What to do about tics????? | ADHD Information
Yes I a ramped him up on the mel. thinking it wasn't working well but now I know why he has been getting up in the middle of the night - never did that before! I will back down now, d@mn, I wish I knew this earlier tonite, I would give anything to get back that last 3mg pill! Well, I will only give 3 mgs from now on. This whole thing with the tics scares me though and I am just wondering if I should maybe stop giving him his meds or what? The doc said that they can't re-dose or change meds sooner than 2 weeks and it has only been since friday the 17th since he was up'ed. OMG! what am i gonna do? these are caps and I can't exactly 1/2 them. I am so afraid of giving him his meds in the am for fear of these tics getting worse. Should i just not give it to him at all and call the doc to let them know and tell the teacher so she can keep an eye on him? Man I hate this , I am so stressing out right now. Are there any natural remedies out there that actually work?Anyone have issues with tics??? My son Chris who is 7 has had a small, slightly un-noticable tic when he had started the adderall xr 5mg several months ago but it was just increased to 10mgs due to it not being as effective and OMG he has this eye blinking thing and can't stop making this noise in his throat- almost like he is constantly clearing it. It hurts me to see him this way and I can't stand having him on these meds but it is the only way to get him accomplish any school work. I have just started him on melatonin 6mg at nite to help with calming him down so he can get to sleep. I am sooooo desperately looking to try something natural or non-prescript. I hurt so badly just seeing him like this.. Also the little girl who sits across from him in class asks him to stop making these noises because it bothers her but he can't help it! I told him to just tell her that he is sorry but he can't help it, it is just what his body does and he cannot control it! What else do I say to him, I do not want to make an issue of him having adhd so other kids will make fun of him. Will these tics go away if the meds stop? Will they get worse if he stays on the meds? What do I do??? I am so freaked out right now and I can't stop crying over this! Please help, someone, anyone.... Thanks, Tori
Stims can make tic worse, and it is probably the increase in dosage that is causing it. The Melatonin dose is a bit high, 3mgs is the highest recommended for kids. Too high( over 3mgs) can cause interrupted sleep and nightmares,. Did you ramp it to 6 mgs or just start there? .33 mgs works fine for us
Is he seeing a Psych or a ped? meds can be stopped and started sooner than 2 weeks.
Omeg'as do work, but take several (4) months to see resultas.
My son has the same clearing the throat thing. He is on concerta 36 mg in the morning. He also has real bad headaches all the time and I have felt like taking him off the meds also. I have a problem with getting him to bed but a friend of mine told me to put him on the melatonin at night before bed so that he could sleep. I had no clue how much to put him on until I read this. My friend said 5 mg would be ok but I will look for the 3 mg tabs. ThanksI do have another question. Is there something I can give him that is all natural that will pick his eating up? He is 7 years old and only weighs 56 pounds. I feel like i am not doing enough to get him to eat. When it is time for dinner I feed him because if I don't he can't stay on task long enough to sit at the table and eat. Some of these other med on here I have never heard of like Metadate CD just to name one. I have heard of Adderall, ritalin, and that stratera. What meds have they put your children on to control temper? I keep asking myself is it worth keeping him on this drug that seems to make him worse.
My son has problems with tics worsening on stims. He started getting tics around the age of 4, but they were slight and only noticable to me. When we statrted stims. back in May certain stims. made them worse. My Dr. never waited 2 weeks when he had bad tics on certain stims. He would change him immediately. I have read though that sometimes the tics stop when body adjusted to stims.
We use other meds for anger and that help control tics. I know you want to not add another med, I completely understand that. I would lay awake at night worring myself sick about adding other meds. It is very scary to medicate your child in the first place and then start other meds. about did me in.
With that said, things are going very well for us now. These tics can fuel alot of teasing and shunning from the other kids. Like it is not bad enough to have ADHD, then the poor kid is making weird movments and noises and you can guess how the other kids handle it.
If you can not find a way to stop it naturally, then I would offer the advise to try other avenues. If kids keep ticing as they get older it gets much worse for their self-esteem and fitting in.
Good luck and let me know if you find something natural that works. If you are not already, make sure to see a Psychiatrist. They know alot more about adhd and the rest of the problems that come with it. Having a Dr. giving these meds. that specializes in all these meds is very important for med. management and success.
If you have any other questions please feel free to ask.
