Rebound | ADHD Information

I'll say ditto to the above two posts.  I was going to say the same thing.

I also recommend Tenex/Intuniv along with the Focalin.  For a lot of kids it helps "smooth" things out overall and helps with the transition from meds to no meds.

It it possible to give him a booster of a short-acting dose in the afternoon to get you through to bedtime? If he hasn't had serious sleep issues then taking an afternoon dose shouldn't be a problem.

HI there my DD who is 7 1/2 and has ADD has been on Focalin xr 5 mg for almost 6 weeks she is doing AWESOME IN school now and they are really seeing a difference in her focus issues, so this is good. We too are having the rebound effect about 4 ish or at 5 pm, She can get mad and growl or get really upset and cry, just all depends, and when her sis and her fight OMGOSH watch out. She is emotional also, ALTHOUGH she has been doing a bit of this ever since she turned 7. We too are experiencing sleep issues, she has trouble falling asleep at night, sometimes 1 hr to 1 1/2 hrs before she gets there. ALTHOUGH once she is there she sleeps great! We have only tried this and I really like what it is doing in school so when we go back to the dr I may as about what the other's have said. I really fear trying something else and dealing with those side effects. Hang in there  The rebound on Focalin sucks.  Having talked to a lot of parents with ADHD kids, I've figured out that Focalin rebound might be the worst of all the stimulants.

Our nights were awful, and our mornings were downright painful, for several years.  But we couldn't use another stim because Focalin was the only one he could tolerate for some weird reason.

Anyway, Tenex and it's long-lasting form Intuniv were the only way we were able to finally conquer the rebound issue.  Mornings have been a dream for the past year now.  They also helped with sleep, which he used to take Melatonin regularly for (and still does sometimes every now and then).

Audrey

My son just switched from Straterra to Focalin XR. The Focalin works beautifully. He is doing really well in school and everyone comments on how focused he seems and how much btter he is doing. However, he gets terrible rebound at night. Around 5:30-6:00 when the meds wear off, he is off the wall hyperactive, runnung around, jumping, dancing, singing... he seems completely out of control. Absolutely nothing calms him down. He has trouble falling asleep at night too. However, while the meds are working, they are really working. Anyone have any advice or experience to share? I notice that while my son is able to fall asleep now using Clonodine, he still has terrible rebound. Around 7:00 he goes haywire, bouncing off hte wall, singing, and generally being wild. He falls asleep usually by 9:00, but we still have awful rebound issues. Is there another drug which doesn't have such awful rebound?

My son and hubby are on focalin and had no rebound.  the are just the inattentive type ADHD.  My other son is ADHHHHHD iwth /ODD.  We first tried vyvanse with very bad rebound and then 10 mg of the Daytrana patch.  We were getting rebound on that too.  Our Dr. (pediatrician - have since started to go to a Pyschiatrist for meds)  prescribed 15 mgs. I thought it odd and tried it, still with rebound.  i thne cut the 15 's in half and gave him 7.5 mgs.  NO rebound! Of course after about 1-2 months it wasn't enought, so we went to 10 then 15 mgs - where we have been for quite a while. 

My thinking is that with my son, the rebound side effects just took a while to wear off.  It helped going low dose at first, then gradually work up to needed amount.  No rebound now, but still the occaisional sleep issue which we use melatonin for.

good luck!

you should read my new post under parents with children with adhd.... title is new idea - alternate the meds..

 

 

 

 

My daughter just started taking Focalin 5mg for 1 week and uped it to 10 mg, now for a little over a week and she is doing wonderful except when she comes off of it at about 4.  I will have to agree with the few post above, she is wild when she comes off, even angry sometimes. I am also to scared to try anything new because the side effects!Went back to DR who prescrobed Clonodine to help with rebound and sleep. It seems to be working. My son can actually fall asleep at a reasonable hour and is better in the mornings. But, he is only 5 and is now on a pill in the morning to get him to focus, then pills at night... I know he needs it and it makes a big difference, but it is so hard to be drugging him like this.