6 year old new to meds- Help | ADHD Information

Hi Geemo, good to hear that your son has responded well with the treatments that he had.

As a mom, I am also worried my kid had to take medications of some medicines prescribed by doctors. Of course, we all know that (maybe) they have side effects but I think we can give it a try. After all, they are doctors and they should know the correct treatment for this disorder..

And for Miso1996, its normal to feel that way. We are moms and we always have that feeling of worrying too much than the usual for our kids.

We are starting my 6 year old daughter on Flocalin (?) today and I am very nervous.  Her Dr. said to start with 5 mg but I wanted to see if we can start less than that.  We are supposed to open the capsule and put the beads into applesauce.  Can we just put half of the beads in?  She is so emotional as it is and I worry this will make it worse.  She also has sensory processing disorder so not sure how the meds will affect that.  She also has low blood pressure and we had to have an EKG because she has a heart murmer.  All that was fine and she was cleared but I am still nervous.

Is 5 mg a low dose for a 6 year old?

Any ideas or comments would be great.

5mg is a very low dose. My ds was 5 when we started medication. Try not
to worry and just give what the doctor prescribed. It is probably short acting
I assume and will only last about 4 hours at most. Could some one post links to study's that suggest/prove a
6 year old can be properly diagnosed as ADHD. Dont take it
the wrong way.. but that just wrenches my gut.miso1996, as long as it is not extended release (Focalin XR), then you can do
as you describe. I wouldn't worry to much about the heart issue. I have a
child with a much worse heart issue that was cleared for Focalin. No
problems. 5 mg is low.

tornadobaby, Links cannot be posted on this site, but if you go to American
Medical Association board and google ADHD you will see that the criteria
apply specifically to children 6 and up.Thanks so much for the info. She is on the Focalin XR and we are giving her
the full dose (5mg). So far we notice no difference but she is much better at
home then school so we will see how tomorrow goes. We have had several
Doctors look at her because I had to be sure what was going on. She has
sensory processing disorder as well and I am still not sure how you can tell
what is the that and what is the ADHD but we are going to try the meds since
school is so hard right now.

Thanks for the comments.

You cannot divide the contents of an extended release capsule because there's so no way to tell the difference between the immediate release and delayed release medication.  Do not divide the Focalin XR contents! 

As others have said, 5 mg is a very low dose, and many 6 year olds take that amount.  Try not to worry.  Also, the stimulant might raise blood pressure, so taking it with low blood pressure might help in that regard.  For my child, it's made no difference in his blood pressure.

Many times sensory processing disorder and ADHD can look similar.  You might see the SPD symptoms disappear now that he's taking ADHD meds.  At least, that's what happened for my child.  I hope you also see positive changes!

 

My son was diagnosed with SPD at about 6 also..We have tried everything. Occupational therapy, cranial sacral therapy, different parenting, vitamins etc. When I finally let my head go to the "ADD" place, had him diagnosed and got the medicinal as well as psychological treatments, I saw huge benefits for him. the other things I thought I saw some imporvements, but this was drastic. 

I still go through times when I think "really? do I have to keep medicating?" but his life has changed.  He is flourishing (had huge trouble before with reading and writing) at school and isn't always getting in "trouble" because of his impulsiveness.

He used to say "I have a bad brain" and cry.  I have not heard that in a very long time.  His self-esteem has really come out from the basement. 

Give the meds a chance, my other son uses focalin and does great.

good luck:)