Adhd & Ritalin fears | ADHD Information
Hi, I was doing some research on Ritalin and came upon this forum. I decided to register and share my story and fears with everyone to get some opinions. My son is 8 years old and is entering 3rd grade, recently he was diagnosed with adhd. The whole adhd thing always seemed like an excuse to me used by folks that couldn't control their children. Since he was a child his dad would always bring up add and say "he doesn't pay attention, I think he has add" and I would roll my eyes at him. His mother also brought up the add concern because she saw signs in him that his dad had when he was little and went as far as getting us a book on add for Christmas, but I blew it off and gave the book away. I always thought he was a boy acting just like a boy should, even when mentioned to our pediatrician he would say the same thing.This past school year my son started to have alot of problems with concentrating and paying attention. His teacher brought up at parent teacher conference that she thought he might have add, her son had it and alot of what he did is what her son did. She told us that he always has to have something in his hands. She said that he was always cutting paper or crayons, he also started cutting up his clothes. When he was 5 I remember cleaning his room and had opened a drawer and found thousands of shredded papers, I thought it was odd and when I asked him why he would say "i don't know" that's his answer for everything. Recently I cleaned his room while he was at school and found a cubby hole filled with thousands of shredded paper. So after some research we decided that maybe seeing a psychologist would be a good thing, it took a while but he did his testing and told me that he is diagnosing him with adhd and that I should take him to his pediatrician for medication. Our pediatrician is very old school and knew that I would have a problem, after talking to him and him reading a letter from the psychologist and teacher he hesitantly gave him a prescription for 5 mg Ritalin. We wanted to stay away from ritalin and adderall because his dad took ritalin when he was younger and said that he couldn't sleep and felt like he was on speed, when I told the pediatrician this he said that it was only 5 mg and that it probably wouldn't cause any problems for him but if it did let him know. His father and I talked about it and decided that we would let him try it. So friday I go to have it filled and picked it up today when I get home I show his dad the bottle and the 1st thing he said was "meth" is in the name, it can't be good. So I do some research and see that some symptoms are loss of appetite, stunts growth, lack of sleep, erratic behavior and possibly even heart problems, I also read stories from some parents that hurt my heart. Right now I'm really debating on whether or not I want him to take it because I don't want him to become zombie-like. I want his concentrating and focusing to get better but I don't want him to change. Is that realistic?
Sorry if i've rambled on, i'm really new to this and knowing that he's having to go through this breaks my heart. Is there anything out there that doesn't have methylphenidate? Thank you in advance. hi i can really relate 2 your story i have a 9 yr old boy he does take ritalin 4 school only i do not like giving it 2 him but felt backed into a corner with school didnt want him going bacwards but i have seen him when he has taken it and he seems vacant he concentrates yes he is still yes but its not the brodie i know and love.Its so hard 2 know whats the right thing 2 do i battle with it in my head all the time.We r going back 2 the doctor soon and i need 2 review this med he is on it has been helpful 2 me reading these forums.we have tried natural thing we have changed his diet.we have though bout alternate programmes.you just have 2 go with what feels right 4 you and your family get all the information you can. shanameggs39314.0579282407What does your son want?
Is he willing to try this medication?
Keep in mind you both can try it for a bit and if it doesn't work for him, stop. You aren't on a permanent course here. Even if you do medicate him he will still need to learn strategies to pay attention.
One option is to use medication and learn strategies then see what happens when the medications are removed.
There are a number of medications. I fail to understand why strattera wasn't tried first although the side effects can really suck for a while. It's non-addictive and has few side effects after the 8 week ramp up period. You won't see results immediately either.
I suggest you research this thoroughly. There are horror stories of medications but there are also horror stories of adults who tried to get through school without medication. You can research alternative herbs etc. as well and perhaps a combination will help your son.
This will take a while to sort out in any case. Remember there's no rush. It feels like it because your son is suffering NOW but you have time to change your minds or try other options. I would also seriously consider anything the boy has to say about what HE wants to do because if you don't--you're in for a power struggle that won't help either of you.
