Focalin XR | ADHD Information
MY SON IS 5 AND HAS BEEN TAKING FOCALIN XR 5MG FOR ABOUT 2 WEEKS NOW AND I LIKE THE RESULTS BUT IT DOESN'T SEEM TO LAST AS LONG AS I WOULD LIKE FOR IT TO SEEMS TO RUN OUT ABOUT 2:30 SO THE EVENINGS ARE RIGHT BACK TO WHERE WE STARTED BEFORE THE MEDS. ANY SUGGESTIONSHi MRoss
My son also takes 5 mg of Focalin XR once a day - in the mornings before he gets on the school bus. He is 9 years old and in 4th grade. His dose is gone by the time he gets home - around 3:15 or so. We asked our doctor to prescribe the 2.5 Focalin for after school - this dose usually lasts for about 3 - 4 hours and gets us through homework and dinner.
I did ask the doctor about changing his dose at our last visit. If my son has not taken the 2.5 dose - which he doesn't every night - then his hyperactivity is really bad. The doctor suggested giving him two 5 mg of the Focalin XR. So we tried it - on a Saturday - and it was like I had a little zombie in the house! He didn't like the way it made him feel either. So I think the smaller, shorter acting dose will work for us for now. I'm just hoping and praying as he gets older the hyperactivity will calm down.
This was the first (and only) medicine we tried. Our son was 4 1/2 years old and it made him cry all the time. We stopped after two weeks. His doctor told us to wait until he turned 5 and then we would try a different medication. Unfortunately at the next appointment he was having an allergic reaction to an antibiotic so we couldn't try a new med. She told us to come back in another 6 months, I wanted to cry. So now he's still unmedicated and I won't get to try anything until June.....maybe.My son is 13 now. He's been on Focalin XR for nearly 4 of those years 13 years. He started on Adderall, did a trial of Strattera, then Adderall until the Focalin. It's been great for him. Now that he's 106 punds, we're probably going to increase his dose from 15mg to 20 or so. He takes 2.5 mg short acting for homework, but we may make that a 5mg XR. Still not sure. His pediatrician wants to try Vyvanse. What has anyone heard about that?
Janice
Hey guys,I'm Patrick, I am 20 years old and I have had ADD (not ADHD) for as long as I can remember. I've been on Adderall for about 12 years now (yes, I was prescribed it literally the month it was released) and have experienced nearly every side effect and benefit associated with the medication. I started with the Adderall IR (Instant Release) and after some emotional problems caused by it in 8th grade I switched to Adderall XR.
I am still on the XR 30 but have been seeking out an alternative for the past 5-6 years. Thus far I have tried Strattera, Provigil, Ritalin and lots of caffeine. The Strattera did little more then work as a sleep aid for me and in hindsight worked surprisingly well as one. I took the drug for about 2 months (hence why I failed 1st period math for a semester, ha) and in the end saw no positive results besides improvement of the normal bags beneath my eyes. I later tried Provigil for 3 days and received 3 days of 8 hour headaches because of it. Not the smartest of ideas but I was hopeful (and self medicated) because of positive results in a friend of mine who also had ADD. I tried Ritalin for a month or so some years back and am told that their was no decernable difference. It was to long ago for me to recall with any clarity.
Adderall is the only thing that has ever really worked for me. That said, it's been taxing to say the least. While taking Adderall XR I have experienced insomnia, mood swings, loss of appetite, weight loss and shaking commonly. Less common side effects I have experienced include severe depression, facial tics, nausea, euphoria, and something called a tachycardic episode.
Adderall works extremely well when used properly and prescribed properly. Taking the lowest possible dose is something I strongly recommend because anymore then what is needed causes a euphoric high and then depression while the medication is wearing off. If taken as early as possible it seems to wear off enough to let the person taking it to sleep normally, especially with a bit of exercise. I warn against energy drinks while on Adderall as it is an amphetamine and can cause cardiac problems if coupled with another stimulant. Lastly, Do Not Be Fooled, Adderall can be addictive and is quite commonly abused. Just be careful.
