things arent getting better | ADHD Information
Amanda, Strattera did nothing for my son. Now remember, it is weight based and needs to be ramped up. Is he at his maximum dose yet?
Also, my son became depressed on it. Watch out for side effects. My son also couldn't handle adderall xr - it made him angry, moody, psychotic - etc. He actualy was at his doctors appointment and the doc got to witness it. We stopped immediately, as we did with strattera.
He is on concerta AND guanfacine and it is heaven for HIM. Everyone is different the way these meds work. Some have no worries, others do.
Your med travels haven't ended. You need to decide if strattera is the right med for him, otherwise move him to a stimulant and don't be afraid to add guanfacine again, if you need it.
My DS is very HYPER and impulsive, silly, goofy, easily overstimulated. On his concerta he is NOT. We spent a lot of time finding the right med AND the right dose. We started of a summer (tried at end of first grade, but had problems) and by December of that year he finally levelled of at his right doseage. He stayed there for 3 years!! So it is worth is.
May I ask why he is on strattera? have you tried a stimulant??
hello everyone. i just really need to vent a little bit. my son recently got switched from guanfacine (tenex) to strattera. he was just diagnosed ADHD the middle of november and im so lost and feel like i have done something to make my child be this way. he is fine at home but when he gets to daycare he goes completely out of control. he wont listen to anyone or focus on anything. he used to nap and now he wont. he has gotten very disruptive and is sent to the directors office many times each day. (mind you i hear all of this because i work there) today we were sent home from schoolwork bc he threw a ton of stuff all over the room and refused to clean up. im so upset and cant seem to figure out how im supposed to deal with all this. his dad is a weekend dad, he has him every weekend for 1 night usually saturdays. so im really on my own with this. please help!!
Is he getting strattera once a day or twice?I found it better to take the larger dose in the morning and a "pick up" dose at 4pm, to keep it moving equally throughout the day.
It's also a very weight dependent drug. A mg too little and it's whacko central.
When it works it REALLY works.
It also takes 4-6 weeks to fully kick in.
Have you spoken to the doc?
he just started strattera took his 3rd dose tonight. the dr said it may cause nausea so she said it was best to take it before bed. i know it can take a while to get into system. i didnt realize that it was that long though she said maybe 1 or 2 weeks. he is on 4 days at 10 mg and then goes up to 18 mg for 30 days. we will have a follow up with the dr in a month. im not looking for an overnight fix here but he just seems to get worse by the day no matter what i try to do.
Strattera is very weird at low doses. I'd stick it out for 4-6 weeks while ramping up. If he isn't a bit cheerier with less side effects by 6 weeks--I'd suggest a different medication.It depends how long it takes to "ramp up" to maximum dose for his weight.
the only other med we have tried was the guanfacine. he is going to start the 18 mg today. the dr has him taking it at night she said that may be better. everyone else i have talked to has said that they or their child took it during the day. im going to call today and see if i can switch him to daytime bc by morning he is crazy hyper except today he is sick with a temp and a belly ache. the dr said if this doesnt work wewill have to move to a stimulant. its only been 4 days on strattera so i know it takes a while for it to get into his system but shouldnt i see an improvment at least alittle one anyway before the few weeks?
Not with Strattera. It's a targeting drug that stimulates the brain to improve the chemical responses. Unlike stimulants that ARE adding chemicals into the soup.It MUST build up in the system. Until it does, it can actually appear worse because at too low a dose, it can cause more moodiness.
I was sick as a dog for the first couple of weeks and no improvement until the 4th week.
By week 6 it rocked. Best one I ever took. If I could have gotten it consistently, I'd still be on it. When it works--it really WORKS.
I found splitting the dose helped with the side effects. I slept like a brick. First time in years.
If you're looking for miracles and instant improvement--it's not going to happen with any medication. A few people get that "WHOA! THAT'S WHAT IT'S LIKE" [usually adults] response but most do not.
If you jump off too quickly, you might miss a drug that will really work. If there's no improvement in six weeks THEN consider another medication. Although it is hard to get ON it's easy to get OFF.
Your doctor picked strattera because it does not just work on concentration [in some cases, mine included it does nothing for it anyway] what it DOES, is cut down all the other cognitive/chemical problems which in turn, means more energy to devote to paying attention.
Since he seems less hyper and more responsive in his actions, strattera may very well be a good choice. But you won't KNOW that unless you really and truly give it a proper try.
im giving it a try. i just keep getting so many different people telling me and asking me about it. i feel like im doing the wrong thing sometimes. i hear people taking it more during the day and his dr said to take it at night. i just called her and she said i can switch to day if i want but shouldnt see a difference yet in him. i do see i difference at home but we all think thats bc he likes to be home with me.Hi amanda,
I have a couple of thoughts which may not be at all helpful, but here goes.
