Young Children and Meds | ADHD Information

Frazzledmom, I TOTALLY relate to your story, and I'll tell you something.  My son had that same reaction once after a two week break from Adderall for winter break at school.  I had taken him off for the holidays because he had lost SO MUCH weight it was crazy.  I started him back up the day before school started back, and he was crying all night long because he couldn't sleep.  He stayed wide awake the entire night (minus about 30 minutes, maybe).  He didn't go back to sleep until the following night.  I felt like I was watching my child have a street drug reaction to Adderall.  We tried every other medicine available after that (aside from two others he had problems with before Adderall).  Nothing worked.  Reluctantly, we went back to Adderall VERY slowly the next school year.  I was terrified to do this.  When we did, he lost nearly ten pounds within 10 weeks, and by the time winter break finished, the dose no longer was effective.  The doctor refused to increase the dose, though, because his weight had gotten so low.  I was fine with that decision.  As a result of non-stop problems with stimulants (9 medicines/13 med changes in all in four years), we have gone alternative with vitamins/minerals/Omega3 (DHA), etc.  I have seen a difference, but school will be the true test of this when it starts back up on August 10th.  The only thing I can suggest right now is IF you want to keep your child on Adderall, the dose may be too high.  There are other stimulants.  They can all have side effects, though.  The plus side is that it doesn't take too long to see which one helps and which one doesn't.  Good luck.  :o)Thanks Leigh for you input, I know I am not the lone ranger out here and it is such a relief to hear another parents experiance. My son asked me if he could try the Adderall this morning, he said he was tired of not being able to thing right. Reluctanly I gave him the 20mg of Adderall and now he is having a very different experiance. He still has dry mouth, but he isn't talking all the time or wringing his hands like someone who is high on meth. He even ate dinner and breakfast today! He has been very busy today putting together some old bikes and making them rideable. He wants to donate them to kids who don't have bikes. (He is very good hearted!) Maybe this will work out afterall!  The Dr. has my son on Omega 3, and a multiple vitamin called Brainiacs for kids. Someone just told me about a place called the Drake Institute, so I think I will go to the web site and check it out. Thanks again!So glad to hear he's having a better time with it now.  :o)

Hello frazzledmom,

I'm on Adderall XR 40 mg a day. I see a different in my self all ready. I use to take Concerta in the morning 56 mg and in the afternoon 36 mg. Concerta wasn't working for me at all. I have tryed Strattera but it didn't work for me. The Strattera takes about 3 month to start kicking in.

IM me at HyperPrincess507

Hello All,

I am new to this message board, and have been looking for a place like this for a while. Thank god I 've found it! My eight year old son was diagnosed with ADHD a little over a year ago, and for a year he took Strattera with little to no side effects. He started on 25 mgs. a day and it worked beautifully. With six months he was upped to 40mgs. a day, and then six months later up to 65mgs. Two weeks after taking the 65mgs. it was if he wasn't taking anything at all. His doc says sometimes this happens, a drug stops working. Now his doc has prescribed Adderall XR. I gave him his first dose on Thursday, right away he calmed down and when I asked him to complete a task he was right on it, he became a whole different child. Later that night he was talking non-stop and wringing his hands, his little mouth was so dry. At 4am he was begging me to give him something to stop his brain and put him to sleep. It was awful. The next day I tried to get in touch with his doc to no avail. I didn't give him the meds on Friday, he was still wound up from Thursday. (He slept for about an hour on Friday morning) Last night he finally crashed at about 8pm and slept for a totall of 12 hours. Has anyone else had an experiance like this with an ADHD child? Will my sons system adjust to the meds after usage? I am so in the dark with this, I hope someone can give me some advice or relate a simular experiance and let me know what the outcome was. Thank you everyone for putting up with me on my first time here!

Just a Newbie!

 

It sounds perhaps he was overmedicated. First of all, why was his Strattera upped every few month? Did he really need that? If I were you I would see a different Doctor for another opinion. Something doesn't sound right.

His Strattera was upped about every 6 months because he grew, gained weight and the lower doses were no longer effective, finally he was symtomatic even on 65 milligrams. The doctor could not given him more than that or it would have been a toxic dose. I do think the Adderall (20mgs) was too much, however, this is our first go around with a stimulant drug, so I am not sure what to expect.