Adderall side effects | ADHD Information

Hi everyone I'm new here. My son was recently diagnosed with ADHD. He was put on Adderall. The first day it knocked him out and he hardly spoke. Second day was better. Third day he had a horrible tummy ache. What are other peoples experiences with this med ? It could be that he is on too high a dose.   The thing with ADHD meds is that they are supposed to be short lived meaning they are out of the body within 12 hours or so and symptoms generally return.  When I stopped taking generic adderall abruptly about a month ago, I did experience strong withdrawal.  Now that I'm on generic Dexedrine, I'm finding that I can take that weekend break without much withdrawal.   I don't quite understand that but that's the way I understand it.  Talk to your son's doctor about the dosage.  And remember that ALL medications have side effects.  The trick is to find the medication that brings relief with the fewest undesireable side effects.  Good luck.   Thanks for responding to me. Well he's actually on Ampetamine 10mg er sub. for Adderall xr. He goes back to see his doctor in 2 weeks. It seems like 7 to 8 hours after I give it to him ,he's back to normal(running crazy lol)
 I  have been going threw so much with him lately I'm glad I found this site

It sounds like he's metabolizing the medicine faster than the "12 hours" that it's supposed to last.  My son was also a VERY fast metabolizer of Adderall.  The doctor should be able to play with the doses or the type of medicine to help that.  My son takes Ritalin now because there were just too many problems with Adderall. But every person is different.  I have a friend that Adderall was the first med she tried for her son and it works beautifully. 

About the side effects...many times the initial side effects taper off after the first couple of days or weeks.  Like my son, for the first two days on Adderall he was also very sleepy but then he got used to the medicine and that stopped.  Also, if it effects his sleep that can go away after his body gets used to it in a couple of weeks.  It's all just trial and error to find the right combo.  It took us almost 6 months to get it right but WOW what a difference when it is!

Good luck and hang in there!

This is my first time on this website.  My 13 year old son was dx with ADD/dyslexia in December 08.  He was just started on Adderall three days ago.  (He was previously on Concerta - but that did not seem to work for him)  

Like Jessica's son (the original post) - my son also was experiencing side effects and I was starting to worry.  I "googled" adderall side effects and found this post.

I was amazed that my son had the EXACT same side effects - day by day.  "The first day it knocked him out and he hardly spoke. Second day was better. Third day he had a horrible tummy ache."   I was reassured to read some of the replies to know that this may subside.

Thanks Jessica for posting.  I would be interested in seeing how he is doing now (as it should be more than a week now).   This has been a whole new world for us...I am so glad I found this site.!

 

Welcome to the site cgal!

I'm new to the sight too and I'm REALLY glad I found it!  It's been a lot of help for me and my family!

Good luck and keep us updated.