Gail
gail196839317.2472222222My son's tics have never went away and we have been using the concerta for a while now. He doesn't do it all the time. I have noticed that he normally does it when he is trying to do something that seems hard for him to do. I am so ready to take him off all of the meds and just deal with him but then again I like my hair. I wish he would just stop for just a minute so that I could talk to him but even on the meds he seems to be going 90 mph all the time. I don't feel connected to him anymore and it hurts. I cry myself to sleep some nights just thinking about how close we used to be when he was younger and now that he is older and the adhd is getting worse the farther apart we seem to get. I feel like I am getting on to him all the time because he is doing something wrong like hitting the dog or running in the house. He has this problem of screaming at the top of his lungs when he doesn't get his way. I want him to have structure in his life but I don't want him to feel like he is the worst kid in the world. Well, I think I have let it all out and I hope you all don't mind me doing so. Thank you all so much for being here for me to talk to and giving me ideas on how to deal.We are in the exact same situation. My son has been on Metadate CD for about 3 years. At first the only side effect was lack of appetite. As he got older and we increased dosage, the tics started.. Psyc. switched to concerta because the metadate wasn't lasting long enough, and then he really got bad.., went back to metadate and stayed on that until school ended last year..tics are bad when he gets anxious about something.. he hasn't been on meds since June and the tics are still there, but not as frequent. Maybe the anxiety isn't there because it's summer.. We have an appt. with a new psychiatrist next week because I know once school starts he will need something to help him get through it.. There is no magic pill but i have to believe that there has to be something.. I will ask about Tenex, I have read a lot about it on this site..
Melissa,
I know what you feel. My son used to love to scare the cats to death, annoy any breathing life form around him ect. I started not wanting to be around him and it broke my heart. He would get so sad once you lost your temper and would say I hate myself, you hate me, I am a idiot and so on. It always gets me a night laying in bed and feeling so sad about feeling that way and that he would feel that way about himself. We added other meds. to help control temper and hyperactivity that the stims could not. We also start a clinical psychologist and have always seen a psychiatrist.
I now look forward to seeing him when I pick him up from school. He can control what was uncontrollable before. He still picks on his sister sometimes and will give the cats a good chase now and again, but he is a happier child now.
Hang in there and explore all your options.
Gail
Hi,
I have never heard a doc say you can't change meds for two weeks. Is that an excuse because he thinks the child needs two weeks to adjust to med?? Or, could it be an insurance issue?? I have never heard of that and I think it's a cop out.
Our ped psy. said he treats ticks if severe or vocal. He gets very concerned about vocal tics because it's so hard on the child. Our son was having facial tics (rolling of the eyes and moving his nose) which have stopped since eliminating Wellbutrin. We have added Tenex which helps with behavior and tics. We have seen some good results but I am not claiming victory just yet.
I know you hate to add another med but if he cannot complete school without a stimulant (a child has to learn and get educated) then you may need to try an additional medication. There are meds out there that can help lessen the tics.
This time of trial and error can be a medication nightmare but there is hope for most children. I am so glad I found this site because otherwise I probably would have stopped meds completely. Good luck and be sure and post more questions if things aren't going well.
There is alot of things mom do to introduce more carlories at meal time. I think there is a thread on it. I know I read alot of them in the beginning.
It seems alot of people here use tenex for sleep, impluse control and eating issue. My Dr. put my son on 5mg abilify for tics and 5mg zyprexa for eating and sleeping issues. They also are for anger. These are 3rd line meds for adhd. I asked my Dr. about tenex and he said he felt abilify and zyprexa worked better. His opinion not mine, we have never used tenex.
My sons weight was 58lbs 8 years old in May before any meds (he is on the short side but still too skinny). Now he ways about 62lb or 63lbs. The zyprexa worked magic for sleep and eating. We just reduced zyprexa to 5mg from 10mg to add 5mg of abilify for tic control. The tics are better but not gone yet. At least the thoart one stopped. He still head shakes at times but he has only been on the abilify for a week and a half.
I know all this stinks. Often I have the urge to stop all this, but I think it would hurt my son more. I have seen positive results so far, but it is scary as a mom to introduce all these meds.
It is funny how different some of the symptoms are for adhd. Some kids are hyper, some are angry, some have anxiety, some have tics and so on. I am sure it is because adhd usually does not come alone and you have to identify the coexisting disorders. That has proved difficult. It seems to be alot of trial and error with different meds and behavior programs.
Good luck and try not to worry your self to death. I know easier said than done.
