My son is 11 and about ready to enter middle school. He was diagnosed with ADHD during the 3rd grade. He was started on Concerta and has only been on Concerta, though the dose was changed from 36 mg to 54mg a year ago.
During this summer, I noticed the hyperactive behaviors running rampant in my son despite taking his medication each day. It was like he was taking no medication at all. I discussed it with his pediatrician, and we increased the Concerta to 72 mg. My son did good behaviorally and symptom-wise for three weeks, and then everything fell apart. He stopped eating, had severe stomachaches, wouldn't fall asleep until at least 1 am and wake up late.
So I called the ped's office for an appointment and put my son back on 54mg until the appointment. The behavioral issues returned, but he started falling asleep around 10 pm and started eating like a horse, with only occasional stomachaches.
The pediatrician wanted to put him on Adderall XR 20 mg. I wanted Vyvanse, but he declined to put him on it, even though he said the side effects were less severe and the drug lasted longer. Which confused and upset me. Can someone explain his rationalization?
So as he's writing out the script, he tells me to be on the lookout for anger, aggression, "psychosis" because these can be caused by the med.
What am I putting my son on? And it's only one week before school begins. I'm so worried that my son will get agressive or angry (anger is a symptom of his ADHD behavior when untreated) or have problems his first days in the new school. I'm unfamiliar with the effects of Adderall XR and this makes me unsure of what I've done. I don't want to just leave him on the Concerta 54mg, but I don't know if the fix is worse than leaving him partially treated.
hi! im new around here and dd has recently been dx'd... shes 9.
she is tking adderal xr 10mg... this is week 2.5. she isnt exhibiting any anger issues so far and her hyperactivity is down.
i know some have said it can cause those side effects, but i just wanted to say that "so far" lol1 we havent seen them... although the adderal in general is not working so great and im sure we will be switching it here next week when we go to the psych.
Vyvanse is a newer medicine, and maybe the dr. isn't comfortable w/ it? That's my guess why Adderrall was preferred, but honestly, I'd ask the dr.
I hear you on concern about the possible side effects, but keep in mind that those are just things to watch for. Hopefully they won't happen for your child.
Good luck!
From what I understand, the biggest difference between Adderall XR and Vyvanse is... the cost! Yes, Vyvanse is supposed to last longer by an hour or two, but, like mpg in autos, it all depends on the person (or dirver). The active ingredient in Vyvanse is d-amphetamine (dextro-amphetamine); Adderall is mostly d-amphetamine with a little of another kind of amphetamine (l-amphetamine I think).So, insofar as your son's reaction to Adderall vs. Vyvanse, there may be little or no difference. But then again, any variation, no matter how slight, can make a difference in effectiveness or side-effects. For some folks taking generic versions of the same drug, same dose--the only difference being in the manufacturer--the effectiveness can be dramatically different.
I wouldn't think that the "dangerous" side effects of one stimulant would be that different than another. So you probably shouldn't fear Adderall any more than you would Concerta in that regard.
What WILL be very different between stimulants are the other annoying side effects. Each person reacts differently to each stimulant. My son didn't do very well on Adderall. It gave him horrible rebound and made him moody. But my friend's son (who also has anger issues when he's not medicated) is on Adderall and it works wonderfully for him.
Each kid is different and you just have to make sure you have a good doctor that you trust. There may be a lot of tweaking to be done with doses, timing, etc and you need a doctor who isn't afraid to make changes right away.
Good luck! 
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