New here | ADHD Information
This is a Great site, My name is Susan and I have a 8 yr. old who has ADHD he is on Adderall 15 mgs. a day and we are still struggling at home with him he's doing great now at school but when he gets home in the afternoons he's a real handfull his doctor just upped his meds from 10 to 15mgs.four days ago so we are hoping this will help he looks like a zombie eyes are sunk in (dark circles) and he has lost 8 lbs. in alittle less then a month he doesn't sleep he usually falls asleep around midnight if not later then he gets up at 6am to get on the bus at 7am I've tried to get him to take a nap when he gets home but he can't fall asleep he's a very angry child since he's started the meds not like him at all and throws temper tantrums also.I am really looking forward to getting to know other parents that are struggling with this problem. I don't feel so alone reading these other post I never realized there were so many parents out there just like me. I just want my child back he's not himself anymore I know that he needs something to help him stay focussed in school and to help him learn but it doesn't seem fair that this has to happens to these children please respond tyOh! trust me i know what you mean. my son is 9 yrs old and we just found out he has adhd they put him on concerta 18 mg and is starting to show a very angry side to himself that i've never seen and was just upped to 36 mgs we start that tommorro .
Its very hard to keep up with these kids.lol but we do whatever we have to to make sure are kids are happy and get the schooling they need.
i myself have add and im not on any meds yet and like they say on t.v. i feel like someone is changing the channels in my mind.lol
i wish you the very best of luck If you ever just need a to talk pm me or email me anytime!
*-*Forgetful*-*38367.9327893518Susan..I am new to the site as well. My daughter also takes adderall 15 mg and also takes a 1/2 of a 5 mg in the afternoon so we are able to make it through the evening. Homework was tough (she is 5) so the doctor thought this would help. It seems to help, however school is a problem. Part of the issue is the teacher who has no idea how to handle a ADHD child so he just calls the counsler and they pull her out of class..not really my idea of handling the problem. We are working with the counsler now, but she doesnt seem much brighter then the teacher! She is extremely bright, but wont listen in class, tends to yell, have aggressive behavior and really wont work in a social circle. One on one she is great (she is an only child so I am sure that has something to do with it), but once a second child is introduced into the group, it is all over with.We started a behavior chart in class, but that doesnt seem to be working..she just doesnt care. My fear is that her esteem is so beat up she is to the point where she feels like she doesnt do anything right, so why try. It breaks my heart..she is only 5! Hello, i am in the same boat with my 8 yr old aswell. My son is on Ritilin but he goes to the doctor in a couple of weeks so i am going to talk to her about Strattera. My boy has a huge problem going to bed at night, he gets up there and trys to make every excuse in the book ex... my leg hurts, i don't feel good, my stomach hurts, when i know he did not say a word about any of these things downstairs 5 min ago. I got him out of us laying down with him 2 months ago, so the last thing i want to do is get back into that. Even though it is very hard sometimes it only takes one night and it turns into every night. I also have a 9 month old so it is impossible, i have so much to do when he goes to bed. My son has no appetite in the morning at all and very little during the day and he also lost alot of weight when he first started his meds. We now realize that he has a much better appetite in the evening so we allow him to eat big snacks and offer him things and he always eats lots. Since we have been doing this his weight has come up so much in the last year his Dr couldn't believe it, and it saves alot of arguing during the day. Ussally if he eats something at each meal we don"t make a huge deal about it cause we know he will fill up latter. Good Luck and i hope some of this is useful.We had many of the same problems until we switched to Strattera, then sleep returned to normal and so did the appetite.
Paul
What you need to understand is, is that not all medication are right for everyone. What I mean is If the med is right for my daughter it my not be right for your child. You have to try different meds to find out wht works. If your child is having horrible mood swings than get his meds changed. If your child is compaining that their stomache hurts when they take the med. Than make sure they are taking it with food, if the problem persists, or gets worse, than it may be time to change the med, and try something new. Trail and Error!
[QUOTE=kkrewtea]Does the doctor know about all these side effects? 8 lbs. in a month is alot! We had some rebound when my sons was on the 18 and 27 but when he was upped to 36 the outbursts stopped. However he eats and sleeps fine...[/QUOTE]
HI yes his doctor knows about the 8lbs we are working on getting the weight back on I was concerned that the same visit about the weight loss he upped his meds from 10 to 15 didn't make much sence to me! 
but I guess his doctor knows best.however by his next appointment if he hasn't started gaining then I'm going to sugest we try something else the past few days he's been sleeping fine but only because he is sick (bad cold) so we don't see much of a difference and he hasn't been eating so this is just what we need!!!
Thank for the replying
____________
Susan
I forgot to mention that my twins are on concerta...My 7 yr. old son Cree has ADHD I guess. Everytime we go to the doc.,it's something different. "Oh he's depressed,he's bi-polar, he's angry about something,&he's ADHD.)
He was on Strattera, but he started twitching & slept
ALL day. We tried Adderal, but he still had a lot of bad
days so now he is on 54mg. of Concertta. That seems to be helping, but now they said he might need a psyciatrist
so they put him on .05mg of Risperdal so he will sleep at
night.Nobody can really give me a correct problem for him. I'm just tired of all the drugs.Does doctor really know best?,or do they just want someone to experment on?L.A., I am glad you are taking him to a psychiatrist. I am confused as to why they are treating him like he is ADHD if they have also said he is bipolar. Bipolar is treated with mood stabilizers first. Once stable, then they start treating the other symptoms with other meds. Stimulants are horrible for bipolar. It usually aggravates the situation. Our 13 year old was dx'd as bipolar in October. She is taking Seraquel and Trileptal. It has made a HUGE difference in her. The best part is that she finally sleeps at night.atworkbutsleepi38368.5890393518
What about Clonidine at night to help him sleep? That might help or you might think about getting his meds switched to a non-stimulant like Strattera or Concerta. Someone here (Arcadia) said that it's a matter of trial and error with meds and it is. My daughter was not herself on Adderall and the mood swings were gut-wrenching to watch. She was so messed up, confused, sad and angry.