Gail
Thank you all so much this helps out a lot!!! I was worried that it was only my son and now I see that it is a bunch of children. Well, I will write more later my little darlings just came in the door and as we all know computer time is non existent when you have a child with adhd. I will post more questions as I think of hem and I am sure I will being that I rarely sleep and lay awake at night and think.Hi my son who is 11 has had tics for years now they come and go with lots of different ones at the moment he has several on the go - making an o shape with his mouth, jerking his fingers, shaking his arms, making vocal noises with his throat and head shaking
these can be in rotation and some more noticable than others. They drive us mad but his Psychologist said he has mild Tourettes along with his ADHD. We don't know if his meds make him any worse but I am sure they don't help. He is going to a new school where I am sure the boys there will not be as understanding as his Primary class were so we don't know if this is also making him worse! Anyway, hang in there and hope your son does not get any more it is more embarrassing for you than them!That is what I am scared of and I don't think I will. I may be bald by the time Tuesday gets here but I will still have him. I am scared that he might have a reaction to one of them and I might lose him because of it. Thanks for the info and I am glad that I didn't go a head and give him the pill. I was ready to and then a thought came into my head that he might get into some real trouble if I did. Thanks again.......... MelissaI dont think he'd get into any trouble or hurt him, but mixing meds that you havent had the ok to do just isnt a good idea. Hang in there, we've all gone through this, it's hard, but will pass. If the weather is good where you are get him outside and let him runn some of it off!That is where he is right now. Thank god I have a 12 year old girl that thinks she is a mother hen. They are outside and I am getting ready to clean a little on my house while I have the chance. Thanks.......... MelissaI am back again! I am having a real problem dealing with Isaiah today. I have been reading all morning about giving Straterra with concerta. I am thinking of giving Isaiah one of the small 18 mg concerta pills because he is just so out of control. I have been reading about 6 year olds that weigh 40 pounds taking like almost 60 mg of concerta and 18 mg of the Straterra. I am at the end of my rope and I just thought I would try to get some advice before I did give him the pill.I, personally, would not mix meds without talking to the physician first.Sorry, Bethann I read your post after I wrote mine. I too am sorry my son is in so much trouble at school. That I think is what makes me so mad. I can't believe that the school took it upon themselves to call his doctor! I have never given them permission to do such a thing and I was upset. I told the school that if I was not available then they were to call my mother. How old is your son? I am asking because our doctor told us that the max dose for a child of 12 is around 45 mg. I don't figure that your son is much older than that. I don't have a ped. doc. I go to the doc that I have been going to for the past 22 years. I am thinking I need to get a ped and I am doing that as soon as Tuesday. I want my son to get the best care that he can get and I don't think my old country doc is footing the bill. The psycho-pharmacologist is my next step. I am looking into what agencies have them, and I am going to make an appointment as soon as I can get in. This year starting out has been the worst for Isaiah. I think I tried to ignore the problem because of the situation with the stims in the post above. I did not want my child on a drug that would do the same thing to him, that the drugs that I took did to me. Don't get me wrong I was not a hard core drug user but I did it and I regret it every day. Regret doesn't change my past but it has helped me understand what all these stim drugs do. I would never take my child's meds but I do know someone who did and she ended up in prison because of it. She had 3 children all on adderall. She took some of the meds and sold what she didn't use. She just so happened to sell to an undercover cop and went to prison. I myself have never taken any of the prescribed drugs so I can't say for sure what they do, but I do know that when using I did have some of the same tics. I had one that would put blisters on my tongue because I would lick my lips all the time. I cleared my throat and got itchy. I see the same things with the stim drugs. When I took my son to the doc this last Friday and she told me to stop the Concerta, I asked her about withdraw. She told me that children who take Concerta don't normally have a problem with it. I have my doubts about that, and that is why I worry about having my child on a stim med. I am scared that the reason I had so much trouble with Isaiah today is just that, withdraw. I hope no one here thinks of me as a bad person because of my past. I really love getting the advice. I am kind of stupid to the ADHD because I have ignored it for so long. Thanks to all........... Melissa
My son is 10, just turned on the 27th of June. The stimulants are NOT weight dose based, only straterra.
The dosing is based on each individual and where they are successful. We were at 72mgs since he was 7 1/2 until he turned 10 and really needed an increase. So 90mgs has done the trick!
My son is also on guanfacine/tenex for his overstimulation, it really calms him down. You may want to check into that also.
Also, concerta leaves their bodies after it wears off - 100% gone. Strattera builds up in the blood system over time and needs to be slowly weaned off.
