Not doing good in school anymore | ADHD Information

Well I just emailed my ds teacher today to see why he was getting a bad grade in social studies.  She emailed me back saying that for the last couple of weeks ds has been running and shuffling to get where he wants to go and he just sits there and doesn't do his work.  Right now he's taking Vyvanse 30mg.  At home here we have noticed aggressive behavior and tantrums almost every day.  He has a doctors appointment tomorrow but I don't know what he can take because he can not swallow pills.  We tried the pill route before with disaster.  Any one with simular problems.  Hey, I don't know much about Vyvanse--does he take it as a liquid? Are you thinking there is something else he can take with it?

Dee
I have to open the capsule pill and disolve it in water.  I think he needs to be on something else but I don't know what it would be.

Good luck at the doctor's visit tomorrow!  Maybe you could ask the doctor about Daytrana (methylphenidate) patch?  Check out the website, too. 

My son takes Vyvanse.  According to him, this med seems to work okay for him/least side effects of all meds tried.  He cannot tolerate methylphenidates (bad side effects) so he had to quit the Daytrana patch last spring; however, others have been successful.   Can't hurt to ask.

Get him a pill/medication cup. They're about . That may open up some medication possibilities for you that you couldn't consider before

People like adderall XR because they can open and sprinkle on yogurt, ice cream, etc.

Poor little guy. He is only 6, how bad can social studies be for him. Why didn't the teacher tell you and help him???

Let us know how you are all doing!!

Well I spoke to my ds's teacher by e-mail over the weekend and she did not see any improvement in him.  According to her he did not want to do anything she asked him to do and wouldn't look her in the eye.  The special ed teacher said they have to sit with him to keep him on task and his hand writting is getting bad again.  I made an appointment with his doctor for Wednesday so we'll see what she does.  My husband thinks he has anxiety problems and thats why the medicine isn't working for him.  I'll ask about daytrana.  The weekend here was like walking on egg shells.  Every little thing set him off and he would throw things and if I didn't answer him if he was throwing a fit he would hit and kick me.  I hope the doctor can find something to help him because he is a sweet boy when his medicine wears off.  Well the doctor upped his vyavanse dose to 40 mg and added Clonidine at bedtime and .25 mg in the morning.  Tomorrow will be the first day on the 40 so will see how his day goes.  He missed today at school. 

Keep us posted as to if it helps him. I am sure we can all come up with something if we need to!!

 

Well so far ds is doing well on the ritilin.  He missed his last day of school due to school closing because of icy conditions.  Were still battling the fecal retention due to the Vyvanse.  I'll keep you posted.  That that's a better start.

"Fecal retention?" Do you mean the kid is constipated or something else?
fecal retention is were the child withholds a bowel movement.  He started having that problem soon after taking the Vyvanse.  One of the side effects is constipation.  He had a painful bowel movement and was holding it alot.  The doctor put him on a stool softener (Miralax).  I am so glad he is going the the bathroom again.  That Vyvanse was bad for him, on the last day before we look him off of it the teacher sad he was hallucinating saying his teeth were blue. 

I am glad they upped the appointment for you guys.

Please let us know how he makes out.

No medicine should make anyone do things like what happened today. Also, if he is better when the meds wear off, then why take meds at all??

Meds need to be re-visited.

Please update us when you can!!

I'm with you Bethann. If the child is better unmedicated, perhaps some behavioral modification and coping skills would produce better results?

Have you tried this?
Well I had to pick ds up from school after lunch.  The speciel ed teacher said he took his lunch tray to the classroom and ran into the wall with it and when she asked him about it he seemed very confused.  I asked him about it when I got him home and he said the medicine made him do it.  I immediately called his doctor and spoke with the nurse and she upped his appointment to the morning and told me not to give him anymore of it.  I'll let you know what they put him on.  Well I guess I'm on the medicine roller coaster again.

my goodness does this sound familiar. my son was diagnosed with ADHD combined formin the beginning of november. im still confused about alot of the wording so sorry if i put it wrong. we started with guanfacine which seemed to be great for the first week and then downhill again so we upped to a full tablet and he was so much worse on it. then we went to strattera. not a good thing for him (for someone else maybe its ok) he got very violent at school on it. at home he was cranky but not the behavior as bad as at school. we just started today on concerta 18 mg (12 hr lasting) with guanfacine 12 tab in the morning and 12 tab in the afternoon. so far he has been ok today but we are out of school also. he hasnt mentioned anything about the meds making him do something but he did say he doesnt like school anymore. he doesnt want to go back at all and now im afraid that when i do have to send him in that he will act out bc he doesnt want to be there.