I was wondering if anyone out there is around my own age and has tried an alternative for Adderall that has worked for them. I am going to try Focalin in the next week but am willing to try something else.
My 6 year old son was on this drug for a month with horrible side effects. Extremely unstable and whiny. Basically he was just totally unreasonable to deal with. Ritalin LA works better for my son without the side effects. I'm nodding in agreement to alot of the same things both of you have mentioned. My son has a hard time making friends his age. Which seems to have gotten worse since starting middle school. He seems to play well w/younger kids but can converse better w/adults. We finally came to the realization that team sports don't work well for him. However, he does well in TKD and swimming. Focusing now on year round swimming for him. My younger is on the extreme end; makes friends everywhere, plays different sports and loves to try new things. I've been trying to help the older w/ expanding social circles. He is on Focalin XR 10 mg which seems to be working for him. He has been on it for about 2 weeks. It's hard to determine if some of the issues we are concerned with are ADHD or hormones. What a roller coaster!
Diane, He's in scouts and band. He is in public school and seems to some how pass each year! He mostly just seems to want to stay at home on the computer! He claims to enjoy both of these activities but I think he would be just as happy in front of the computer by himself! My husband and I have to force him into the back yard and turn off the computer and video games! He sees the counsler tomorrow and we will see what she says!
It seems that they love to do things that allow them to be by themselves. Mine would stay all day playing video games but we curb the amount of time between both boys. Especially during school year, we go to only weekend on video games. It just gets way too intense for him. He has a problem with impulsiveness which we are working on. Scrappermnr, We saw the counsler today and she says she thinks he has Asperger's. I have heard of this, but I have not really read alot on it. Today, I read on it and I think my kid has this also. What amazes me is that no one has ever brought this up before. You may want to read on this also. She is going to start counseling him on some of these social lags he has. We'll see what happens. This whole thing is always an adventure. God give me strength! dianar, don't try to figure out a teen. It's probably the teen talking, not the meds. Just keep an eye on him. Does he see a therapist? It may help with the anxiety. This age kids get more worried about "fitting in" and it's all about being like everyone else. Hormones wreak havoc! I have found they really impact how meds work. My daughter is turning 14 this month and it seems to better this year than last, I think her hormones are stabilizing somewhat and not quite so all over the place. BELIEVE me we still have days that I am not evn sure she took her meds, but overall it seems better than last year.I son has been on the Focalin XR for awhile now and it seems to be the only thing that keeps him sane. We have been dealing with his ADHD since he was five. His kindergarden teacher reported that he was hyper and aggresive. He was hitting teachers in school and even a pregnant teacher! We tried everything know! From Wellbutrin, Paxil, Ritalin, Adderall, Concerta, Provigil and a few more that I can't think of at this time. The Adderall, Ritalin and Concerta all made him more hyper and aggresive! Go figure? So they thought he was depressed and put him on Paxil and Wellbutrin. The Wellbutrin helped somewhat, but not enough. Go only knows what all these meds do to a kid! I was the kind of parent who believed that a good spanking and punishment was only these kids needed! Until God blessed me with one of them! Boy was I wrong! He is 13 now and on Focalin XR 15mg in the AM. The doctor says I can give him an extra one when he goes to Boy Scouts in the evening to help him focus. It is like night and day. When he misses a dose or forgets to take it, I know it right away. I know that sounds terrible but my son can't talk straight or focus on anything without it! I know the doctors want you to take a med break during the summer but my family life is horrible if he does not take it. We have had to up the dosage this past year due to his growth and development. The only thing that I have noticed lately is some aggression at times. He is easily upset when it comes to other kids talking about him. He always feels that they are talking about him and has started to try to blame all his behaviors on the ADHD. Is that the ADHD or the teenager talking? Not sure yet! I am watching the aggression though! Has anyone known any teenagers to try suicide with the Focalin? I know they stress this with all stimulents but is one stimulent more prone than others? I do worry about this know that he is a teenager! What other side effects have you seen with other parents out there with teenagers?