My son couldn't handle strattera, it made him very depressed. Keep an eye out, it is a side effect. However, there are those who have had much success with strattera. It is all individual whether these meds are successful. Everyone is different.
My pediatrician is the one who referred us to the psychopharm. My pediatrician said it right, he is not a specialist in these medicines so he shouldn't be the one prescribing them. He is right when you think about it. There are so many different meds and different combinations that you can take them in do things in different ways and to help with different things.
Stay on these boards, you will learn lots. I bet there is a board around here to discuss your past as well.
Don't worry about the mg. level of concerta, it is not weight based!
Best wishes!!!!!!!!!!!!
melyssaisiahs
your son has not taken Straterra long enough nor at the right dose. As others mentioned it is 4-6 AFTER target dose. Please stick it out if hes not having side effects.
Also as far as stimulants go, if your child is taking what is prescribed to him as prescribed he will not have the issues you had. I can understand your concern, and applaud you for trying the non stimulant route first anyway. Dont change anything until you see a pediatric psychiatrist (psychopharmocologist if possible).
Your son is older like my daughter (she just turned 13). She cannot tolerate stimulants due to multiple side effects including tics. She is currently taking Desipramine which is a Tricyclic antidepressant. The others in this family are Norpramin or Nortryptiline (Nortryptiline may help your son as the side effect is sleepiness, it helped us with sleep a few years ago). I'm only suggesting it for you to research while you are waiting for the Stratterra and to see the pscyh doc. It is not helping with focus as well as the st8im, but shes not having side effects, we have recently upped the dose to see what happens with focus. Your family doctor will very doubtfully even consider this as treatment, but a psych will.
Diane V39327.2211805556I get feedback every day from the teacher and I am so glad he got the teacher that he did. My son has a teacher that has a ADHD son herself and can over look some of the things he does. She knows first hand that the child has a problem and says that when she gets home she has Isaiah all over again. LOL She laughs about it and we can talk about it because it is kinda funny how she comes to school in the morning and has to put up with Isaiah and then she drives 45 minutes to her home ( the only break she gets) and has to put up with her son! I am thinking of holding Isaiah back in the 2nd grade because of his handwriting. He knows how to write but can't make it readable on paper. In our school the kids start cursive writing in the 3rd grade and I just don't think he is ready for that. I am going to start the higher dose in the morning and just throw the rest out. I think he might do better on the higher dose, he did when I started the 45mg. Well, it is late and I have some laundry to do still. Have a good night all and I will write more later...... MelissaMelissa don't throw out the "rest".
My son takes a 54mg and a 36mg to reach 90mg. You may want the other mg's in the future, you never know!
That is true I might need them but will they keep? I might have to look into that. I hope this works I am about 30 minutes from giving him the 54 mg pill. Cross your fingers!! LOL Catch ya later...... MelissaHey Melissa,
How are things going for Isaiah?
Well, I got him into the ped doc and he put him on a 54 mg dose of Concerta. That surprised me because my family doc was telling me that the highest we could go was 45mg. Well I have been giving him the 45 mg until they are gone then I am going to start the 54 mg. I wanted to work him up rather than take him from 36 mg to 54 mg. So he is on the 45 mg and in the mornings from about 8 am to about 10 am he does fine. Then the teacher tells me he turns into a bully! I am hoping that the 54 mg will keep him calm until the end of the day. He still has to go to the psych. doc on Friday but I am hoping that she will give him something for the impulses. He is having a real problem with them. I told him to go to bed tonight and he was in his room screaming (not crying) for 2 hours. I know it sounds bad but I just let him get it all out and after a while he stopped and went to sleep. I can't get mad at him because of this it is not his fault. My boyfriend seems to think I should "show him who's boss" but I think if I ignore it then he will know that I am not going to make a big deal of it. My boyfriend doesn't seem to understand much about this disease and is very closed minded about it. The ADHD is really tearing us apart but I don't care because he is my son and I am not going to let anyone butt in where they don't belong. Isaiah's father is as closed minded as my boyfriend but I know I can sit him down with the doctor and he can explain to him what is going on. If I don't then Isaiah's dad thinks I am babying him too much. Well, I guess that is all for now I would love to hear how all of you are doing with this long journey of ADHD. Write later...... Melissa
Poor guy sounds like a rough night for him. I would start the 54mgs. in the morning. The meds should last between 10-12 hrs. Something is NOT right!
My son is 10. He started meds at almost7. We tried adderall but that made him very angry. concerta was best for him. He leveled off at 72mgs by 7 1/2 PLUS we added guanfacine for impulsiveness.
