I cant say much more than what everyone else has.But I felt a need to comfort you.I am ADHD, my 4 yr old son is ADHD, and my wife takes I think 4 different meds.Just hers and mine the other day were over 100 Dollars.I thank God that she has a job with Excellent Insurance but if she didnt I cant imagine what we would do.Its a shame how the prescriptions  in our country are set up.Its all so unfair but you are doing the right things.Like someone suggested ask a church for help.They will.And the idea someone had about splitting the meds up sounds good too.Your great and hang in there it will all work out.Ill pray for you and you continue to be strong.   Shaneky101
You are doing the right thing, you are asking questions. YOU ARE A
GOOD MOM. Don't doubt your instincts. Are you sure you kid needs
meds? MAKE SURE there are other ways. Don't freak out about schools.
PLEASE consult a nutritionist first. We took our son off refined sugar and
wheat and in 6 weeks noticed a huge difference (pasta turns to sugar in
the tummy and he was living on pasta) Get the book "The Out of Sync
Child - I know we don't have time to read, but skim it) Your child may not
have ADHD but Sensory Integration issues, so many docs are not up to
speed on this but it is very real and can be treated with physical therapy
not meds. I know you are stressed but you must have faith in yourself,
you will find the right answers for your child, never stop asking questions
and remember no one knows your babies like you do NO ONE.
Good luck, you have a lot of support out here.thanks to all who have posted again. I cant tell you what its like to talk with people who know what im going through. To Paul, thanks for your support i wanted to let you know he is on risperdal for odd as well. the doc, who is a child phsyc. said it would help him sleep. I havent seen that happen yet. We got him the regular adderall instead of XR because there is a generic and its only with my insurance. his doc gave him samples of risperdal because that was still expensive for me. so far he seems to be doing a little better, except when he comes down off of the adderall, but we will see in time. I think everyone seems to be doing well with concerta. Maybe i will try that when he starts school! (if adderall doesnt work). Thanks everyone alot!!!!!!! I appreciate you all so much!!!!!!!!1ky10138292.9115625

Ky101,

I'm sure you just added this at the end of your message as an after thought: I think everyone seems to be doing well with concerta. Maybe i will try that when he starts school! (if adderall doesnt work).   But just in case.... it's always a good idea to switch meds during the summer before school starts in case there is some kind of side effect .

Paul

hello ky101 my daughter is on adderall and she gets a generic. she is 5 and in kindergarden. I have been where you are and understand. good luck...we are in nicholasville ky the generic should be available.

Dear Ky101 -

My son is ADHD with some moderate ODD thrown in the mix.  He is taking 27mg of Concerta (12 hour time release) which as worked well as far as his school work is concerned.  My son is a very emotional kid - he always has been.  He use to meltdown in 1st and 2nd grade and cry uncontrollably - that has stopped.  Is it from the medication - or is he just maturing - who knows.  He is also in group therapy with a psychologist 2-4 times per month (and there is at least one 5 year old in his group).  Under my medical plan the Concerta costs /month and the therapy costs per visit.  I can tell you that the therapy definitely helps. I don't know how servere his ODD is, but my psychiatrist also told me that there is no medication for ODD.  They are using antidepressent, etc.  I am not at the point where I want to give my son anti-depressent medication.  We also use behavior modification.  None of this is an exact science - you have to find what works for you - you will know in your gut.  Get as much information as you can, ask questions and write everything down.

Good luck!