adderal XR | ADHD Information

my son has lost so much weight I am beginning to thinkthe meds aren't worth it.  He is lethargic and sick too much.  He feels hot, headaches and won't eat period!  He is only on 5 mg in the morning and has been for 4 weeks now so it should be not a testing time anymore.  I don't know what to do.  I was happy with original 2 weeks but then he either got very sick (105 temp) and no eating for over 2 weeks now.  no other symptoms.  But he still refuses to eat at all even at night when the meds are wearing off and he gets grumpier. 

Doctor suggested strattera but not sure I even want to try anything right now and just give him a few weeks of eating to get some weight back. 

I lost lots of weight on XR, but on regular Adderall I ate more. Maybe give it a tryIt took me a long time to get the appetite thing down.

First though, running high fevers when taking stimulants suggests an
allergic reaction. You may want to switch to a different stimulant. I'm
assuming your son is on adderall- try ritalin.

The other thing I'd suggest is stocking up on high protein fruit
smoothies. That's been my big solution (or Boost nutrition drinks). I
know I'm not going to be hungry at certain points in the day (i.e. most of
it), so I drink one in the AM and drink one in the afternoon. Not only is
the added protein good for the ADHD brain (as it allows your body to
create more dopamine and norepinephrine), but the sugars in the drinks
will provide quick energy to avoid the end of the day burnout. And they
won't be so difficult to get down.

Also you may find that if your son does manage to get down a little bit of
food, he'll suddenly have his appetite back- even on stimulants. I often
find that though I have no desire to eat at all, a few bites of something
reminds my body that it's starving, and I'm able to eat more than I had
expected.

Good luck!

If appetite was the only issue, I would suggest another med to augment the stim and stimulate appetite, but since there is fever, I, too, suggest trying another type of stimulant.

Is adderall the only one you have tried?  There is no reason for the doctor to totally abandon the stimulants.  The ritalin based stims are a different type than adderall, and may be just the ticket for him.  There are so many different formulations that you are sure to find one that he can tolerate, fever free.  Even though appetite concerns are a possible side effect of all of them, many children are able to find one where it is not much of an issue.  My son was never hungry on Concerta, but on ritalin LA, (also ritalin based, just different delivery system ), he eats much better.  If appetite/weight loss continues to be a problem on them (and they are well tolerated otherwise) there are meds to stimulate appetite like periactin, and tenex.