Hello. I'm new here. I'm glad I found a place to share information with other parents.
My niece is 5 years old and was on Aderrall. It made her very aggressive. She was aggressive before starting it, but adding the medication made it worse.
Then we tried Ritalin. It had no effect on her hyperactivity.
Now, she is on Focalin XR 10 mg. It has only been 2 days, but I noticed that she zones out a little at first. It's nice and quiet during this time. But then she starts to get very stubborn and rude. She cries easily, too.
She's always had night terrors and day terrors. She is scared of her own shadow. I hope this medication doesn't make it worse!
Does anyone else give their child melatonin in the evening to help their child sleep? If I didn't, she'd be awake 24 hours a day!
auntie-mom: I'm 18, on Focalin XR for 3 1/2 years. I take melatonin or valerian supplement to get myself to sleep. Sleeplessness is very common with XR, and using some sleep aids is perfectly reasonable.As for the emotional/psychological side effects, they're pretty common too, especially during the rebound period. She may adjust to the rebound period, or, like myself, she may need to (eventually) look into using small Focalin doses to buffer her drop-off period, and lessen her reactions.
If you have any other questions, I'll glady answer whatever ones I can. :)
mY 6 year old just started Focalin XR 5mg on Saturday. He was just recently diagnosed and this is his first med. Saturday he behaved very well in the morning, but then he got moody around lunchtime and had some tantrums in the afternoon. We think he chewed some of the medicine that morning so would that have affected the time release function?
Sunday he did not chew it, but we noticed virtually no change in his behavior. It was like he did not even take anything. In fact, if anything, he was worse than usual.
Today, day 3, was a school day and from what I can tell he did very well and is still doing well right now at almost 4:30. He took it at 7am. Got no bad reports from school and he has been very good since we got home. He had a 8-page homework assignment (to be completed over several days)and I asked him to work on one page of it today. Well he just sat right down and did the whole darn thing!
So we had mixed results one day, no results one day and today looks really good. How long do people usually try one med or dosage before deciding if it's a good fit?
I've always used the two week rule, unless there were significant side effects Diane V39601.6758333333I am glad i found thsi focalin chat.My 11 year old daughter started on concerta 36 mg but was chewing them..so you can imagine how wired she was.She also had weird tics..clearing the throat and sniffling and some wierd head movement.The energizer bunny had nothing on her! She cannot swallow pills..It has always been an issue..wont even take liquid antibiotics...The focalin XR was great because we can put it on applesause and we have no issues.She is on 10 mg a day..Has been for about 2 months.Everything seemed perfect..I homeschool and she was doing perfect..was able to listen to get through her work sheets and then was happy to play , do arts and crafts, swim ,bike whatever the rest of the day. She was easy to get along with and pretty compliant. She also has had no side effects. Has actually gone from being extremely thin to a great weight. Is sleeping like a baby and actually is now the last one up in the morning. In the last 2 weeks though somethings changed...She is really restless , agitated, tired, and BORED...Which if i have to hear one more time will make me scream..She is still compliant and her ODD is still in check...So the doc says to me we can do 1 of two things.Up her morning dose to 15 mg or keep the 10 in the morn and then do a short acting at lunch time. She said we should try both and see which works best. I am curious for those of you like Frank who is actually taking it or others whose kids had the same things happened what worked better for you, upping the morning dose or adding an afternoon dose. Thanks alot!
