Concerta to Intuniv | ADHD Information

Hi there everyone!

I have a 9 year old daughter that has been on Concerta 54 mg since December 2009.  She has been doing amazingly well.  However, recently she has begun loosing a lot of weight (15 pounds since Dec), she just won't eat. I spoke with her psych doc today and he wants to try Intuniv. I have read a lot online and on this site and I am worried to change her. She has done so well and it took a long time for me to even take her in to be diagnosed. Any suggestions? The doctor is afraid any more weight loss will be very bad for her.


Can't you do both? My son cannot tolerate stims, but we are slowly upping his dose of tenex (gen. intuniv) and I'm hoping we can re-introduce stims later on. It is hard enough to get my son to eat anything, but his appetite on tenex has been fine. I'm not sure about switching all together, but a combo might do the trick.

I also was referred to Dr. Charles Parker's blog about Intuniv. It really helped me understand how it works (neurologically). If you are afraid to switch, maybe reading some of his info would be helpful in easing those fears. Giving meds to our kids is such a hard battle (mentally and emotionally), but being a part of this board has helped me to be a little bit more understanding and to be more accepting (of the diagnosis and of my son as an individual).

If my son were to lose 15lbs he would only weigh 25lbs. Not a good thing. I can understand how your doctor might want to stop the concerta, but you should ask about just adding the intuniv. I've found that the tenex alone doesn't help with my son's attention, just with his impulsive/reactive-ness.

If concerta works, just not with appetite, see if your doc would consider the combo. And WELCOME!