ADHD and BiPolar Child and medication | ADHD Information

We are posting here in this forum to see if parents have had experience with Abilify and or similiar issues. We were hoping for some feedback from others. Our daughter was diagnosed ADHD 2 years ago at age 6. She is adopted from Eastern Europe. We have worked with neurologists and psychiatrists she has take straterra and concerta and wellbutrin and so many drugs which all made her agressive. We were recently told she may also be bipolar. She has tics also, has taken Risperadol with no help and now Abilify which helps the moods and the tics but when ADHD meds are reintroduced she gets tics back. We just had to stop Vivannce again .... also she has encopresis which is worsening and she now has to wear a diaper  I think the constant urination is also somewhat caused by the meds as I have read that Abilify can cause cause some issues with children having uncontrollable bowls . I cannot imagine this poor child who has gained almost 40 pounds in 8 months continuing in this situation. She is regressing.. not too mention her inabilty to keep up in school, babyish behavior, lying etc. I keep hoping some new combination of meds will help but we are very disspointed. Abilify seems to be the only med to help her moods but side effects continue. Her new doctor seems wonderful and we are hopeful that a solution is around the corner. Looking to see if anyone has had similiar issues and good results with Abilify or other med combo's.. and willing to share experience.  

Thanks new to the board worried parents.

[QUOTE=Latisha]

We are posting here in this forum to see if parents have had experience with Abilify and or similiar issues. We were hoping for some feedback from others. Our daughter was diagnosed ADHD 2 years ago at age 6. She is adopted from Eastern Europe.

How old was this child when you took custody and from what country?

We have worked with neurologists and psychiatrists she has take straterra and concerta and wellbutrin and so many drugs which all made her agressive. We were recently told she may also be bipolar. She has tics also, has taken Risperadol with no help and now Abilify which helps the moods and the tics but when ADHD meds are reintroduced she gets tics back. We just had to stop Vivannce again .... also she has encopresis which is worsening and she now has to wear a diaper  I think the constant urination is also somewhat caused by the meds as I have read that Abilify can cause cause some issues with children having uncontrollable bowls . I cannot imagine this poor child who has gained almost 40 pounds in 8 months continuing in this situation. She is regressing.. not too mention her inabilty to keep up in school, babyish behavior, lying etc. I keep hoping some new combination of meds will help but we are very disspointed. Abilify seems to be the only med to help her moods but side effects continue. Her new doctor seems wonderful and we are hopeful that a solution is around the corner. Looking to see if anyone has had similiar issues and good results with Abilify or other med combo's.. and willing to share experience.  

Thanks new to the board worried parents.

[/QUOTE]

You have a number of struggles going on here. Depending on the background of this child there can be genetic mental illnesses possibly combined and exacerbated with environmental factors. Contrary to popular belief, adoptees do not come with a "clean slate" even when adopted as babies.

It might be wise, as well as being here, to find parents who have children that have been adopted from the same place country as you daughter.  They may be experiencing similar struggles in raising children from that environment and have accurate information, good tips and support to share.

The one suggestion I can give you is do not try and tackle all behaviours at once. Make a list of all the behaviours you'd like to see corrected then figure out the most important one [I'd suggest if she's violent, you start there if not--what is the most pressing problem?].

Otherwise, you are going to drive yourself batty.


My five-year old daughter was placed on a low dose of
abilify and it yielded great results for the first 30
days. Among other things, she's diagnosed with
oppositional defiance disorder. As time went on, she
became agressive and moody plus lost regular sleep
cycles. Another side effect was weight gain, and she's
given a healthy diet. She's on her way off it now so i
don't know what's next. To me, these meds are scary and
it upsets me greatly to ponder the future psychological
ramifications of these treatments.