Oh she also takes 15 mg of lexapro at night for anxiety and depression
emirateswife39602.7212384259I would try upping the dose first. Mostly becae I hate having to rely on an afternoon pill (becasue I tend to forget to give it to her! ). We've done both though and at the time each option worked.Hello all! My son has been on Focalin XR 20mg in the morning and Focalin 5mg in the afternoon ever since the beginning of the school year. He initially began at 5 mg in May 2007 and eventually kept rising until we and his teacher noticed his hyperactivity and concentration to be more "normal." We've been through everything from him "flipping out" when the meds wore off and acting more hyperactive than normal. The Focalin is working great for him at school but we have been noticing some odd behavior now for the past 2 months or so. First, let me say he is 7 1/2 years old. This is the first time after a year of at-home therapy and behavioral programs that he was ever put on meds (May 2007). He also has Oppositional Defiant Disorder which does not help the situation, and the reason we sought therapy for him. Now, Jose (my son) never had a problem with insects. All of a sudden he developed a fear and it got so extreme he would begin to itch at the sight of a carpet beetle or a bee and run away, hiding under his sheets. He cries and becomes so paranoid he feels bugs crawling all over him. He flattens out his hair with his hands and peers around the room on a daily basis looking for insects. He even sees bugs when there are none at times. He will be behind his brother or myself and will not be alone on the first floor when he gets like this. It has gotten out of hand. We even noticed him shrugging his shoulders and moving his head and eyes from side to side for no reason. He began making "farting" noises with his mouth over and over again on a daily basis and swears it is someone coming into the house making the noises. He doesn't seem to realize he is doing them. We took him off of meds for a weekend and he actually killed a bug. The noises continued but was far less. The shoulder shrugging stopped. We brought this to the attention of his Psychiatrist and for now he will continue to be on meds since school ends in 2 weeks, until the bottle runs out. He will be off the meds for a month so we can see if any of these effects stop or continues. I don't know how I am going to get through the month but the Psychiatrist told us that once the meds are completely out of his system, we will see a difference. Then we can determine if these actions are due to Focalin. I will keep you guys posted, if you are interested. Wish me luck and please give me any advice as to how to handle him during the med-free month, since even after school when it wears off, I feel as if I am going crazy!!! Thanks for listening.
To Emirateswife: I am not a pro but I think you should try maybe 2.5mg in the afternoon since the morning dose is working for now. If this doesn't work, maybe try either raising the dose in the morning or afternoon, depending on when you see she needs more help.
the bug fear is increased anxiety and the noises and odd movements are tics. I pretty much guarantee once you stop the meds they will go away. Although I am obviously not a doctor, We've seen both side effects. You can try a different med, you may not see thsoe effects. For my daughter focalin was one of the worst for those side effects, although it was regular release not the XR. [QUOTE=Diane V]the bug fear is increased anxiety and the noises and odd movements are tics. I pretty much guarantee once you stop the meds they will go away. Although I am obviously not a doctor, We've seen both side effects. You can try a different med, you may not see thsoe effects. For my daughter focalin was one of the worst for those side effects, although it was regular release not the XR.[/QUOTE]
Thanks for the info. I will be sure to keep a close eye on him when the meds run out. I am just so worried since I don't know what other medication he can try that won't make him more aggressive as well. I am just so wary since I don't want to fix one problem and add another. I've heard good things about Concerta and Adderall but I did hear the Adderall aggravates the aggression. Boy...what do I do???
Mari39605.344537037Strattera does not increase anxiety. It is non stimulant and not successful for everyone, but work well for others.
My son is about to be 9. He has been an "experimental" program for ADHD where they are testing the combination of guanfacine and Focalin XR. For the first 4 weeks he was just on the guanfacine. Mostly it made him tired but there were some small benefits in his behavior.
Then he was placed on 10mg Focalin XR. This seemed to help a fair amount and the doctor increased his dose to 15 mg. This was a real problem as it actually made the hyper/inatentive problems worse and he all of a sudden stopped sleeping (to the extent that he would be up half the night.) He was returned to the 10mg dose and it seemed to help a little but we recently went on vacation for 10 days and he was great for the first three but horrible for the rest of the time while on the same meds at the same time of day.
Overall, I was expecting to see more of a turnaround than we have seen and I am considering taking him out of the program so that we can look into other medications that may work better for him. I mean, I read about children taking the medications and really turning 180 deg from where they were. I guess my question is whether people think that I should not expect that kind of experience or whether he needs to try other medication to get the benefits that we should be seeing.
