my 7 year old and moodiness | ADHD Information

lets me know how it gos. My son was on Vyvanse and when you get a flat affect it is usually the wrong med sometimes the wrong dose, but usually the wrong med. We have been on 3 and are still working on finding the right med and dose. Good Luck!

Sounds exactly like my son.  Same age, same time on medication, but his behavior seems a little worse than what you are experiencing.  He is on his 2nd ADHD med (stimulant) and 1 min he can be the sweetest little guy but you can blink and he is like a different kid.  Mean, nasty, hurtful to say the least.  I don't know if it is meds or what, but it definitely needs to stop! 

We are going to a child psychiatrist Thurs, since the pediatrician and psychologist aren't helping as much as I'd like to see, so we will see what we learn there.  I am thinking maybe he is not ADHD, or maybe he is but he has more disorders than that......but all I can do is tell the docs and beg for the help he needs!

Hopefully before he gets kicked out of school!! 

My (nearly 7) son started on Vyvanse 30mg in December; initially, he was very "flat" for the first 2weeks ... with it decreasing more and more to where at the end of that 2week period, his normal personality (my son is naturally, a very friendly, social, happy go lucky boy) was back, minus the attention/impulsiveness we were having issues with. 

Now over the course of the last month we've been having some MAJOR issues with whininess, emotions are all over the place and he's just been downright difficult to deal with in the mornings and in the afternoons. We're thinking the mornings are mostly because of lack of sleep because since we increased his night-time dosage of clonidine, he's sleeping better over all and the mornings are going MUCH more smoothly.

However, the REAL, BIG problem lies in the afternoons. They are AWFUL! My son will come off the bus in a seemingly happy mood, but within minutes transforms into a monster. Fussy and whining and all out of sorts. He's all emotional and just screams and stomps his feet, etc. INCREDIBLY UNLIKE him. He's just not normally like that.

So, we've decreased his dosage to 20mg of Vyvanse. So far, it's hard to say. We're supposed to call the doctor back tomorrow with an update and I'm not noticing a huge change. My husband was the one dealing with my son this weekend (we changed the dosage on Friday) as I was out of town. We'll see how my son is this afternoon when he gets home from school. If I still see the aggressive, emotional, whiny behavior, we'll see what the doctor says tomorrow.

That's just our experience. (if the decrease doesn't work, we're actually going to INCREASE to see if that might help, as initially, the 30mg dosage worked great!)
Hi.  My seven year old son has been on Vyvanse since the beginning of the school year.  We had to adjust the dose from 30mg to 20 mg because he was too 'flat' and what seemed like sad to me.  He is doing much better on the 20 mg, but every now and then still has days that he seems sad and distant (that is the way his teacher described it once).   He had a friend come over yesterday and in my opinion was not really too interactive.  They played video games and the other child seemed ok with it.  My husband (who is a physician) says just to leave him be.  Part of his moods are his innate personality which i do agree with.  Am I just being a paranoid mother?  I guess I am just so used to his 'hyperactive' behavior that when he is not that way I wonder if something is wrong.  I am going to bring it up with the doctor when we go back in 2 weeks....
Does anyone have any similar experiences with this?

My son, also 7, just started Vyvanese 20 mg yesterday.  He had been on Focalin XR 10 mg which did not last very long and his emotions were like a rollercoaster.  So far, so good with Vyvanese.  I give it to him around 7:30 and he seems much calmer until late in the evening.  Bedtime last night (around 9:00) even was better.  He was still a little nervous about a couple of things, but so much calmer and happier.  In the morning, before I give him his medication, he is very hyper, silly, and talkative, but both yesterday and today very calm after the meds, not to the point where he is like a zombie (sometimes he seemed like this with Focalin), but a nice calm.

I don't know if this helps you, but this is what I see since starting Vyvanese yesterday.

Kathy

Thanks Kathy, that does help. I would be interested to hear how your son
is doing in a month from now. If you remember, do you think you could
let me know?

Thanks!
Jennifer

Jennifer,

I'll try to remember.  I don't always visit this website.    Good luck!

Kathy

Hi. Thanks for your response. We are actually on vacation and today I
forgot to give my son his vyvanse. Yes I noticed the difference, he was
non-stop in action! However, my happy boy was there....I am really torn
because the medication has made such a difference in school. I think
that even on the 20 my he is more 'flat' than I would like him to be.
Maybe we need a different medication. I don't know....my 7 year old was on adderall xr  last year and part of this year. it help for a little bit then it would not work at all. one moment she is angel the next the devil. the doctor put her on concerta and it seem to be hleping. i'm new at this so. i want to hlep her but we have issue of not want to eat or go to bed when it id time.  My son is 6 and has been on medication for a little over a year. His behavior is just plain frustrating sometimes...lately I've been dealing with comments like: "I hate you" and "Dummy" and it could be triggered by something as small as asking him to brush his teeth! Is anyone else dealing with these hurtful words? In quiet moments I try to explain to him that it hurts my feelings etc., but the next day it's the same thing all over again. Any advice, counseling tips would be great.it sounds like your son is incredibly impulsive (same as mine... when the meds aren't controlling those symptoms).

Read my update on my crying mess update .... last night was AWFUL and I was so heartbroken to see my son like that, but on the other hand, I knew he couldn't help it.

SO .... we'll see how this goes; we're INCREASING the meds to see if it helps. **fingers crossed that it does**

I must just be right behind you on the boards here...   I know that sounds exactly like my son.  I know he can't help it, but it really irritates me when other people in the picture think that he can, and want to punish him. 

UGH!!!   

Fingers crossed for you!!  We are going to a child psychiatrist Thurs, and I have no idea what they will say or suggest, but I am so ready for some REAL help!  I think this message board has helped more than the pediatrician!!  She just wants to write prescriptions and change them all around!!