Hi,

My 6 year old son just started taking Focalin XR 5 mg last Friday.  He had been taking Metadate CD 10mg for a year, but it wasn't working at all the past few months.  Anyway, he seemed very, very calm and quiet for the first few days but I think it's because he has terrible allergies and wasn't feeling well.  He was even going to bed well.  The past two days he seems more himself, calm, but not zombie-like.  He did have a hard time falling asleep last night (close to 11pm).  He doesn't start first grade until next Wed., so we'll see how he does in school.

I find it lasting a good 8 hours like the doctor said. The Medtadate was only lasting a few hours with a lot of crying spells all day.  So this seems like a good change so far.

Kathy

My 6 yr old ds is on focalinxr 10 mg. There is no zombie like effect and it does not affect his sleep. But it only lasts about 6 hours. By the time he gets on the bus he is WILD. It is such a problem that he may get kicked off the bus if we can't help him calm down a little. I just hate the thought of more medicine....

He takes a VSmile hand held game w/ earphones to help him focus on that instead of getting overstimulated w/ all of the kids on the bus , noise, movement , etc....I am just not sure if he is using it this year. It worked like a charm last year....

My son was on Focalin xr 10 mg then 15 mg in am..  It only lasted 4-5 hours for him.  is body metabolizes meds very quickly.  Anyway his doctor then had him take another 115 of xr at lunch time.  Again, it only lasted the 4-5 hours so it was o ut of his system by bedtime.  We have since stopped usiing it because his rebound was bad on it and it just doesn't last long enough for him.

Hope this helps.

Mars

Different children metabolize medication at different rates. If your child's meds are lasting 5 or 6 hours that is great; if he has school work in the last part of the school day that requires concentration you might want to ask your doctor to prescribe Focalin 5mg (not the xr) for dosing at school at 1pm.

My 9 y/o is on focalin 15mgxr in the morning and it wears off in about four hours. If needed, he is given the 5mg after lunch.

Folks,

Remember, med stability is a transient state for children because of their constantly changing weight, age and rate of maturation.  To have some level of stability for 6 months is a win!

Regarding focalin, my guy was on it for over two years and had relatively good success with it.  We had to continually raise the dosage and transition from short acting to XR.  Regardless, we still ended up dosing at morning, noon and night.  Since then we transitioned to Vyvance in the am and still administer Focalin short acting in the evening if the homework load begs it.

I would love to have a med last all day at school, but it is difficult often resulting in afternoon dosing.  But please, don't blow off the last two hours thinking that the 'school' can deal with it.  As a husband to a 2nd grade teacher who often has several ADHD kids in her class room at one time, I can tell you, that dealing with 'those' kids diminishes the learning experience for the other 28 kids in the classroom.  And believe me, their parents are just as vocal and concerned.  So, if the meds are making it, consider a change or a noon dosing.

Paul