My ped said she always starts with ritalin because it has been around a very long time, is effective for a majority of those who try it, and tends to cause less severe side effects than some of the other meds. My son was on it for 4-5 months, but he built up a tolerance to it very quickly, so we had to switch.
It can be difficult to decide whether or not to medicate. We decided to because my brother grew up undiagnosed/unmedicated until the age of 32. I saw first hand how it can lead to drug/alchohol abuse, dropping out of high school, failed relationships (both with family and the girlfriends), and I can't tell you how many jobs he quit over stuff he could have worked out if he'd had the ability to focus his mind enough to think of a solution.
My advise would be to give it a try. 5mg is a very low dose- the same as my son started on. The first week he was on it he went to a state park with his grandparents and cousin. When he came home he jumped up onto the deck and sat down and told me all about his hike, what they saw, what they did- all the details. He was 8 years old and it was the first time he'd ever relayed information to me in sequential order, in a way that made sense, and was able to answer questions with something other than "i don't know or "maybe". I still want to cry when I think about that.
As far as the "zombie-like" state- I think someone else mentioned that the right med wouldn't do that, and that's true. If the dose is too high, or the med is not right for them it needs to be switched. They should not be zombies. It did, however, take a little time to get used to a calmer child. My son's dx is adhd- combined, but I'd never thought of him as hyperactive- I had just gotten used to constant motion. I do have to say that it's nice to see him sit down at dinner time.
3rd and 4th grade are where school problems really show up because the teaching goes from more hands on and active to more lecture and explanation. It is set up this way because the majority of kids can sit and listen by these grades. My youngest fell apart in the 4th grade and the frustration of school cause severe anxiety and depression which led to a crisis. This is when we sought help. Prior to this, I thought she was just a hyperactive kid with slight dyslexia like me (I did not know it was beyound what is considered normal and did not recognize the problems it could cause until we were in the middle of them).
This is a process of educating yourself and your family so the best choices can be made for the particular family situation. Here is a place with reliable information.
Also look at the marble system by ogram (top thread of this board) for a good behaviour plan. Treatment of ADHD is not just meds. It is 'multimodal', including behavior modification, social skills training, cognative training, parenting of challenging kids training, etc, as needed for the individual situation.
There are several meds that do not contain Methylphenidate, but it is the safest and most widely used med for ADHD. If a med makes a child "zombie like", then it is either the wrong med or the wrong diagnosis. I personally would have an evaluation done by a Psychiatrist, with all the necessary bloodwork and EEG's /EKG's to make sure you are treating the right thing. It also helps to be reassured by someone who knows ADHD and the meds used to treat it very well.Hi,
It is very scary to give your child a controversial drug. However, it is not as bad as it sounds. Not all children are successfull with stimulants. I think it was on this website that I read stimulants are like eye glasses. Stimulants should let a child focus but should not change his personality. Having said that it can be difficult to find the correct stimulant at the correct dose. Having a reluctant doctor might make the process more diffiult. My son tried three different stimulants before finding the correct one and my daughter tried two.
Good luck and this board is a great place for information from real life experiences.
Way to go Happyrock
Well said!!
I always remember taking my 7 year old son and getting meds. After 4 weeks the doctor wanted me to give him a placebo to test / teacher etc.
Anyway one day I went up to drop something into his bag and he was crying in the hall. "take me somewhere to fix my ears Mummy!! I can't understand anything people are saying!" The meds worked - he needed them to function. He had lived for 7 years in pure confusion and now we had somehting that would help.
This is my justification for goving him meds. It has been a very difficult road and nothing is perfect - but not giving him the meds to help would be abuse!
Trial the meds to see what happens. It may take awhile to get the right meds/dose. Once people see the difference they support it.
My parents held off on getting me tested until I was 11 because they didnot want me medicine when I was your sons age. Now I'm 17 and I have
been on medicine on school days only. The first thing I would suggest
would been to tell your son he has ADHD and a simple explanation of
what it is. Then I would explain that medicine can help but might have
side effects. The chance of having heart problems is rare and a lot of kids
don't have any side effects at all. I get a stomach ache sometimes and I
don't have as much of an appetite. It does not bother me enough, but
then again I'm at the age were I need medicine for school. I would also
tell him that the side effects are nothing unbarrable and if he does not
like it he can stop.