does your son seem better at home sometimes? do you or anyone think that maybe he is acting out bc he wants to be home and not at school bc he may be getting in trouble too often or other kids are picking on him?

i dont know whether to believe what my DS says sometimes bc he will say that another child hit kicked or swore at him but my son is the one who ends up getting into trouble for it. we dont swear at home so i know he is getting that from school but no one will listen to me about that. i would love to find another school to put him in but i work at the daycare he is currently in and no other daycares in my area are good at all. (believe me i have checked most of them)

My ds loves school and when we have delays because of the weather he gets upset.  He did not get in trouble today for the tray incident.  The teachers were very worried about him as this is not his normal behavior.  All the kids in his class likes him and he plays very well with them.  I ask my son about school but if I want answers I e-mail his teachers.  Here at home on weekends he can be unbearable.  He's very agitated and throws stuff (toys).  Right now since the medicine wore off he's fine.  In fact he's playing very quietly and humming Christmas music. 

I'm glad the school dealt with the situation rationally (ie not punishing him, but contacting you and being willing to talk about it). It really does sound like a side effect/reaction to the medication. With us, you can tell when the meds wear off because DS gets wild and out of touch. Right now, he's swatting wasps (!!) rather than eating, sigh.

I hope the visit with the doctor is productive. Let us know!

Dee
Well we had ds's appointment this morning.  The doctor took him off all meds (Vyvanse,Clonidine and Risperdal).  Put him on Ritilin 10mg in the morning and at noon.  We'll see how it goes.  I gave him a pill at noon when we filled the prescription and so far so good.  I don't know how tonight is going to be as far as sleep is concerned.  I'll keep you all informed.  Luckly he only has two more days until Christmas break.Vyvanse is just updated Adderal. Same basic compounds.

Daytana I don't know.

Strattera, for those it works on is great stuff.

It's a bit of a crapshoot with all of them, really. Depends on the person taking it.

Hang in there and keep us posted.

Yes my son has sensory intergration he was diagnoed when he was 4.  His doctor isn't in until tomorrow.  I guess he can't take any stimulant that has the same ingrediant as Vyvanse.  Someone on here mentioned Daytrana, does anyone know much about this.  My husband wants to try Strattera.  We've tried it before but I had to open the capsule b/c he has a hard time swallowing pills.  I heard it could be compounded.  I'm going to talk with his doctor about that also.  I think we're seeing the anxiety as well with Vyvanse. Didn't notice it before, but now son seems hesitant and sometimes unwilling to do things he woudl do before, getting really upset about them, especially at school. When we've gone too high on the Vyvanse, we've seen too mellow of a kid. Our doc said it certainly can highten other behaviors, so I think we're going to try a switch soon ...

If he is better, a sweet boy once the meds wear off, then I would stop his meds immediately. They are not helping in school if the teachers are having to help him stay on task, and they mention the handwriting.

His meds should be helping in all areas, including staying on task and with writing, if they are working for him, AND if he has the correct diagnosis?

Does he have sensory integration? have you heard of it?
My son was diagnosed when he was in Early INtervention at the age of 2. His writing and space on paper, neatness, etc has been an issue. He qualified for an OT through elementary school, then tested out in 5th grade. He is in 6th now and using a mechanical pencil - the best thing yet for him

Call the doctor and stop the meds, they are not working. There is something better out there for him.

My son has anxiety and guanfacine has really helped!

Keep us posted!!

I totally agree with Bethann- but like she said- call your doctor first and say you want to take him off the meds- as most of these meds have instructions not to stop taking without consulting your doctor.

We had to stop Aderrall after 2 weeks because of similar reactions that you are describing- and there is a similar base chemical in both Vyvanse and Adderall if I recall correctly.

Thanks for the update. Please post us as the meds settle in. My son moved up so quickly on concerta. Some days he only took the dose once and took a higher dose the next day.

You are looking to find the "just right" mg for his metabolism so that he is successful during the day.

Some give a small dose in the afternoon/pm for homework, etc. We do not. We only give the morning concerta along with the guanfacine.

We are here for you!! 

[QUOTE=NNjpolive]  We'll see how it goes.  I gave him a pill at noon when we filled the prescription and so far so good.  I don't know how tonight is going to be as far as sleep is concerned.  I'll keep you all informed.  Luckly he only has two more days until Christmas break.[/QUOTE]

Good luck--keep us posted!!!
Just a suggestion on the pills... My daughter had a hard time swallowing pills at first. i started off opening the pill and sprinkling it in the yogurt. After we got used to that, I started putting the entire pill in yogurt. I guess it helped the pill go down easier. After doing this for a while, we were able to move on to swallowing the pill with water. Good luck!