Using Meds Only On Days Needed for Child? | ADHD Information

Hi, all. Well ... after lots and lots of debate, waiting and second guessing, we ended up doing a trial run of meds on our 5-year-old son. He is hyper, impulsive but very bright. We just found he couldn't handle school (always getting in trouble and bothering peers, which I worried would affect his self esteem and lead to difficulty creating social relationships) and had difficulty in other social settings (not paying attention, overly aggressive, throwing tantrums). We started with 5mg of 4-hour Ritalin, which led to noticable results at school from his teachers, who we did NOT inform we started taking meds as we wanted to see if there was a real difference.

That said, we're really pleased with the results but still a bit hesitant. Because we can usually handle him at home, our doctor said it was OK to just use the meds when we think he needs them -- at school or for social outings. (He's one of those kids where the more stimulation, the more challenging it is for him.) Does anyone else do this approach with their kids? Do you find it's the best way to go? Any other advice? Any potential issues? Just curious as we're new at this ...

Thanks!

my dd is on concerta i don't give breaks, she is inatentive, impulsive type, she feels better taking the meds, she hates how she is withough it, beeing impulsive and getting into trouble, if she was just inatentive, then i would probably not give the meds on weekend and holidays.

I know mom's who's kids are just inatentive and don't get meds on weekends, and thats fine.

My 5 yr old ds is on adderallxr 15 mg. Like you, we have chosen NOT to tell the school for the same reasons. His behavior has done a total turn around at school and for now we can handle his behavior at home when the meds wear down in the eves. Some evenings and mornings are hard.

My doctor wrote a prescription for a 5mg booster of adderall for the eves but I am not using it now.

We are seriously considering a medication holiday for the summer. Their are alot of benefits of giving his little body a break. He might gain some weight for one.

One of the concerns I have about stopping the meds and then restarting when school starts is that it would cause ds to have to go through that adjustment period all over again.

He really had a hard time with his appetite and it is just now getting back to normal. He has been on meds since Jan 08. I would hate to see him lose his appetite again and lose weight again.

But on the other hand I would like to observe him for the summer off of meds......Maybe he would gain enough weight to help him through the appetite loss when restarting meds.

I don't think I am helping you any but we are going through a similiar experience.

We have always given both of our kids med breaks on the weekends and summer- it has been fine. (Concerta- similar to Ritalin). My son was a lot like yours in Kindergarten.  He is doing very well now.You don't have to tell the school, eventually they may figure it out for themselves. But let them. It's your choice.

As for the breaks, I have two DSs. My oldest (9yrs) is very ADHD and for his personal safety we medicate him 7 days a week and do not take the summers off. He's adjusted to the meds and based on his man's size 7 foot, he's growing just fine.

My youngest (7yr) is not as hyper and we can deal with his inattention (even when painful) at home and even out with very close family and friends. Plus he is not a big eater (even before he started meds). So, we give him weekends off except for a short dose of Ritalin for church on Sunday. It only last a few hours, but it's enough to get through the service. Then by lunch he's ready to eat and I say a prayer that we get through the day .

Talk to your doctor. You can base your decision on several factors, what kind of activities do you do outside of school, what kind of side effects does he experience, etc.? We ski in the winter and the doc told us that we MUST medicate my oldest when he is on skis, sailing, on his bike, etc. Otherwise he looses control and we end up in the ER. He can fall off a bike better than any stunt man.

Good luck,
Mom
I would tell the school so that they know what you are dealing with.
I was told the same thing as you.  Quite frankly, the main thing they worry about is lack of growth.  My son is now 13, 5'5" and wears a size 10 men's shoe already.  I am only 5'7" - so he is developing fine.  As long as your dr. checks development against scale - you should be able to have him or her on the meds all the time. (I would also consider how hyper he or she is.)  In my past experiences, whenever my son wasn't on meds - that was when we ended up in the ER due to some major injury.
(Broken collarbone due to jumping off of a wall at school - running through a plate glass window - climbing up a chest of drawers knocking them over. (head stapled shut that time.)
It also helped me dealing with his behavior.  And I can tell a difference of when he is on/off meds.
If it were up to me, my son would be on meds all the time.  It helps him.  He doesn't realize when he is off the meds just how different he is. (His dad/grandparents don't give him meds off school days when he is with them.)
Hope you are well.

I think the decision to medicate everyday depends on the type of ADHD your child is suffering from. My son is ADHD-combined meaning he is impulsive, hyperactive and inattentive.  If your child is only inattentive--medicating on school days can be adequate.

 We do meds  everyday. It helps him to be calm and relaxed. It helps him to interact with his peers too. And it has brought peace to our family. We enjoy spending time with him because he isn't bouncing off the walls.

We do not do med breaks. What we do is reduce his dose for the summer when he is not in school.

My son is 12 and doesn't think he needs his meds. He told his older sister he didn't his meds and she came back with a resounding, "Yes, you do!"

Hello and Welcome,

We do not medicate our nine year old (Concerta) on weekends or holidays. He is just inattentive. His Dr. said that his is fine. Our five year old (Dexedrine), we medicate every day. He is VERY impulsive. It is unfortunate that we cannot take med breaks with him.

I can understand you wanting to get an unbiased opinion as to how he is doing at school with the meds, now that you know he has improved, please let the school nurse or his teacher know that he is on meds. I am a nurse, and I worry about what if something were to happen at school and they had to call an ambulance. The medics would need to know what meds your child is on to treat him properly. Goodness, forbid anything ever happen to you child.

