Intuniv Question | ADHD Information

I just added 1 mg Intuniv to my son's 18mg Concerta. The
first day was a dream. The second day I noticed he was a
little more short-tempered than normal...he literally
went and hid in a box. Thankfully, I kept my cool and
humored him...took the time to sit and be the
understanding mom I wish I could be everyday .
He's not a big crier, but he broke down in tears twice
all because I told him it was time to end his computer
game (that he had been on for an hour!) to come set the
table for dinner (a chore he does consistently with
relatively no problem at all). Just wondering if any of
you exprienced this side effect of the Intuniv and how
long it took to wear off if at all. I also have a scrip
for guanfacine and would it be better to do that at
different times of the day as opposed to the long-acting
intuniv? Thanks for any info.We tried Intuniv with my daughter, but it just made her very sleep and lethargic during the day, which is VERY UNUSUAL for her.   The doctor told me this may wear off and to stick with it for about a week.  It did not wear off, so we stopped.  Maybe you will have better luck.  I hope so.The grumpy and sleepy part of Intuniv wore off in a few days for our son.  It happened every time we increased his dose, but again just for a few days. 

The guafancine caused too many problems for as, as every time it wore off, his mood would swing. 

The Intuniv has been a blessing for us... works perfectly.... the only problem is after nearly a year on it, he metabolizes it so fast we are well beyond the recommended dose.

Audrey

Hi luvmykid,
My DS is on Concerta and guanfacine (Tenex).  Intuniv is just the XR of Tenex (they reformulated recently).  Every kid is different, but we've found the guanfacine works well without going to the XR.  That said, it may take a couple days to adjust to the new med, but if you're still concerned after a couple days, I say try the reg guanfacine and see if a shorter acting dose works better.
I know that when my sons concerta was not working we up the mg and then the teachers said he was great but about 4 months later he started acting out again so we up the mg to 72 and it has worked wonders.  He is now in the 5th grade and still struggles quite a bit as he is a slow learner, but he brought home a report card with B's on it for the first time since he started school and I felt like crying.  One thing about Concerta though when it wears off at night all I can say is protect thy ears and soul because you need it.  He is like a cat 5 hurricane mocing thur this house...ughhhh

My boy (8) just started on Intuniv. From everything I had read about sleepiness I gave it to him 6pm the night before. Poor kid has been a zombie from 15min after taking the meds to just about 10min ago having the school nurse call me telling me he came to her feeling really sleepy and slept in her office for 2 hours.

Is this normal? Has anyone had the same result? The dam pediatricians office 'out to lunch' so I cant talk to anyone there yet.

My gut reaction is to stop the medicine but others tell me we need to give it a chance. So what do I do with him missing the lessons at school?

Dr also says he would need to be on this med for the rest of his life. What does that do to the ability of the child to have a normal childhood. Am I not supposed to let him do anything too strenuous? Is he not allowed to go on fast rides at the amusement parks? Is he going to have trouble later on when he needs to learn to drive?

I am very freaked out about this. My son was diagnosed with ADHD/Impulsivity when he was 5 years old and I have tried every other non-medical way to help him. But now that school work is harder and there is more concentration on independent work he is missing stuff and getting some bad grades. He has an extremely high IQ and the potential is there but he cant harness it. I am so scared.

Has anyone started off this way? Does it get better?

 

hi luvmykid...sorry you're having a hard time.  It was very difficult for my husband & I to start down the path of medicines for our son's ADHD.  

We decided to stop the intuniv because we didn't see a huge benefit and it was really affecting his mood.  I have heard that the dwosiness effect does eventually wear off, but we didn't have much luck with that.  We are switching from concerta to focalin this week to try.  Concerta works fine for my son's hyperactivity but not as well for the attention/following directions which is why we decided to give Focalin a try. 

Every kid is different and they all metabolize meds differently.  Although it's not perfect, Concerta has been really good for my son.  I'm hoping the Focalin works even better. 

Trust your own instincts...you know your son best.