Looking: success story w/ long term meds | ADHD Information

I have been in and out of these boards for 3 1/2 years now. I adopted both my kids 4 years ago and both have ADHD. We fought giving medication with my son, 11, first and it ended in disaster with his rage, anger and odd behavior ostricising him from his peers and frankly it scared the heck out of me.

I took an alternative approach first with Omega 3's and Feingold diet but ultimately we gave him Concerta. I coudn't believe the turn around in him. Happier, more in control, less anger. I eventually took him off Tenex (which he was on when we got him) - just this last summer and his anger episodes are almost completely gone.

My daughter, 9, was diagnosised 2 years ago and we started meds right away. Again, she has blossomed. She still needs to work on some social skills which is partially due to the ADHD and the rough childhood she had before us.

Now my question: WHO OUT THERE HAS A SUCCESS STORY WHERE THEY KEPT THEIR CHILDREN MEDICATED WITHOUT TAKING MED BREAKS?

I keep reading people taking them off and their kids are happier, growing and gaining weight - yes, mine are thin and average height right now. Although I am told by their doctor and their therpist they eventually catch-up.

WELL, DO THEY? HONESTLY?? From what I see here - so many parents take their children off meds for weekends and summers that I am beginning to doubt it. BUT if there are parents out there that did not do med breaks and their grown children are fine - I WANT TO KNOW.

My main concern because my situation is different (adoption from foster care and the work we have to do to help them heal from their early childhood nightmare) IS BEING CONSISTENT. But the one thing that keeps me from not skipping a dose is CONSISTENCY - The dr. and therapist say children with ADHD learn from consistent behavior but if you take them off it isN'T consistent. confusing! i know!!

Anyone?? Is consistency better than med breaks? Do they really catch-up? Does their self esteem improve or worsen with med breaks?

Thanks

newmom40513.5733333333Consistency with meds for my son was the key to his personal success because his ADHD did not go away on weekends or summer breaks. Med breaks cause the child to go from feeling in total control of their choices and actions to feeling totally out of control. Its more important for children to be able to focus outside of school, especially in the summer when children are playing outside, in pools, the beach, at summer camp,etc. As teens its important that children have the ability to make a choice as they are bombarded with peer pressure. My child is now an adult and the choices I made for my son worked for me. Unfortunately many parents are led to believe that ADHD is a school problem or an academic problem. The problem is about the child being unable to focus and lack of impulse control and such deficits effect every area of life. Effective medication is given to the child not to change them. It is given to allow them to meet their full potential so in reality, taking the meds away is not giving them a break. Effective medication opens windows of opportunity but then the child must do the rest so when the child succeeds, they deserve the credit, not the medication. Stimulant medication flushes right out of the system when the meds wear off so because there is no build up of medication in the body, there is no need to give the body a break.

I am just sharing the benefit of my experience

My dd has been on meds for about 1 1/2 years and is also 9 years old. We also do not give her breaks because she is very hyper and impulsive and we could not leave the house without them. My dd likes the way she feels on the meds. She is happier and feels good about herself. It took some time with her being on medicine to become more confident but I would not to jeopardize this.

My 11 year old has been taking ADHD meds for half of his life now. He does not take any medication breaks. This is not only because of his being better off with his ADHD controlled on nonschool days. It's also because it takes him time to adjust to new medications. Whenever he's started a new stimulant, there's been an adjustment period where his appetite has been affected greatly. For this reason, the doctor doesn't want him ever doing "med breaks." Even if he didn't have this adjustment issue, we wouldn't do med breaks, anyway. His impulsivity and hyperactivity need to be controlled 7 days a week. It's in his best interest, along with the best interests of everyone around him.

THANK YOU!!!

I do not want to give them med breaks for the same reasons you quoted. Their self-esteem is too important to play with especially at this age and the recovery they need from their past.

Hoping for some more success stories...

Honestly, our DS8 started meds almost 3 yrs ago & not one day has gone by that he hasn't had them. We do not take weekend breaks or summer breaks, we would go crazy if we did!! It is routine for him & he doesn't even question it, its just something he does. He lost about 10 lbs the first few months of being on meds but still wasn't considered scrawny (he was a little chunky before meds & it literally just evened him out height/weight). He is literally growing like a weed, I can't keep him in pants that are long enough! He is right on track for his height & weight for his age, there is no way that meds have slowed his growth! We are not concerned a bit in that area. I do often wonder about his body organs & how it's affecting them long term but there just isn't enough research out there to give us those definate answers. We've had him see a heart specialist to make sure his heart is healthy and to get some reassurance.

Luvmykids02 I have a question for you. You said that your son is now an adult and that he grew up with meds, does he still take meds as an adult? That is a question that I'm asked often & often wonder myself, will he "outgrow" ADHD or develop the skills well enough to stop taking meds as an adult? I realize everyone is different but I'm curious to hear from someone who grew up w/meds & is now an adult & how it is for them now.

My son is 12 (who is also adopted) and started meds just before he turned 8. We have missed exactly one day that entire time. That day my mother had brain surgery and I was a mess. I thought my husband had given it, he thought I did --
we have since developed a system so that we do not miss a day.

