down cycle? | ADHD Information

I notice this with BOTH my kids. I alwasy attributed it to a growth spurt, either physical or developmental.For my child, environmental allergies majorly affect ADHD.  During pollen season espec., the meds. don't work as well.  My ds' meds. also don't work as well when he's getting sick.  That's often my tipoff that he's coming down with something.I have noticed my son will go in good and bad cycles.  I think it is mostly stress and annxiety getting to him mostly.  But sometimes it changes for no apparent reason.  Has he been evaluated for Bi Polar disorder?

We have 10 week terms in Australia and by week 6 our son is climbing the walls!  The stress of school builds up and he blows!!  Plot the dates of a calander so you can see what other things are happening.  Maybe give each day a rating .

 

Do the times when this happens correspond to other events that he may be nervous/anxious about, or changes in schedule, or other life changes?  Dealing with "extra" stuff in life can add stress which makes symptoms worse, which in turn makes the meds look like they're not working well.  It can sometimes help to keep a journal during these times- when you write it down it can be easier to "connect the dots."

Every few months my 8 yr old son will have what I call a "down cycle" where his medication doesn't seem to be working and he can't focus.  He becomes hyper and inattentive or even spacy.  He acts like he didn't even take his medicine even though he gets it every morning.  Then after about 2 weeks he seems to snap out of it and is back to "normal"  or as normal as a kid with ADHD can be on meds. 

Does this happen to anyone else?  I dont' know if he's going through a small growth spurt during these 2 weeks or what but when it's happening I know it will pass.  The problem is all the damage he's doing to himself socially.  He acts weird enough he doesn't need this.