- Isn't one of the criteria for an ADHD diagnosis that the symptoms must be seen in more than one setting? If he is fine at home or significantly better at home, is it possible that the problems lie with the school setting, or at least it may be possible that the school is exacerbating the problem rather than helping?? It could even be that it's a great school, but just a poor match for your son. Or maybe he's just not ready for whatever type of program he's in.
- I understand that you work at this school/daycare so it may be very difficult or even impossible for you to move your son to a different program, but I can't help wondering if maybe he would do much better elsewhere. Or maybe even a different class or teacher at this same place would make a big difference.
Good luck!
Well he loves you and that's good
If the doc says you can go "day" you might try it, if he's not too nauseated. It would be moved to "day" later anyway.
I found splitting the dose, half morning, half dinner helped a lot.
You aren't "doing the wrong thing"--you're trying it out. If it doesn't work, you will dust you and the little fella off and try again.
Nothing is written in stone.
If you're seeing a small difference at home--perhaps it is going to work at full dose. School is just the more stressful place for him so it might take longer to work in that environment.
I first noticed it working when I stopped being depressed in the mornings. It spread out from there. Then I did more videos and more art and went more places and did new things. It was slow. Not fast like stimulants. I did find that between doses or when the second one was kicking it--I went back to what was "normal" for me [really hyper, fidgety & cranky] for about an hour, so I avoided doing anything important during those times. I'd just cook dinner and do routine stuff.
For some people strattera works, for others, it doesn't. I always suggest that unless you are getting horrid side-effects to at least wait 6 weeks and give it an honest "go". For some kids it works great on the sidelines with a small ritalin/adderal boost for school only.
i am just gave him a dose of it to start on days. he is fine at home bc its more one on one. at school there are lots of other kids. not all of them are well behaved either. we are going through a few changes in his room at school too. teacher changes and such. im going to see how he does on the days and take it from there. Sounds like the school is confusing him. All that action, all those changes. Makes it hard to see how he'd be reacting if he had more stability at school.
ADHD'ers often don't do all those scheduling changes very well.
I have found that strattera is better for those who not hyper, impulsive, overstimulated - etc - like my son. It is best for those with the inattentive type of adhd.
We found the stimulants work best the adhd'ers like my son.
Just my opinion!! 
I have found that strattera is better for those who not hyper, impulsive, overstimulated - etc - like my son. It is best for those with the inattentive type of adhd.
We found the stimulants work best the adhd'ers like my son.
Just my opinion!!
I absolutely agree that for some Strattera isn't a good choice.
I find it's use specific to the underlying executive function struggles, not concentration particularly. For a while there I was seeing some folks here who did well with it and a "booster" of stimulant during work/school but I haven't seen any lately.
So you don't have to blush for your perfectly valid opinion
You and I have also been around long enough Bethann to see many who didn't give it a fair try for 6 weeks
I'd like to print all this out and take it with me to my psychiatrist. I am 76 kg and on 60mg of Strattera, what do you think MetisRebel? I have reacted well to it but get the feeling that it could be optimised with a bit more.
I can reassure you Amanda that it is a really personal thing, I felt really mellow on 25 mg after only a week on it (that means it cant have kicked in or even have started ramping), first pms in my life where I kept my head on after two weeks, must have been placebo effect? Could it help my mood swings if I up it or isnt that on the agenda of Strattera? From what you say MetisRebel it allows me to ignore lots of stimuli so that I am freed up to concentrate on what I want to, is this right? It would certainly correspond to what people have told me from their observations. ie. I can prepare food with someone else in the room.
Is their a good web site that could tell me all about Strattera and how it works?
sink39795.691724537 [QUOTE=sink] I'd like to print all this out and take it with me to my psychiatrist. I am 76 kg and on 60mg of Strattera, what do you think MetisRebel? I have reacted well to it but get the feeling that it could be optimised with a bit more.
How long have you been on it? And yes 76 kg=about 150lbs? I was on 80 mg at 135lbs [worked for quite a while] and the psych wanted to up it to 100-120 but I had no more access to the drug. I gained weight on it--which I needed to. I don't think you gain weight on it unless you're underweight. I had an ongoing mass craving for FRUIT!!!
I can reassure you Amanda that it is a really personal thing, I felt really mellow on 25 mg after only a week on it (that means it cant have kicked in or even have started ramping), first pms in my life where I kept my head on after two weeks, must have been placebo effect?
I stopped getting morning depressions after the first week, so it is possible. By week 3 I was eating again. The full effect kicked in after about 5 weeks.
Could it help my mood swings if I up it or isnt that on the agenda of Strattera? From what you say MetisRebel it allows me to ignore lots of stimuli so that I am freed up to concentrate on what I want to, is this right?
For some folks, it works that way. Although I still had little concentration I wasn't so moody so I did get a bit more done during the day.
It would certainly correspond to what people have told me from their observations. ie. I can prepare food with someone else in the room.
That's a great start!
Is their a good web site that could tell me all about Strattera and how it works?
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I think if you root around the adhdnews.com part of the website [look top left on the page here] it has some links....