Introduction | ADHD Information

Welcome to the board Traveveth and thank you for sharing your story :) You will find lots of support here. So glad you could join us :)Welcome. You will find lots of support here. My ds is 8 and in second grade.
We had the med thing since PreK and he was 5. He was on a montessori
school for the first year of preschool and it didn't really work for him. We
knew something was up and the next year we switched him to a small
private school that is great. Very supportive teachers. Right now we are
trying a new med - Vyvanse. Seems to be fine so far, we'll see. Daytrana
and Focalin worked for a while. Like you, I have to give him meds, and it
was a really tough decision, but one that has improved live for us all.Hi, I am so glad I found this forum.  I have been looking for a support group and this seems like a great one.

My son is 8 years old.  He is in third grade.  He was officially diagnosed with ADHD at the end of first grade.

He went to a private montessori school for two years of preschool and kindergarten.  He had the same teacher all three years.  She was wonderful but she kept telling us that she felt something was wrong.  Our son was very fidgety...he even fell out of his chair a few times!  He had texture issues, he was easily frustrated, etc. 

At that time I refused to believe anything was wrong with him.  I chalked it up to him just being a little boy.  So, he didn't like bits of fruit in his yogurt, neither do I!  I refused to believe that it was a medical concern.

Then we moved and he started public school in first grade.  I was concerned because he would be moving from a montessori environment to more of a traditional classroom and I knew he had trouble sitting still.  I didn't expect it to be as bad as it was.  First grade was an entire year full of behavior issues, notes from the teacher...it was always something.

Finally, at the end of the year I had a meeting with the teacher and the school counselor who had been observing my son.  They both said the same thing - ADHD.  I was horrified.

We went to our pediatrician who did the standard tests.  My husband, myself and his teacher all filled out the forms.  The doctor reviwed them and said I see a lot of reasons to believe it might be ADHD, but there are also some things that make me think it might not be.  He sent us to a psychologist.

We spent the Summer between first and second grade seeing her once a week.  By the end of the Summer she had officially diagnosed him and sent us back to the pediatrician for a prescription.  He first gave us Concerta.  I gave it to my son on the first day and exactly 8 hours after I had given it to him he started to act like a drug addict going through withdrawal.  I will never forget it.  He way laying in his bed, crying uncontrollably and clenching the sheet like his life depended on it.  I called the doctor the next morning and said there is no way I am giving my son one more of these pills.

He switched us to Adderall.  That went fine for a while.  He started second grade.  His second grade teacher was like an angel from Heaven.  She was so patient and understanding with him, but as his dosage increased to try to control the focus issues, his emotions started going off the charts.  By the end of second grade we switched to Focalin to see if that would have less effect on his emotions.

Just before school started this year I put in a frantic call to the pediatrician because my son's emotions were completely out of control.  He was crying about EVERYTHING and I was started to get very concerned about the social stigma that would get attached to him by his peers going into third grade.  We have just recently switched to Straterra.  The minute we took him off the Focalin he stopped crying.  It was so nice to see my wonderful, happy son back again.

I am not 100% convinced that the Straterra is the answer to his focus issues, but truthfully it got to the point that I was way more concerned about his emotions than his focus.  His third grade teacher is also wonderful.  She is keeping me well informed of his progress - although she did have to move his seat because his fidgeting was disrupting his neighbors, but he was not bothered by it at all.

So far he has all A's in school this year and I am very thankful for that.  I just wanted to share my story and introduce myself.

My husband and I are still not thrilled about having our son on any medication at all, but he does seem to be benefitting from it.  I'm sure a lot of you feel the same. 

I am looking forward to getting to know you all.
Thanks for sharing your story.  My 9 yr old son had a similar path.  I was told by an experienced mother that it usually takes four meds to find the right/nest one, and yes, it sure is hard to have your child be a guinea pig.  My son is responding well to focalin XR and clonidine.  His academic performance and behavior on this combo has been nothing short of astounding.  We did lots of occupational therapy and behavioral therapies, both of which still continue.  There are no magic wands or easy answers.  Maturity and development also figure into my son's improvements.  Congratulations on sticking with it and keeping your child's best interests in mind.  It really stinks when your child has a negative response to a medication.  This board has provided me with so many helpful insights and sincere support.

hi and welcome!

Sounds like you guys are on the right path. Lucky kid his parents are so diligent .

None of us want to give our kids medication. But when you can see your child able to actually hold a conversation or get all the way through one task is worth it!

My daughter also takes Strattera. She started it a year ago and like you guys it was not quite enough for rofcus so we've added a low dose stimulant to it (Methylin ER). This combination for her has been great. No side effects, but good symptom control. Decent moods, although 14 yar old girls moods ae hard not that easy to make stable . For her we made a school change (a major one) this year and all these things combined make me feel she is finally on the path she was meant to be on. We're getting somewhere!

I am glad your son is seeing some relief in symptoms. It is difficult for our kids to have problems that we do not have all the answers for. The trials to find a med that fits an individual's needs can be a tough journey by itself.

My youngest has been on straterra for a few weeks at 40mg and now 1 week at 60mg, and we are hoping it works well, without the weight loss side effects and helps with her occasional anxiety. We will see. The advantage we have is that we can go back to concerta and know that it is very effective for her, but we have to watch her weight and watch for signs of anxiety. Every year she gains maturity (though not as fast as her peers), she gets a better handle on social skills, and her grades have been good since starting her first med, so it is easier and more positive every year.