My son turned 10 in June and he was increased to 90mgs of concerta and still taking 1mg of guanfacine only in the morning.
Try the increase and see if it works, or maybe he is better with Aderall or something else.
Any other conditions like bipolar in the family? sometimes when they have a co-existing condition, the ADHD meds bring it out worse. Just some FYI!
Take care!! And keep doing what you are doing, but up him in the morning. If he is still angry, call his doctor and tell him/her about this. That shouldn't be happening. YOu are lucky that the teacher is involved with feedback!
I wouldn't hold him back if the only problem your seeing is poor handwriting. See what the school can do to help - maybe try occupational therapy. I haven't had my son in it, but I believe from reading on here it may help fine motor skills (someone please correct me if I am wrong on this).
Writing/Printing is a constant struggle with my son also. When he went from printing to writing, the teachers had a hard time forcing him to "write" and would make him redo his papers if he printed. He was also taken out of the gifted class - writing being one of many reasons. We've received recommendations from drs for him to use a typewriter/computer, but I'd prefer he tries to tackle it. This year (he's in 5th), I've notice one teacher is pretty lenient on him and lets him print. Handwriting is definitely a common problem with ADHD, but I would do all I can to make sure it's not going to hold him back from continuing to learn. Sometimes I think there little brains are going faster than their little hands can write - frustrating for sure!
It's funny, my son has fabulous handwriting and prints like a pre-schooler. We talked with the teach (who lets him print) and decided to make him do cursive.
In the meantime while your son is tackling the cursive, teaching him to type would prbably be a good thing for later use at middle school. I don't think it could hurt. Good Luck
my daughter cannot print, but her cursive is passable. I agree who cares about the printing, push the cursive (especially their name for a signature) and leasr keyboarding. We have some really fun learn to type software programs.I believe they are for a year, it should say it on the bottle!welcome madhouse, hang in there. There's different ways of addressing tics. WE chose to stop stimulants due to tics with my daughter and are trying non stimulant methods. There's no way to know if a med will increase tics, but trying something different can sometimes lessen them.
Hi everyone,
i am new to this site, my daughter sally has always had adhd, she is now nine and dignosed last year after pressure from the school and me to the doctor as sally was really hard to handle she is always trying to climb out the window, has no awarness of danger and non stop talking always bhind me and in other people faces, she never walks always run's especially in the house, she often get's into trouble at school. she was precribed ritilian, then concerta XL 18mg a day.then she started having tic's, but she alway's seenm to do head nodding and invountary movements b4 the tablets i just put it down to adhd,she is also on melatonin 3mg, Anyway she now delevoped trouttes but latley it has clamed down, and been taken off the adhd drugs. She is now as hyper as before, her tic's are still there, i have been told to ingnor the tic's, and when she does it in public, don't say anything just carry on as normal, people do stop and stare which i think it makes it worse sometimes.
Sally is also visually impaired and hard of hearing,
and has autisc tenderacies and has ocd just to ad to the list.
. My family do'nt understand so it's nice to find people who do understand.
I also have 12 year old daughter who has dyspraxia, aspergas, and add, facial pasly.
my son who is 17 is fine nothing wrong .hope to hear from anyone soon
My daughter is 8 and also has tics, but she has tourettes. We have a very small number of options of meds because stims are not advised in children with tourettes, they usually make tics worse.
She has been on straterra for almost a year and 1/2 and it has deffinatly helped her behavior with out making her tics worse. Her tics actually got better. They were gone for almost 10 months. With tourettes, tics wax and wane, but 10 months is the longest we have EVER gone with almost no tics. Unfortunatly they came back in full forse the 1st day of school. I think it was just too stressful.
I don't think it is as effective as most of the stimulant meds, but Straterra might be something worth looking into.
16 year old with tics too from med.s. Goes through different ones rubbing his nose repeatedly, now its taking his hat off and rubbing the top of his head. That ones been around for a while, but it doesn't seem to get in the way of what he is doing. He also tells me he has to circle letters when he's printing which is aggravating at times.
Appetite is still poor most of the time.
