Do the tics subside if lower dosage?
My 10 yr old son is taking Adderall xr 15mg and it has given him some real bad tics(a shoulder type of shrug).He has also been taking Tenex but a low dose from what i understand so the DR has lowered the mg's to 10 to see if the tics go away but i'm not too optimistic just because he has had so many difficulties with the stims in the past that i'm just pessimistic i guess.
Has someone had the same occurence and how did it go for your child?I wish i didn't have to give him so much medication but we tried over the summer to leave him off of em but once school started it was apparent that he needed them to keep from disrupting classes....poor kid.
Tics seem to be dose-dependent for many people.... every time we raised our son's Focalin dose, tics increased, and every time we went back down, tics decreased.
Eventually we added the Tenex because we had to go up the Focalin to prevent disruption at school and our doc said Tenex would reduce/remove the tics. So far so good.... no more tics!
FYI, if your son is not having luck with stims, you may want to consider a different diagnosis.... kids with early-onset bipolar often appear to be ADHD but don't usually do well on stims or antidepressants.
My bipolar daughter is a prime example.... she has been stable as a rock on mood stabilizers for several years now, but when she was young and we thought it was ADHD and tried stims.... well let's just say we won't make that mistake again, LOL.
There are also kids with comorbid adhd and bipolar who do better on small doses of stims AFTER the bipolar is stabilized.
Sorry if this is stuff you already know.... just trying to pass on my personal experience!
Audrey
No Audrey...I wanna and need to learn as much as i can for my kid's sake.We have had him tested about 3 times and its always the same diagnosis...classic ADHD.
Just today we only gave him 1/2 of the Adderall to see if the tics would decrease and they are still going on and we recieved a letter that he was off attentionwise and we are at a loss because he is doing really great otherwise except for those tics.
Thank you for your response.
Hve you tried any other meds? My 12 yr old couldn't handle adderall, side effects were made him aggressive, angry, he looked high actually - very dialated pupils.
We switched to concerta and tenex. he has been on the combo since he was 7.
I totally understand the frustration and just wanting your child to be happy and succeed both academically as well as socially.
Hang in there, we are here to lean on if you need the shoulder!
Thank you Bethann.
He has been on different meds since he was about 6 and it is always the same thing,he starts out doing extremely well then he sorta peaks at the 1 month plateau...We haven't tried Straterra or Intuniv which i am very curious to find more info on it since its not a stimulant.He is a really great kid and it breaks my heart to see him struggling at times.We went to a ADHD center in NY about 2 months ago and the DR actually suggested the time release version of Tenex so i think thats where we will be leaning towards if it doesn't improve.
My son has been on tenex for over 5 years. We have seen nothing but success.
We too are going to try the new Intunive as well.
Tell me, does he have at least 1 friend? My son didn't all through elementary school. He just sort of floated. Always played sports at recess but no "friends". I don't think he was a lone, honestly. Middle school has been so much better.
Keep in touch!!
He has had some friends but not for too long,i think because of his impulsivity and just the lack of focusing on lets say on one board game for example...he would start nicely then its on to the next game but since he has been on the new meds he has a buddy that i swear is going to be living with us soon...LOL.
We have a running joke at home because its like the kids from his class come over for an extended recess in my house(it's loud as heck but i am happy seeing him happy).Also the Missus and I are getting on the same page finally with him and how to go about disciplining him or when he should shut it down for the evening because he is like the energizer bunny if you know what i mean so its been a much better atmosphere at home.
Thank you Bethann and i will definitely keep in touch.Good luck on your end.
My wife and i were discussing the same thing last nite.We have tried meds that are the stimulant variety so we wanna research the non-ones now.
His tics are really bad so we are going to leave him off for a couple of days so to see if they alleviate some or just to give him a chance to give his neck and shoulder a break.....it looks kinda painful to tell you the truth.
I love him so much and to see him happy and well adjusted is something that we are praying for.Its been really rough lately but i hope we can get some sorta grasp on this soon.
This one reason i'm so against medicine. I don't want my son going thru all these side effects. He only five and having a hard time in school already. God i'm so scared for my baby.
What troubles in school? Anything we can help with?
My son didnt start meds until he was almost 7, but he was very HHHHH and impulsive. He really needed it.
My son was labeled and bullied due to his adhd and him not able to control things. Meds really changed his life for the better.
Please let us know if we can help you both!!
I totally agree with you too Chell but seeing him struggling in school and in life really opened my eyes to the fact that ADHD/ADD is a disorder that unfortunately is very real and then seeing him function while on the meds shows me his other side where he plays a game for the duration or when we actually lay next to eachother and read a book and he is not all ansty or thinking about what we are doing next is a great feeling(he is such a great kid).
Its not an easy thing to do but when it comes to our children...we will protect them and try to make their lives as easy and comfortable as possible but i know how you are feeling with the apprehension Chell.
Good luck with your baby...
He was always asking to go to the bathroom like 10 to 15 times a day and just being all squirmy and unattentive.The teachers all agree that he is a smart,sweet kid but he couldn't sit still for an entire period.The kids all were there when they started grade school together so they kinda got used to him being "on the go"and they have been nice to him but as we know kids can be cruel at times and its hurts us to know that our child is having a hard time in school.
Bethann,i am very happy to have found this site because seeing other parents come together for a common goal is very comforting.
Thank you so much and i will seek advice here.
yes, im sure it is heartbreaking to have to watch a child go through all these side effects, which they will invariably have to do if on the meds, as noone finds that perfect medication or combination of medications on the first try. I don't have children, but I can only imagine. BUT if you persevere and finally find what works for your child, it can make SUCH a huge difference not only in their present life, but their future life as well, i'm sure that if they really knew what it was you were doing, they would thank you. Now that I am an adult (25 years) and have discovered the diagnosis and medications myself, i am very thankful for them and they have really changed my life. But I can only imagine how different my life would have been if I had had access to tehse medications when I was a growing child. Things would have turned out so much differently for me, and I would've been spared so many hardships, both academically and ESPECIALLY socially.Trust me Chell...We also were panic stricken to put him on meds but we just couldn't ignore his condition any longer.
Our son is an extremely smart kid who was starting to disrupt classes and not excel to his full potential academically.
Our children are the most important part of our lives and all we want for them is the best life has for them but again its up to us to figure out what to do for them.
Has he been diagnosed yet?
Briefcameron....Thats our way of thinking also.He has so much to offer in his life that we as parents have to do everything in our power to help him along.
I also have ADHD so i totally understand his situation.Its very hard seeing your own flesh and blood having a hard time focusing in school and at home so yeah i agree with the fact that it will help him excel now that he is a baby so to speak and as he develops into a young man.
We as parents only want the best life has for our kids....good luck in your life too.
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