The higher the mgs the more side effects and since he starting a very low
dose it will probally be fine. The thing you have to remember about those
horror stories is that millions of kids are on ritalin, so the percentage of
people who have horror stories is very low.
I would aslo like to mention that if his ADHD is not causing a lot of
problems you can always wait until he is older and when his ADHD might
affect his school performance as the level of work gets harder. You could
give him medicine when he starts middle school or only give him
medicine on school days. Also, unmedicated teenagers with ADHD are at
a lot more risks than medicated ADHD teens. Drug abuse or self
medication, poor grades in school and higher drop out rates, higher risk
of car crashes, low selfestem and sexual activity is higher in teens who
are not medicated. I would also advise you to learn about adhd, the book
Delivered to Distraction is very good to read. You definitely don't have
medicate him at this age and a lot of kids don't need it at all, just play it
by ear and help him learn ways to learn better without medicine. musicfanatic39314.7906828704
The third grade is a transitional grade and a child with untreated ADHD by 3rd or 4th grade usually hits the wall. I just want to share what I have learned in my 20 years of experience raising an Adhd child. As parents go through this journey, through education they learn to distinguish between accurate information and junk science.
1. Research is only as good as the person or people doing the research
2. Adhd is not a school problem. It's a problem that effects every area of life.
3. Don't make decisions based on fear but rather accurate knowledge. Fear is stifling and shuts windows of opportunity.
4. Children who are truly Adhd and on an effective medication for ADHD do not act erratic while on Adhd meds.
5. Adhd medication does not stunt growth. By puberty the child usually catches up to everyone else.
6. Those with healthy hearts do not run the risk of heart problems unless the medication is abused or not taken as prescribed. Before starting Adhd meds all children should get clearance from a cardiologist to make sure there are no pre existing heart problems.
7. Holding off on treatment only delays effective treatment. The earlier the intervention, the better the outcome.
8. What is really scary is misinformation.
9. Adhd causes problems very early on socially, emotionally and academically.
10. Adhd is not a learning problem. Its a problem with learning due to lack of focus, not the inability to learn.
11. The best professional for med management is a psychiatrist. Pediatricians don't have the expertise or astute knowledge of Adhd and med management.
12. Common side effects of Adhd medication are very individual. One medication is not better than the other nor does one have the least amount of side effects.. Side effects are seen or not seen based on individual response and that includes Straterra which is a non stimulant.
13. A higher dose doesn't necessarily mean more side effects. The response to ADHD medication is all individual.
14. The goal when medicating is maximum benefit, minimal side effects at the lowest dose possible.
The following link can provide parents with very useful information about Adhd and medications:
What We Know - Info Sheets on AD/HD
Wow Luvmykids02,
Your statements are powerful. I couldn't have said it better. Bravo to your wisdom and insight that knowledge is powerful and fear is not. Amen to all of your statements.
Well said Luvmykids02, that should be cut and pasted so it can be read on a lot of other boards, as well as in some schools and homes!
Good job!
Thank you hauso4 and Bethann :) I am so happy to share my wisdom with parents so that they armed with knowledge when they are in the decison making process in terms of treatment and also, it's critical to have knowledge when your going up against the system so they you can properly advocate for your child.
Anyone that claims to know it all knows nothing because learning about Adhd is an on going process through life. The parents are the child's best advocate and the best way to gain knoweldge is to speak with parents that have already been there and have the battle scars to prove it 
Every parent agonizes over giving meds, especially after looking at the "information" that pops up when you search adhd online. And it gets worse if you have problems with the first med you try. But all it takes is one good semester at school, the phone ringing for your child to come and play, and a peaceful meal at a restaurant for most to become convinced that there must be something to this meds business. If we could stop and have my son continue his social success like last year, we would in a heartbeat. No one likes the idea of giving medication. But when we weigh our misgivings against the benefits, in our house, my son comes out the winner.