My son has ADHD 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. He KNOWS that he is more successful on medicine. He can implement the things learned in social skills class, sit still and concentrate on a test, behave appropriately most of the time. He gets
nervous going to events in the evening because he knows his meds are wearing off and controlling himself will be difficult.

We had issues with weight in the beginning, but no issues now. He is growing normally and of normal weight. I know that if we took a break, it would be terribly difficult for him and for our family. Waiting for the medicine to kick in each
morning can be difficult so I can only imagine how out of control he would feel if we allowed entire days to go unmedicated.

The consistency of giving the medicine helps him be successful.Its difficult to find long term success stories because most that come here are in crisis. Those doing well dont have a need to join a support board to seek out support and information so I dont want you to get discouraged if you dont see many posts with this topic.

Thanks to all that do share though

Hi newmom,

I haven't been on here in while but, like you, I've been here off an on for years. My son is 12.5 years old and he's been taking meds since age 8. We most definitely do not take breaks. Meds breaks are a disaster. We tried once- it lasted one day.

What it comes down to is what everyone else has said- they need to be successful in all parts of their lives, not just school. For a child who is only inattentive maybe it doesn't make as much difference, but for the impulsive/hyper ones the meds make the difference between being in trouble all weekend or having fun.

It also makes a difference on the stress level of the parents. I've noticed a vicious little cycle where I'll be stressed (for whatever reason), my son picks up on it, his behavior gets worse, which in turn increases my stress level. . . and round and round we go.

Sorry I' must getting back to you sooner epokey. My son does in fact take meds as an adult. No one outgrows ADHD but some of the symptoms change or tone down over time and they aslo learn how to compensate for their short comings when they are getting effective treatment. My son was on meds from 7 to 16 and then off meds from 17 to 19 for other reasons and life was so much of a struggle that his self esteem got bashed into the ground once again and he also resumed his impulsive behavior which was pretty dangerous during the late teen years. Life for him and the family became a living hell again. He resumed taking medication at age 19 which led him to make choices again in terms of social behavior and educational decisions. He has his ups and downs but he now lives a normal life again. Its a quality of life issue and whawe want more than anything for our children is to see them grow into adulthood and flourish socially and emotionally. When we remove the most effective treatment for ADHD, odds of failure are high and while some do compensate for their limitations, struggling through life on a daily basis as an adult normally doesnt produce positive results.

Thank you for getting back to me on that point, it's interesting to hear a story form childhood to adulthood. I am hopeful that he will gain enough skills to eventually stop taking meds but if they are what make his successful in all aspects of life, then I hope when he is an adult he will continue to realize how helpful they can be. Hubby is ADD and doesn't take meds and it can be a strain on our marriage, I've always wondered how things would be different if he had taken meds or grown up with better tools. I hope we are providing those tools for our son. Thanks for sharing your story.

My soon to be 10 year old son has been taking Adderall XR since he was 6. We took the first summer off-no problem. After the 2nd summer off, it took longer to reregulate the meds than he was off of them! He lost the entire first semester of 3rd grade. It was a nightmare. That was the only time that he had a problem with having ADHD. Other than that, he just accepts it as part of who he is. Last summer he was upset that I wouldn't let him take off, so we compromised and he took Sundays off. That allowed him to feel a bit more in control. He had a fantastic summer, went to drama and circus camp, performed and made lots of friends. Right now he takes his meds 7 days a week. No more med breaks for us. Not only that, but he now realizes how much he needs the meds. He asked me if he would always take the meds. I told him that as an adult, he would decide whether the meds were helpful to him and whether to continue to take them. Right now, I am the adult and I think that they help him. He told me that he thinks that they help too, and he thinks that he will continue to take them, even as an adult. As for growth, my son is average height, slightly below average weight. However, except for lunch he eats fine. He is growing like a weed. At the moment, his waist and feet are bigger than his brother's (who is 18 months older). All signs are that my younger (ADHD) son will be the larger child of the 2. They are also on track to hit puberty at the same time.

I hope that this helps. Personally, I find that as long as the meds are steady, he eats and grows (sometimes he skips lunch). When he has a day or 2 off, he does not eat for a couple of days. Consistency seems to be the key.

We routinely skip one day on the weekend, have for years. My son has been at his same dosage for years. While discussing skipping days here and there with our psych, she told us that research suggests that doing just that prolongs the efficacy of a dosage and postpones the need to increase the dose as much as you would normally have to do. Our family likes to go out to eat on weekends, and my son feels frustrated that his med curbs his appetite at lunch. He's reached that adolescent age where he is gaining more control of his impulsiveness, so skipping a day and going out isn't an isn't an issue.

Just like the symptoms of adhd and how they manifest themselves, adhd meds can be very subjective things. One person reacts to them and their use in a completely different way than the next person. I think most meds are like that. I take thyroids hormones due to cancer, for example. I have a friend who also had thyroid cancer. We are the same age and essentially the same size. We have very different dosages, though, and even different schedules. I think it's the same with adhd meds. You just have to find what works for your family and child and continue to tweak that as things change.