My daughters room is a floor above ours & she falls asleep much better in our room, so I too, let her sleep there. I'm glad to hear I'm not the only one with a 10 year old still sleeping in "Moms" bedroom! She doesn't need me there though, I think just being on the same floor as us comforts her. I move her to the sofa when I go to bed. Also, if shes having trouble getting to sleep, I let her read a book. Usually after a half hour of reading, shes ready to sleep.I think it fairly common for kids taking Adderall XR to have some "rebound" in the evenings after school. They are coming off the med which is what you want so they can more easily sleep. Unfortunately there is a time frame there where they may be irritable and short tempered. You may find that during the rest of the day they are perfectly fine.
My son, 10, takes 20 mg Adderall XR. During the day, at school, his temper is pretty normal. It is only that hour or two around supper time that we tiptoe lightly. I think his rebound is less noticeable now than when he first started his meds a couple of years ago but still shows its ugly head upon occasion. Also I think that either too much or too little medication can make for more rebound issues. Adderall is the only thing he has taken but we've changed the dosage level several times. And yes, sleep is sometimes a problem.
Things I try and do with varying effectiveness: 1) I try to keep evenings as stress free as possible and give him time to unwind. I try to make sure he has time during the evening to do things he enjoys - in his case X-box. I don't go ballistic over homework. I let him work on it for 20 or 30 minutes. If it's not finished in that length of time then he can finish it a school when he is not having "rebound". 2) For sleep: He likes back rubs and this helps him relax. Also he can listen to music while in bed and occasionally I'll let him watch TV while in bed in his room. The TV only plays VCR tapes and I make sure he is watching something he has watched a thousand times before. I'm not looking for something to hold his attention - just lull him to sleep.
It has gotten easier but I'll not lie and tell you the problem has gone away. Right now the good the medication does him during the day out weighs the problems he has for those couple of hours in the evenings. And, it has either gotten easier or we've become better at coping with it. Guess nothing is perfect.
Good luck!
PS I know opinions differ about this but we often will lie down with him in his bed until he has fallen asleep or allow him to fall asleep in our bed. Yes, often I too fall asleep and find in the morning that we didn't make it to our assigned beds. I quit worrying about all that a long time ago. I figured whatever works is good enough for me.
< =text/> LAHdedah38368.3110300926Hello all Its been along time just been busy we moved out of a apartment in town and now live in the country in a house with 3 acres Love it but my Son Joshua is still doing about the same we did switch him back to 10 mg instead of 15 (adderall xr) still is not sleeping at night most nights some nights he'll do good and fall asleep about 9:00 or 9:30 but most nights its between 12:00 and 1:00. I'm am having a very hard time dealing with the fact that my child now 9 has to take a med. everyday in order to function He is doing great in school but is always frustrated at home His doctor has us give him his meds just on week days when he has to go to school but on vacations and weekends he doesn't want us to give him meds and I don't think this is working. I am thinking in order to have this med work like its suppossed too it needs to be in his system at all times not just on the days he has school any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!! Joshua knows he has Adhd and sometimes plays on it. For example: If he does something wrong he'll say I can't help it I have ADHD!! But other times I feel so bad because he tries so hard to be "normal" and he fails He's very emotional sometimes just out of the blue he'll say "I feel weird" or "I don't feel right" I don't know if its the meds making him feel this way or if its just the ADHD I'm just not getting anywhere here does anyone have any suggestions on what to do next?His next appt. with his doc is May 8th and I hope he has another plan. Joshua is still not gaining weight back he is 9 years old and is still in a size 6/7 he's very small but, Doc says he's healthy I say he's not he does eat but like a bird on the days he's on meds. On the weekends and vacations he eats rather well but on the other hands he's very active so keeps the weight off sorry to run on and on but I'm so lost and can't seem to figure out what to do!!I think I would try a different med with all that weight loss. My son
was put on FocalinXR, so he would be hungry at breakfast and dinner. He
does pretty well at lunch. Talk to the doc. I don't think he'll leave
him on adderall with all that weight off.Best wishes!
Hi mom of adhd child, my son Jason is 9 years old and taking Adderall XR 20mg. When he started the meds, he lost weight, didn't fall asleep easily and had mood swings the moment we pulled out of the school parking lot. Our doctor said weight loss is normal at the beginning and should not be concerned. Always make sure you give him a fabulous breakfast before he takes his meds, don't worry about lunch and have a healthy dinner. Jason does not eat like he use to but he is eating alot more and his weight is fine. Maybe Joshua feels "weird" when he has no food in his system, try to get him to eat something, even a little bit of food is better than nothing. I give Jason his meds every day and even over the summer. It really helps him with everyday occurance and dealing with friends, following directions, etc. I'm curious, how is he not being normal? Adhd does not make a child not normal, it's like a wire disconnected in the brain and the meds help it connect. Maybe try giving him something to sleep with, have the lights off, tv off, give him a kiss and tuck him in. Jason goes to bed (he would be so upset if he knew I'm telling you) with 20 stuffed animals behind his pillow and pooh bear/big red dog by his side. Since he has been doing this - we have had no problems with going to be between 8-8:30pm. I really hope I helped you, email if you want. Good luck and don't worry!