New to Meds | ADHD Information

My daughter is 7 years old. She was recently diagnosed (last week) and put on meds. We started the meds yesterday, 10mg of Metadate CD. She is on a fall break from school right now. What changes should I see and how soon if she is on the proper dose? I just don't know what I'm looking for. I am lost because I don't know how to deal with her, whether or not the meds are working, etc. HELP!!!!keeping a diary of sorts can help. Break down your days and just jot some notes. Like Had breakfast, played with toys, indicate mood and behavior for that time. Quite often it's a matter of looking back and saying you know, this week went so much smoother. A lot depends on what she's needing medicaiton to hlep. Is it hyperactivity, impulsivness, inattention. You may not see attentive improvements until school resumes. This is also a good way to be sure she doesnt have any side effects. So wrtie down anything, how she eats, bedtime, whatever you can think of.If the next doctor appointment is for 2 weeks, then I'm assuming the doctor wants to check to see if there any any major side-effects that need to be addressed. That's just the doctor being "safe'. IMO, it's going to be in the following weeks that the doctor will want to see if there are any improvements in attention quality and behavior issues. And, if there is an improvement, then the doctors appointments will be fewer and far between, unless you mention that there's little or no improvement, or if there are unacceptable side-effects that you want to stop.

At your initial visit, your daughter's doctor should have given you a lot of printed information about ADHD, which should help you know what the next steps are. One of the printed sheets should be an evaulation form for your daughter's teacher to fill out. Your daughter's doctor will want to have contact with her teacher, and usually this is done through the evaluation form the teacher fills out.

I agree with others when they advise you to start keeping a diary or journal. Write down things like...the time a med was given; the time symptoms got better; the time symptoms got worst; any issues/problems that have gotten better; any issues/problems that you see have not been dealt with; what the teacher has said each day; and any personal thoughts (instincts) that you need to talk about.

Keep in mind that meds do not cure ADHD, they only give a child the abiltity to do better if they want to. Bad habits are hard to break. Some of your daughter's problems may not go away easily, but that doesn't mean the meds are not working. With time and training, things will get better.

To be honest, once we were at a good level of meds, my son needed no behavior modification or other help in class.  My general feeling is that you will know when the proper level is acheived because their behavior evens out and there are no major side effects (like Tics, headaches, stomach aches, etc.)

Sleeplessness and appetite suppression are normal and I don't really think those are major side effects.  You can try melatonin in small doses for sleep and just feed them like crazy before and after the meds wear off.

Didn't the doctor who prescribed these meds review it with you?  They should have told you what to look for,  how to know if the dose is too high, possible side effects, etc.

 

 

[QUOTE=hawks2921]

Didn't the doctor who prescribed these meds review it with you?  They should have told you what to look for,  how to know if the dose is too high, possible side effects, etc.

 

 

[/QUOTE] They went over the side effects mostly. It was just our initial intake and we'd already been there for an hour and a half. They scheduled a follow-up for only 2 weeks later, which is a week from Friday. I think I was just too overwhelemed to even know what to ask at that point.

We also didn't talk at all about behavior modification, which we want to work on IN ADDITION TO meds. I don't want her to be on them forever.