My child is SSSOOOOO Impulsive. It is so incredibly frustrating. He is on concerta. 18mg at first (7/19) then to 27 (7/23) now he's at 36 (8/13) and I see ZERO improvement. He is still incredibly impulsive, has a ravenous appetite, and sleeps like a log. NO CHANGE. I am fine with the eating and sleeping, but the behavior is driving me insane! I have an appt with the Ped tomorrow to see if we can change the med (Please change them I am dying here)
The impulsivity makes it so I can NEVER relax. What is he possibly going to do? there is no way I can pre-think about what he is going to do!! The FEW playdates he gets makes me beside myself with worry. The other mother called me and told me my son shimmied up about a 100 ft tree and do I want her to call the fire dept.
Please tell me there is something out there that will help him STOP AND THINK!!!
concerta didnt work so good for my 7 yr old. he is very impulsive and very hyper!! he also had quite a few side effects from concerta. we had stopped at 27mg. there wasnt much of a difference with behavoir just the side effects got worse. he is now on vyvanse and let me tell u how wonderful it has been for him! he does have trouble with appetite and sleep but u should see the diiference in his behavoir! he thinks a whole lot more before he does things he pays attention when im talking to him istead of lookinh around everywhere else and interupting me and he actually sits down for more than a minute and he walks instead of running. he is on 30 mg. the 1st few days he took it he was really crazy in the morning b/c it took an hour to kick in and then he did mope around a few days but now he is normal and so far doing good in school (3rd day of school). alot of us on here have switched to vyvanse after concerta. worth checking it out! it is different for every child so i cant say for 100% how it would work with yours but hopefully it will. alot of us have had to change meds and doses several times before finding the right one so dont feel alone. and let me tell u what a great feeling and releif it is wo not be yelling all day and getting those phone calls!! i just read your other posts about how others think of it. alot of ppl looked at me like i just didnt know how to handle my child. i actually wondered if it was something i was doing wrong but i had tried everything!! when i saw the difference on meds i kow those ppl were wrong! hang in there u just have to try another med. although adderall didnt work for my ds (it was like he drank water) it may work for your little boy if u didnt want to try the vyvanse. there are alot of meds out there and sometimes it takes awhile to get it right. goodluck to u and let us know how the dr appt goes and what they put him on. u can request a certain med so if u can think of one that may work tell them. i always looked ours up first and then asked for a specific one.
kim
Sounds like Concerta is not the med for you. It worked for us with impulsivity and back talk, but I know it's different for everyone. Good luck!!!
I know we haven't been on meds that long, but I was hoping to get the behavior thing on a positive track before school starts since last year was so crappy for him. I know in my heart this is not the right medication for my son. I guess I should have pushed for a different med today, but the Dr said it would be better to see how he does in school before switching. I can guarantee you in a month's time after he's been in the principals office 6 times, we will switch, and then we will have wasted a month's time, and will have only reinforced the belief a lot of kids and parents already have at the school which is: "This kid is out of control"Perfect.........
4inoregon, please don't get discouraged. My son was exactly like yours at that age. Sometimes it takes a while to find the right med and right dose but when you do, you will be able to exhale and your son will start to experience quality of life. The medication is not a behavior pill but it allows the child the ability to make a choice instead of acting on impulse and also clears the fog which eliminates the distractability factor. If your son is responsive to medication, all other interventions work better and it does get BETTER! Hang in there!
The exact same thing happened to my son including the 100 foot tree. Fortunately, he was able to climb down himself and never even realized he was in danger.
Anyway, impulse control is a major challenge with most ADHD kids. They don't look back or forward more than a minute or two so they are living in the moment. Consequences nor prior experience influence their immediate needs/desires. Just say NO and see what happens.
If you want to know what it's like being an ADHD kid with impulse control issues, imagine being in a boat with a hole heading towards a waterfall...it's not that you don't care about the waterfall, it's just that you're too busy bailing.
The right meds help to slow things down and give a chance to think before they leap, but are not a cure. As a child gets older and their metabolizm slows down, impulse control slowly catches up. No, not entirely, but better than before.
My 13 year old son no longer bites when he's angry, now he only uses inappropriate words. It's all about baby steps (oh yea, and a bunch of patience on our end as parents).
Good luck
Paul
Also, you are your child's best advocate. I can only speak from my own experience, but we saw immediate improvement with the meds that worked for us. First, we did 4-hour Ritalin and noticed positive changes right away ... not perfection, but more self control. When we wanted something longer lasting, we switched to Concerta. We tested different dosages, noting when it was too high it caused some sleeplessness issues. But we did notice improvement right away -- more willingness to compromise, less fit throwing, more impulse control. Again, I wouldn't expect perfection. As our doctor says, a good medication won't make your child someone he's not and it won't make him perfect. He may still be a bit squirrely, but he'll be within the realm of "normal" squirrely. If you don't see improvement in school in a few days, I'd press your doctor for a change. :)I agree with the previous post in that with both of my children we sawimmediate improvement with the right med, not perfection, but
improvement. Even more obvious improvement with my hyper/impulsive
child b/c it was easier to see how much more "in control" and less hyper she
was. I too would press for a change if you are not seeing any improvement
with concerta. Good Luck!Thank you all so very much for your support. I will be the first to acknowledge the fact that there is no "Magic pill" I know when we chose to medicate our child that it wasn't to "cure him". I don't really want to change him, I just want him to have some control, and I want to be able to relax a little. Right now I feel like I can't relax because I never know if I get out of the shower, is he going to be on the roof?
That is a slight exaggeration, but I am hearing from people for the first time who understand what I'm going through. You understand that taking away his skateboard if he rides in the street with it is only going to piss him off and make him feel bad about himself, and not really impact his choices the next time.
Thanks again for the support!
i jus wanted to say that if the meds arent working for him now then i dont think they will all the sudden work by the end of the month when u go back to the dr. i would try to call the dr and see if u can switch him b4 he gets into all kinds of trouble of at school. when u get a good med that works it should work that day and maybe u might have an adjustment period like if they get a headache or stomach ache the 1st 3 days or so. i have noticed though that when they start getting in trouble at school then ppl treat them differntly. i swear my sons teacher last yr did not like him at all and kids picked on him bad!!! im sorry if im seeming pushy but i would ask the dr if u could switch, no sense in even taking it if its not working at all. u would be able to relax and not worry and stress so much with a good med. we have finally breathed a sigh of relief with this med. he is still the same person just more clam and not so impulsive and def not hyper. good luck to u!!
kim
|
Enter Your Email below to claim your Free Book |
Copyright© 2006 ADHDNews.com. All rights reserved