First Med Adderall not doing well | ADHD Information

I will agree w/edbson.  We are still fairly new to the ADHD concept and meds, however do have experience w/adderall.  That was the med that our ped also put our 5 yr old son on to start out with.  First day was great, continued for about a week and aggressiveness got worse by the day until towards the end of the week we got a call from the school to pick him up as he had tackled a classmate & was showing a lot of anger.  That was our last day on adderall.  We have now moved onto the Daytrana patch and yesterday started a small dose of Ritalin in the morning to boost his mornings until the patch kicks in.  So far it seems to be going okay.  We do, however, have a psych appt in Jan and will no longer continue w/the ped.

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MAny thanks for your input.  I had no idea that Adderall was the strongest.  Moreover, I was interested to hear that you've also experienced aggression.

I do have a follow-up meeting with the diagnosing Psychiatrist in late January (earliest feasible appointment).  He does have significant experience with ADHD. 

I'm wondering if I should suspend the Adderall in the meantime and tough it out 'til we meet with the Psych.

Again thanks so much for your input.

--Jane

 

I agree usually a form of Ritalin is 1st line choice of med. Adderral is the strongest one out there. I also agree with having a psychiatrist with experience in ADHD monitor meds not a pediatrician, they do not have enough experience. Alot of kids get aggresive on Adderral, it seems to go with the drug, but there are those who are so out of control that they need that and it works great for them. It just isn't usually the 1st thing they give.

Why did the psychiatrist not prescribe? Why was Adderall the first med tried? It is the strongest available for ADHD, and is usually not the first med used. I would stop it, and speak to the Psychiatrist about meds. Pediatricians do mean well, but alot of them do not have the knowledge or training to prescribe for ADHD.

Is there a comorbid? I would look at that too....because of his reactions to the meds.

Hello everyone--

This is my first posting on this board.  It looks like this group could provide a wealth of information for me.

My 8 YO son was diagnosed with ADHD and we've started down the path of medication and counselling with him.  Sounds like many of you have been down this path before so I very much appreciate your experiences.

We started in October 2007 with Adderall as prescribed by his Pediatrician as opposed to the diagnosing Psychiatrist.  Even with some dose adjustments (still very low 10 mg XR in AM 5 Mg in PM) he has been prone to some very angry aggressive outbursts that he never really had before.  This is creating problems at school.

It seems that many of you switch or decide to stop medication.   Do you have a rule of thumb as to how long one needs to stay with something before you initiate a switch?  Right now I'm ready to take him off Adderall and tough it out with purely behavioral therapy.

I don't want to totally give up on meds as I've seen them work on other kids very well.

Many thanks for any ideas you may have.

--JaneB

 

 

 

 

 

 

I was on Adderall in college and a total freak really. I made it through but
had issues from those meds. It was so up and down because each pill was
like a shot and Vyvanse is a steady stream of meds and only one pill that
releases slow. What was the reason for treating him, was he not
interested in school and not doing well? Here is and interesting point. I'm
taking Vyvanse and is meant to keep me focused. When I was a kid, I
didn't listen to anyone unless I cared about what they were saying and I
wasn't on any drug. What I mean is, if it was art, music, or PE class you
bet I paid attention because I thought is was fun. How is Vyvanse or any
other drug going to help kids with ADHD when they do not care, and will
never, unless they are interested? I do not understand why Doctors
prescribe drugs to kids with ADHD because how is the drug going to
make kids care? All it does is make you be able to pay attention but you
still do not remember a darn thing people say (or teachers). There is no
cure, I could give you some gret tips to help him study better but he wont
do it unless he cares no matter what. You know what I'm saying the
reason why the drug works now for me now is because I care about
paying attention at work and want to keep my job and do well. When I'm
on this drug I can stay focused at work the drug doesn't help my with my
memory it is always lost. I wish I could start a ADHD school because the
system is set up for normal kids and ADHD kids are so special and get
lost in the system and are not understood and have to be taught
completely different.brenn_col39441.4394328704My son was also showing some agression on 10mg of Adderall xr .. and so snippy and moody. We increased his dosage to 20mg and that is gone!  It was like I could tell he was "off" .. almost like being in rebound all day long. The meds were not at theraputic level.  I waited a week to see if the symptoms would go away, but they didnt, so I called the pediatrician and asked to double the meds! He agreed and my son is doing so much better. I still think we need to increase it a little more, but I'm so glad he's not that moody, whiney, throwing things around type of behavior!Oh wow.  I was just browsing topics and came across this one.  My daughter just started Adderall XR 10mg on Saturday for her severe ADHD.  I haven't experienced any aggression yet, and I hope that I don't because that is one of her MAJOR problems.  I really haven't noticed that the Adderall is doing anything for her just yet.  This was also the first med that we have tried for her.

Hi Everyone including recent posters Momof3 and janyben--

Sorry I've  been out of the loop of late.  Life has been busy!

Basically after we had mixed results with Adderall, we consulted with the diagnosing Psychiatrist (as compared to our Pediatrician).  He recommended taking my son off all meds for 2 months and observe his behavior.

There may be continuing questions as to whether ADHD is the true disagnosis for him. 

My son had a few very emotional and agressive episodes which resulted in panic attacks (for him) and we're back at square 1.

We meet with the Psychiatrist again this week to see what's the next step.   Not certain.

But good luck to all who have started this journey.  It is quite a lumpy bumpy one.

JaneB