How many meds tried | ADHD Information
Hi,I was just wondering how many different meds parents have
tried before finding the right med, and what age your child
was when you started medicating them. I was just wondering
as the journey to find the right med and dose seems to be
one of great turbulence, so I was hoping this post may
bring hope to those who are just starting this journey.
Jennt....
I can say from experience that the medication road is a loooong one. My daughter started on her meds when she was 7 and is now 12, and we are still trying to find the right fit. We have been on so many that I lost track. We have found a few that work for a time, then we adjust the dose for a while,, then after some time it stops working all together.
My 7 year old son started at 5, and we have been on 3 different meds. He to has to be adjusted in his doses, and right now we are trying a combo of Tenex and Focalin XR.
We have our ups and downs.....and it is a long road, but as long as we have our children to love us we will all make it through!!!!
started in 3rd grade with Focalin long acting had bad zombie effect
Started at 4thgrade with vyvanse too aggresive
5thgrade we started Concerta 18, 27, 36, 52, and now in 6th grade 72mg. also on Zoloft for anxiety and just started Tenex or INTUNIV< long acting tenex. this has been the best combo yet he tried Straterra with nothing but tierdness all day. he is on 2 mg Intuniv and we are only on week 2 of starting the med week one was 1 mg. He says if calms him and he feels better.
We are so happy DS now 11.5 is a much happier person we took the long road but feel like we have finally have got somewhere. good luck to you!
I'm so glad I stumbled across this site! It's nice to know, I'm not alone in this journey!My oldest boy started on meds when he was 5 years old. He is 8 1/2 now and has been on every medication our doctor knows of. (We go to a specialist for ADHD, as our family doctor wouldn't help us! ) At the beginning of this year, we decided to go back to the Vyvanse and try to come up with a solution for the side effect of not being able to sleep at night. He had tried Vyvanse before, but was not able to get to sleep at night so we switched and tried something else. He now takes 100mg of Vyvanse and meletonin at night to help him get to sleep. It is working great for now.
My youngest boy started meds in October of this past year at age 4. We started with Adderall, but did not like the side effects. He is also taking Vyvanse and it is working wonderfully for him.
Finding the right medication and dose is very much a journey, but one that is well worth the time that is invested. I also believe that the right doctor is very important. As I said, our family doctor would not listen to me that there was a problem and was unwilling to help us. We had to go around him and find someone who would listen. I'm so glad we did, and we now have our sons with their wonderful personalities showing!
We started meds with help of pediatrician just shy of 7. We started with concerta but didn't like the side effects, switched to adderall but he totally lost it and became psychotic.
Then went to a psychopharm. and started concerta AND guanfacine. Tried strattera in addition to the concerta and guanfacine. Too many negative side effects with strattera. So stopped it immediately.
DS is now 121/2 and still on both concerta and guanfacine after 5 + years. He is doing fine, just up the dosage when necessary.
It is worth finding the right med and right dosage because you find the true person. And their success in life is worth the time it takes to find it. 
reaction to Concerta (psychotic would be an apt description) and only took 2
pills. Then he went Vyvanse and has been doing great.
That first one was scary. But we've actually had a pretty easy time finding
the right medication.
A suggestion - go a couple of weeks without any medication when switching
them to make sure the first one is completely out of the child's system.Just started this journey as well.
Went from 18mg Concerta-->
27mg --> 36mg and now waiting for next appt. Not getting the improvements hoped for and noticed possible increased aggression so not sure where we're going from here.
I would increase in him to 54mg. My son was at that dose when he was in second grade. Remember size and age does NOT matter. It is how fast they metabolize and where they are the most successful! 
Started med's beginning of 4th grade (currently in 7th grade). 1. Ritilan LA - developed tic's
2. Tried Focalin XR for a few days in the middle of the Ritalin LA - hated it - when back to Ritilan LA
3. Start of 5th Grade: Needed longer lasting - did Ritilan LA w/ a booster for a little while
4. Tried Daytrana patch - daughter hated it - too much hassle factor
5. Switch to Concerta
6. Added guanfacine to the concerta and have been with this combo for two years.
We've increased the concerta dosage a couple of times along the way. It's still seems to be a great combo for her.
My son started meds just shy of his 4th birthday. (He's very severe!)
1. Adderall-great for impulse/hyperactivity but bad rebound and aggravated his anxiety and sensory problems
2. Ritalin-MUCH better for the rebound and better for the other issues but not great
3. Added Tenex to help with the side effects of Ritalin. Helped with the anxiety and aggitation.
4. After about 1 yr the Tenex wasn't enough to counteract the Ritalin side effects any more so we added Strattera and it's been going GREAT for several months
Guess we might be the exception, not the rule, but we have tried only one med (focalin xr 10mg) and it seems to be the answer, at least for now. We started on Christmas day, just shy of our son's 6th birthday. Initially there were some side effects I was not thrilled about, but his school reports were so vastly improved that we decided to stick it out, and I am glad we did! The side effects such as lack of appetite, and a little "flatness" in his personality for a 1-2 hr. period each day have subsided greatly. We do give him a break from the long acting focalin on weekends, but sometimes give him a 5 mg. short acting pill if he has activites where he needs to focus. Overall, I can say he is a happy, well adjusted little boy now and we are so thankful that we decided to put him on medication because it has made a world of difference in his life and consequently, in ours!My dd started out with Adderall when she was around 6. She was on that for a while, with the dosage being bumped up occasionally, until about 3rd grade. Then we switched to Vyvanse. At the time it seemed to be the most wonderful drug of all. We bottomed out around 70mg. She became VERY nervous; her teachers were complaining she acted like a beat dog, and that she would "zone out" and then violently flinch when someone cam into her line of vision. At home, she would have almost panic atacks. We would go to a store, and she would fall on the floor saying she was hot and counldn't breathe. The dr finally decided that the dosage was too high for her, and we are now on 18 Concerta. So far this one seems to be THE ONE! Time will tell, as she is 11 and puberty is almost completely upon us!