9 year old having anger issues | ADHD Information
My son who has been diagnosed with ADHD and is on 50mg Vyvanse a day has suddenly started to become defiant and hostile when he is asked to do any work in class. He is an A/B student and usually does well but his meds take a while to kick in but when they do, he does fine. But lately he has developed a willful disobedience that is disrupting his class. It's not that he can't do the work or understand it - he chooses not to do it. He says it is too hard but when I work with him, he is able to do it but he is yelling NO!!! at his teacher. My son has a tender heart and is very sensitive and this is highly uncharacteristic of him. He's always done his work albeit with some resistance but it has escalated to a dangerous level. He has received his first detention and is defiant with his teacher. She is a wonderful lady who is very communicative with me and understands my son's challenges. She takes time in her evenings to update me on what is going on and I have access to her at any time but I feel bad that he is giving her so much trouble. I thought he may be bipolar but after reading up on the symptoms, it does not seem a fit. Anyone with any help would be greatly appreciated - thank you so much.
Could this be a side effect of the meds?
I've considered that but I'm no doctor - taking him in the morning
Hate to say it - could be the start of puberty. Definitely getting to the doctor
is the best first step.
Good luck!
I do understand. I have a four year old with ADHD and a 7 year old with ADHD, Asbergers, as well as other symptoms. My seven year old is on Vyvanse 50 mg and it's worked great for him. However, my four year old took Vyvanse and had a reaction of aggression. It didn't happen all at once, but I noticed that he was becoming very mean, hateful, and very, very defiant. He was defiant before, but it amplified the problem. We had better luck with Adderall. My four year old just struggles with anger issues. Although he Adderall helped a bit, it was no where close to the solution that we needed. I would ask him a question and get yelled at. If I asked him to do something that he didn't want to do, which was just about every time I asked him to do anything,,, I would be met with him breaking down, yelling, throwing things, calling me names, hitting, kicking, biting, going on a rampage destroying things. This could go on for thirty or forty-five minutes, without any interaction from anyone. (I would leave for my safety). This happened 10-15 times a day. Anyway, the psychiatrist put him on Resperidone to help with the anger, and I have to say that he has done a complete turn around. He is mostly compliant, loving, and sweet on it. I know it may not work for every child, but I do think there is hope. I think that it's great that you're getting him seen tomorrow. I hope they can help. It's really difficult to go through that, and it wore our family down. I'm right there with ya. Best wishes to you.
my 11 year old has started getting overly angry pretty quickly lately too, im unsure if it is the fact that he is pre adolecent or the meds. it is VERY frusterrating though! (((HUGS)))I read your post and had a different view. I think your son is telling the truth but he's not phrasing the problem correctly. The work is too hard for him for to do in the classroom- not too hard in general.
Perhaps the environment is what he is finding challenging. The teacher may run her classroom fantastically, but that doesn't mean that there aren't little irritants or distractions or worries that make it hard for him. When those little things go on day after day it gets discouraging, they start thinking they can't do it, and then they begin to dread having to try. And then they get angry because they have to do this every day- and sometimes it's easier to have the teacher mad at you than to do the work. And I don't know about your son, but mine (12, adhd) sure has a hard time communicating regarding any type of difficulty- as soon as he gets upset it's like all the words just jump out of his head.
If the teacher doesn't do it already, help her set up an incentive system like the marbles at the top of this page. If she already does, help her tweak it so that it's focused on this specific issue and he's receiving daily reinforcement. Many times the reward systems they use in elementary school are too generalized and the rewards are not frequent enough.
Another possibility to consider is that he needs his medication dosage raised. It's possible that growth and maturity necessitate a higher Vyvanse dose. Difficulty pushing yourself to do things you don't want to do sounds like ADHD behavior to me.my son started to act the same way when he was on vyvanse. any little noise or distraction would cause him to jump down someones throat. he had a very short temper and was getting angry all the time. this was not him at all. it was only an issue on vyvanse and since stopping it we havent had those problems. i think he was on 30mg. my son was 7 when he was on vyvanse so im not sure about the puberty playing a role with your son. at first he seemed to do good on it but after a few months the anger problems got worse and worse until we had to take him off.
Hi, Justin Coehen said Ïf you persist then ultimately you will prevail". I have
used the blowing of candles and balloons in front of a mirror (they just
seem not to be able to stay angry if they see themselves in the mirror) as an
immediate activity until they can just breathe evenly with my emotional 14yr
old ADD son. My son is 7 and is on Vyvanse (only a few weeks) ..he does have some sensory touch issues. When he is on this new medicine he is very happy and focused.. He does get very defensive and angry sometimes when asked do certain tasks that require attention..such as writing
He will sometimes refuse to do things ..like take his spelling pretest ..when asked why "he just didn't want to" The teacher has gotten good at explaining the importance of the task. She explains if he wants to move to the 2nd grade with his friends he needs to do his work. She also gives him daily morning and pm rewards
Sometimes letting him erase the board, move books, pass out something.
My son responds great to exercise...at his school they will come and take a child to the gym for a quick running around to get his body and brain ready to focus.
For my son its all in the wording ..if he thinks its his idea he'll do it or
his teacher and I have been giving choices if I want it done in ten minutes
I'll say "you can do it in 5 minutes or 10 min's you decide" (he falls for it every time at this age) Sorry I've rambled on ...I wish there was a magic Cure!!
Like LOVINGMAMAOF4, I too have been through this. My son went on Vyvanse the first of January. It was a miracle at first in school as he was now able to concentrate, complete his work and integrate better into the classroom. Then after about 6 weeks on the medication he developed an eye tick (there are other things going on in his life and most think the tick is from stress and anxiety) and then aggressive behavior as well. We has been off the med for nearly a month and the psychiatrist put him on Resperidone, but the tick is worse and while the aggressive outburts have lessened they still exist. Just want him to feel better and be happy. It is very emotionally difficult to see your child suffer this way and wish there was a quick fix, but there are no such quick fixes. Patience and Perserverence are the key. Psychiatrist has suggested Tenex now. Does anybody have any history with this one.Maybe it is to difficult for him, does he have an IEP.
My 9 year does very well on 30 milligrams of Vyvanse and has for two
years. A
med adjustment might be needed but maybe a decrease not an
increase.
Good luck!Codykins140616.3380555556