I am so glad that your son is doing well on the Ritalin.

Welcome to the family.

 

Most school have policies that require you to keep them informed of what meds your child is on. It becomes very important if there is an accident or if he/she has an adverse reaction to something. The EMTs need this information to take care of your child. Many children do not know the names of meds they take or why.

I keep a 3x5 card in wallet with my meds one side and my son's on the other. It came in handy when I was in a car accident last year. It had all the meds listed with the doses.

reruho,

Thanks for both your post. You're right about notifying the meds at school, just in case there is an accident. We are blessed to have our kids in a small private school and the director and some of the staff were part of the diagnosis process 4 years ago (the doctor's visited the school). But I don't keep them up to date on the meds. I'm going to get an index card tonight!

Also, it's nice to hear that other's choose to medicate on the weekends for "family peace." My son is happier when mom and dad are not having to tell him to slow down and stop all the time!

Thanks for being out there!
My son is on Focalin and takes it 24, 7.  We used to not give him his night dose on days we weren't going any were, but the behavior doc said that he needs routine.  And taking his meds is a part of that routine.Both my 15yr old and as of the last week my 7 yr old are ADHD and are on Adderal XR. The oldest is on 30mg and the 7yr old on 10mg. They are both bearable to deal with at home and on weekends as well as social settings so they only take the meds on school days plus they will be taking a summer break from the meds as well. It really depends on how your individual child can function without meds and how severe acase they have so I see nothing wrong with breaks.

CristyK1

I agree with your doctor, routine is so important for our kids. I think it is also important for their bodies to maintain that consistant level in their systems.

Again, the frequency that you give your child their meds depends on the needs of their condition and the advise of their doctors

Reta,

It's been hard on me dealing with all the suggestions that the behavior Doc gives us.  Simple ones like getting my ADHD son up every day at the same time and putting him to bed at the same time every night.  Even on weekends.  I used to be one of those moms that let my 11 year old stay up later on Friday night and Saturday night.  So than on Saturday and Sunday morning I would let him sleep in.  I don't do that anymore.  And it's hard on me to do so, since I to love to sleep in on the two days I don't have to be up at the crack of dawn.  But I will do what it takes to make sure my kids are healthy.

We do med breaks on weekends, summer, and holidays. DD has ADHD/Innattentive, no hyper,very very few behavior issues. It is what works for us, and that's what you have to do, what works for you and your child.

Cristy,

Sleep in a bit, maybe as hour or two later. If you get up at 6 am on weekdays, let them sleep in till 8 am , not till noon.  I would even let thyem stay up maybe an hour later on weekends. I understand but disagree with the doctor on this, I let my son sleep late on weekends. To me that is the treat of the weekend.

How young are your children?  For the younger children, I can see these recommend  it. My son is 12 and I have given his the responsiblility of his bedtime. He isn't allowed to be mean, angry, grumpy or too tired or I get to set  his bedtime. So far we have only had to pull the trump card once.

Reta,

My son's are 11 (ADHDer) and 7.  My 7 year old rarely stays up past nine if we are home.  He is a big kid (56 inches tall and 105 pounds 'down 7 since Jan).

I do let my sons stay up to watch any of the night races that are on TV on Saturday night (big NASCAR fans) as long as they can behave during the day leading up to the race.  But lucky for us there are not too many night races.

Normaly they don't sleep in too late on the weekends, since other than night races, they don't stay up too late.  LIke tonight they were up till 9:30 only because of a doctors appointment with the behavior doc at 8.  Other wise it would have been 9 for them both.

Lucky for me, my husband's idea of sleeping in is like 7am since he gets up at 4am during the week.  This means I can sleep in till 9, or when ever I get up on my own (which is till before 7).

12 year old grand-daughter is off her meds on weekends and during summer.  This is also on doctor's order as these drugs can be growth suppressing as well, and since she is relatively short (not quite 5'0" tall), he doesn't want to slow her down anymore than necessary.

I am one of those parents who doesn't give med breaks.  Doing so would probably be easier for me,but having adhd myself, I know that I need the ability to focus everyday and not just when pounding the books.  Adhd is  part of who we are.  When one is taking med breaks, then one has to get used to his mind in both sets of circumstances[medicated and not]  To be the best that we can be is an all the time thing here.  Bouncing back and forth is mentally straining.

  And, I'm not saying this so that anyone thinks that I think I'm better than them. I tried the med break thing with 2 of my children. [they are adults now]  When it came to medicating my gs  full time, I tried it again.  He does better with the structure in place all of the time.  Maybe being AS ,as well, is part of it.  It just works best for us.

 

my son use to take breaks when he goes with just his dad. It is not because he can tolerate him more, it is just that he does not have to be so restricted like he has to for school or appts. His dad likes to spend as much time with him as he can, for the sake of all of us. To give the kids a break from him and him a break from them. He requires many people time outs, (since people overwhelm him-his asperger's) where he gets to be alone. So do what works for yall.THanks to all on the on/off advice. Our son is hyper, impulsive but dealable at home when there is less stimulation. So we're going to go with the med breaks on weekends, summer unless there is an event we think he needs them for. And totally understand about telling the school eventually ... we just didn't want to tell them to see if there really was a difference rather than have them look to hard for one, knowing he was on meds. Thanks again to everyone!