Hi, we have tic issues too. Way worse on stims. So bad that we had to stop them. Some are worse than others, We are now using Desipramine to treat everything. It is helping some with all of the symptoms. Of course school has not started for us yet, so we'll see. My daughters tics almost completely stopped quickly after stopping stims. The most noticeable a significant blink. She still rubs her nose (not even 100% sure this is a tic), but it is minor. She used to blink hard (scrunch up most of her face) and jump, and touch her face, the more we increased stims the worse the tics got. Between that, the increased anxiety and loss of appetite, I ended up stopping stims and switching to the tricyclic antidpepressant. Her focus and impulsivity aren't as well controlled as on stims, but her overall well being seems better.My daughter is 10.5 and has been on Ritalin LA for about a year now. We went through a period where she had tics. She would constantly blink her eyes. It just appear one day after being on med's for a few months. I stopped med's and the tic's reduced some but didn't go away. Since her behavior went down hill fast, we opted to go back on the stimulates. Somewhere along the line, we did try changing to Focalin XR, so see if it would help. It made things worse, so we went back to Ritalin LA. Eventually, the tics greatly reduced themselves and went away.
A friend of mine also has boys with ADHD that are treated with stimulates. They have had periods where tics come and go. They just deal with them as they appear and generally don't worry about them too much.
HorseMom39323.0007060185
Sorry - I thought this was your sons 2nd try - I tried speed reading on this thread, need to get home
I would not stop the Strattera yet - it is very early yet and you won't see it's full effect for awhile. I was very weary of it at first - mainly because his emotional side was better, but his ADHD symptoms didn't change much at first. The strattera website says to start at 10mg for a week or 10 days (can't remember for sure) and then take their target dose (based on weight). From my experience with our dr and a lot of other's here on the board, the kids should be "ramped" up slowly, 10 - 18 - 25, etc. until you hit the target dose and then it takes 4-6 weeks to see the full affect. You seem to feel a lot like I did and want the "magical" quick fix because we hate seeing our kids struggle - it is so very trying on us emotionally and physically.
While I don't feel the strattera is working (he has had lots of issues at school already), I won't give up on this until I'm positive it's not for him (since he just got upped to 60mg) because we have been through so many different meds already, and I know some who have stopped early and end up trying it again. If I read right, this med only helps a very small percentage of kids, but it's a non-stim and worth the try for many. You really need to give the meds their "shot at it" so to speak - unless your child is having serious issues or side effects of course.
Yes Tourette's is hereditary - I think a 1st cousin having it is still "close" enough to definitely have it looked into. My son is still being evaluated for it but we're waiting to see how the strattera goes. We don't have any history of it in our family - although my husband was adopted so we don't know much there I guess.
I too am speed reading through the posts. My son is on concerta, 90 mgs. He does the throat clearing thing only when the meds kick in. He also puckers up his lips at the same time, to help clear his throat. He says he has phlem, but not sure. Told doc, he said ignore it, which we do. I don't think he is doing it at school or outside the house.
I feel so bad that your son has been in trouble at school for things he can't control due to his adhd.
I agree keep him on the strattera, but he may need a stimulant as well. You mention that the tic was only when he was nervous and reading out loud in a post. Could you go back to a stimulant with maybe a different dose?
Have you consulted a psychopharmacologist for his meds? We use one for medication only. He knows all the ins and outs of these meds. If you need to have someone gain some weight due to lack of appetite, he can give you something to help with that as well as mix up the meds. Straterra and ritalin (concerta, etc.) is used often together.
I know how hard it is to find the right med for your child. It took us almost 6 months to level off. But once we did, we stayed there for almost 3 years.
Best wishes
I am not going to give up on the meds just yet. I like the fact that they are the non stim meds. I have a bad history with illegal stims and I just didn't feel comfortable with them in the house. I have been off the stuff for a long time now, years as a matter of fact but I know how they make you feel and I know what they can do to a person of an older age. I can't imagine what they are doing to my son. I wanted the doctors to put him on a non stim med when he first started this whole thing in kindergarten. The doctors said he was too young and that they would not put him on the strattera until he was older. The doctor has doubts that this med will work even now on my son. I want it this way and I hope that it does work because I do see him struggle every day and I just want him to be comfortable again. Oh by the way anyone who reads this and thinks that I am a terrible mother because I used drugs in the past is not alone. I feel that I was not at my full potential also. I am just glad that I had the strength to remove them from my life on my own, without any help from rehab or drug treatment. Also I want to say that my children NEVER were around me or the drug. I only used when my children were gone for the night or for the weekend. Yes a weekend was all I could handle I was not like most that use I didn't stay up for weeks at a time. i am glad that I did use in one way, I am very careful of what I put in my children's bodies because I am aware of what they can do. Well, that was totally off the subject but I feel better having a place to share it. Tics & Meds: I've seen tics in my son and several members in my family of origin who are also on meds for ADHD/ADD. My observations in them and myself convince me that that the effects of sims on tics can work any number of ways. Medication (especially stims) can trigger tics in some, while in others it may make already existing tics worse, while yet in others they seem to have such pre-existing tics to the same degree (no change), and some may or may not get over the tics when they change/quit medication. How I wish there was one answer to this (!) but I really think it can go any of these ways and we just have to gage it individually based on current observations and our knowledge of the individual's history.The tics in my family and child come and go, and for some of them clearly morph into other types of tics; however, our child psychologist is unsure how to classify my son's morphing types of behaviors since it can be difficult to sometimes tell the difference between a tic and compulsive behavior which might indicate an anxiety disorder (which my son has also been diagnosed with). The details of each person is a story within itself, of course. Medication does seems to have "brought on" some of these tics within my family (briefly in myself which went away when I quit medication, and in my sister in whom it never went away when she changed medication).
I also think your suggestion to you son, on how to respond to his classmate, is perfect!
Sleep: My son also has challenges falling to sleep sometimes, probably due more to his anxiety and complex mind ("giftedness" or whatever, up thinking about politics, math and such though only 10). I don't medicate this, but try letting him watch calming videos, listen to subliminal affirmations in soft music on cassette, talking with him, and then just letting him sleep in. The school can just acomodate this, in my opinion. I guess that's my natural way of dealing with it, though I'm sure there are more challenging cases that benefit from medication and not everyone has the option (with jobs or concern about school work) of letting someone sleep in.
We have changed the meds again and now my son is on Strattera. we have been in school since the 20th of August and my son has been in the office or with the psychologist every day!!! I got a phone call from the psychologist around the second day of school and she informed me that Isaiah had been disturbing the children in his class. He could not sit still and he was having these outburst of screaming. I told her I would take him to the doctor and have his meds changed once again. We did and the doc put him on a higher dose of the concerta. That made things worse!!!! I got another call this week on Thursday that he was going crazy and since I was not home and they could not get a hold of me they had called his doctor. I think that was a little much but they did it anyway. They told me that there were appointments available for the following day and what times they were. I agreed to take him to the doctor again even though he had just been there the week before. I took him to the doctor thinking it was the stims causing the "wild" behavior that he was having. We have changed and things are not looking better at all. It is Saturday and he is off the stims and on the Strattera. I gave him the pill over 4 hours ago and he is jumping around on the couch when he thinks I am not looking, hitting his sister, and the dog, and still yet having outburst of the screaming. We have not had him to a psychiatrist yet but I am thinking I am going to take him some time this next week. I am trying to deal with this as best I can but it gets hard when I look at him and I think what is wrong with my baby. I just want to find out if he is ADHD or if it something totally different that is causing him to act this way. Maybe it is anxiety or something different. There is a hospital close to the town I live in that will take him and keep him. They will take him off everything he is taking and see what they see for a while and medicate him as they see what he is doing. The problem with that is how do you take your child to a hospital and drop him off and say here you deal with him and tell me what is going on. Why can't I just tell them what he is doing and they tell me what is wrong with him. Did I do this to him? Did I do something when he was younger to make him this way today? When he was younger before we had our car accident he was loving and attached to my hip all the time. Now he will rarely come give me a hug he is always on the go. I am tired and I need advice on the hospital thing. I know it will be hard but if that is what will help get my loving little boy back I am all for it. I then think what if it makes him feel like I have given up on him? What do you all think? I come from a town where children don't have this kind of thing and they are just bad kids if they act this way.I have found that the melitonin has helped a great deal with the restlessness at night. After I give him the 5 mg pill about 20 minutes later he is a normal child. Have any of you ever heard of giving melitonin as treatment for ADHD? I am really thinking if it can calm him down to sleep and not run like a wild deer at night what will it do during the day. Maybe A 5 mg tab every 4 hours or so. The recommened dose of Melatonin is 3mg, daily, so 5mg would be alot every 4 hours. Well, I tried to give him a 3 mg pill tonight at about 7:00. He took the pill and his bedtime is 9:00. I wanted to see what he would do being that he took the pill a whole 2 hours before it was time to go to sleep. I don't think my theory will work about giving him a pill during the day. I had to fight with him just to get him to lay down until about 10:15. I don't think the 3 mg pills are doing much for him to wind him down. I did however give him a 5 mg tab last night and had no problem with him. I am just scared to give him that much every night because like you said the recommended dose is 3 mg per day. I will have to talk to my doctor about this I think.
meyssaisaiahs -
I couldn't tell from your post - how long was your son on Strattera the first time? and how long has he been on the 2nd go round?
My son started Strattera the end of May - we had concerns with anxiety and tics so the dr changed him from Daytrana to strattera. Tics have mostly subsided - he still gets fidgety with his fingers and clears throat when in a situation he feels uncomfortable with. His overall mood seems to be happier. He has gained 14-15 pounds (before was in the 25-50 percentile in weight) which has been great and he's kind of started to even out now with his eating - hopefully he doesn't start losing again. We used to give him clonidine at night to help sleep but he's no longer taking it and sleeps well for the most part.
It was hard to tell if the new med helped with classic ADHD symptoms that caused problems at school so now that he's been in school since 9/15, we don't think it's as effective as the Daytrana. The dr. did up him yesterday from 50 to 60mg because of his weight gain so we'll see if that makes a difference. Thinking of possibly adding 10mg Daytrana - hoping that small dose of stim won't increase the tics again.
It sure is a complete roller coaster ride trying to address symptoms and side effects in the right way in order to allow our children the happiness they so deserve.
Isaiah has never been on Strattera before. This is the first time and I am beginning to wonder about it. It is the first day of the new med and it is a low dose. (10 mg) The doctor said if the low dose wasn't helping at all in a week then start the higher dose she gave me a script for. I know it is the first day but I think the stims worked better. Yeah he had small tic's but only when he had to read to me out loud or something that put him on the spot. I noticed the clearing the throat thing again today but as I said it is only the first day off the stim's. Another tic that he has is when he gets nervous he will play with his toes. I just want to say that I love this message board because when I had no one else to turn to you all were there and gave me some really good insight on ADHD. I am also going to talk to the doctor about turrets syndrome if the tic's don't go away with the non stim med. I have a cousin that has turrets syndrome and I don't know if it is a hereditary thing or not. The guy that has it is my first cousin and that would make him Isaiah's second cousin. I don't know if it will travel that far. If anyone knows anything about turrets syndrome let me know. Thanks again to all of you........ MelissaJust for info, another med Focalin or FocalinXR(8-12 hr) is still a stim but is supposed to have much less side effects. My son is on the XR and eats a good lunch and dinner like a horse, he too is underweight 9 years 57 lbs. so far we have seen almost no side effects. I am worried if we up his dose in a couple of weeks about the tic situation. not that he has them but I just worry alot. So good luck with your doc and I hope you find what's right for you soon. to what to do about tics? I am now having the same problem. I am also very worried and concerned for my son. First let me start by saying that my son is ten years old and in the sixth grade. He just started middle school! He will be 11 yrs old in november. He has had adhd since first grade and has been on concerta since then but we did not give it to him during the summer time as he is not overly hyper and of course does not need to concentrate in the summer. He started on 18mg, then 27, and for the last 3 yrs has been on 36. Last year during the school year we noticed he started making facial tics but would only last a day then go away but this summer we did notice him blinking his eyes like he was having tics again but only lasted one day but this was being off the meds for 2 months because it was summer. Well this sept he started middle school so I wanted him to have a good start which he did but just this past week he started with his eye ticking but a lot worse and it was for 2 days. So I took him to our regular pedetrician who prescribed his med and told me to stop his meds and we will have to take him to a neurologist. I am really wondering what to do because I too feel it is very very scary to see my otherwise healthy son making these tics. I just want to stop the meds for good but I also worry wether my son will do as well in school as he has. All this time he has done fine as far as academically. He scores average for his grade which when you consider that he is almost a year younger than his classmates due to a late birthday his good. He actually does well in spelling and reading but is in remedial math but even that is ok because he is getting extra help with the same math teacher! Also, he has always had a good adttitude about school. He in fact wants to be a teacher! The only thing is that now I have to worry when he takes test will he be able to concentrate? I asked him on friday if he was still able to listen to teachers and focus and he said that he was. It was only one day off the med, and he did not have any test, so I guess I will have to give it a week to see because he has 3 test this coming week. He did remember to bring home all his books to study so should I take this as a sign that maybe he will not need them any more? If anyone has ever stopped the meds and found it worked out please let me know? Thank you very much! I really am glad I found this site and am looking forward to all of your help!quite often just switching to a different stimulant will work. I recommend seeing a child psychiatrist, they are more experienced with meds and their side effects