I am sure I am not unique in finding all of this hard and frustrating. One problem is that my son has always had periods in which he has done better than others. He might have three or four days when he does better for instance. This makes it hard to assess his progress on medication. It is also hard to be dealing with a problem that depends so much on my own assessment of his progress.
Any advice that people may have would be great. As I said, I am thinking that the best thing may be to leave this program which would allow us to try some other medication that might be an improvement over the ones he is taking now.
This is the first time I have posted to an ADHD forum so please forgive the length of this post.
Hi defender_man:
My son has been on adhd meds for 3 1/2 years. We started with Focalin xr 10 mg in the a.m. and focalin (non xr) in the afternoon as a buster. It was awful, it was like he had no meds in him. We switched to Concerta which was awesome for us for 2 years (did have a.m. rebound though on it). Now his tics have gotten so bad that we had to take him off of concerta. We tried vyvanse, but it was totally the wrong med for him, no eating, no sleeping, very aggressive, and angry all the time. By the way in May, we started him on guifacine 1 mg (1/2 in the .am. 1/2 in the pm) to help with sleep, rebound and tics...didn't do much). Okay, so his dr. said lets go back to Focalin xr because he had to tics, rebound, sleep issues, eating issues on it....but we did a trick, he gets 10 mg of focalin xr in the a.m. and 10 mg of focalin xr at 12:30 p.m. Gets guifacine 1 mg in a.m. and 1 mg at dinner time. It helped, but son metabolizes meds so fast that we upped him to 15 of xr twice a day....it is great...it is like he was on concerta...tics till there, but not as much so hopefully they will start to go away, If not, we are oging to try Staterra with a lower dose of focalin or concerta.
Anyway, my point is maybe your son is metabolizes meds quickly too and the one dose of xr acts like non xr so it moves though his body within 4 hours. Just a thought. Sorry for the long thread!
Good luck!
Mars
I see that Focalin is not for everybody. My son would take his first dose of 20 mg XR in the morning and by 1 or 2pm he needs a 5mg dose of Focalin. By the time 5pm hits, he is very hyperactive even more than before, as it wears off. He has been off since the last day of school in June. His tics have stopped although his fear of bugs remain. It's ok, since it's not half as bad as when he was on the medication. I have enrolled him in programs at our local library that where they bring in live/dead insects and he learns about them as well as do fun projects. I think this will help him tremendously. He is excited to go.The thing is that he is hyperactive and non-compliant now even more since he has been off of meds and I am soooo stressed out. I am trying my best to understand him but it is so hard. He has constant feuds with his older brother since his brother thinks we are making excuses for his actions. He has to see his doctor some time at the end of the month to assess how he has been while he has been off the meds. I don't know if I should suggest Strattera or Concerta or just see what he gives him? Boy...I need a vacation.....
My son (6y/o) started FocalinXR 5mg about 6 weeks ago. It seemed to help a bit, but not much. So we moved up to 10mg. The behavior improved but the side effects seemed to outweigh the benefit. He became moody and sometimes angry. He never smiled. Our happy fun loving boy was gone.
So we switched to AdderallXr 5mg. At that dosage it seemed about the same as the Focalin at 5mg. So we went up to 10mg with it starting a week ago. With this med the side effects are much less noticeable and the behavior is better. He is much calmer. He can still be whiny and defiant, but less impulsive and kind of mello. He seems to go through stages during the day however. The first couple of hours it seems like nothing is happening - like no med at all. Then for about 2 to 3 hours it really seems to hit him. He'll almost shut down. He's very quiet and emotionless. He likes to read so he will often engross himself in a book during this time. His focus is about as good as it gets during this period. Then the med starts to wear off very slowly throughout the rest of the day. For a few hours he's great. The side effects are limited, but he's still under control. THen as it gets close to bedtime the wild man usually starts coming back. He does have more trouble getting to sleep at 10mg, but not too bad.
But he still has good days and bad days just like without the meds. I think that's going to shine through any medicine. We are all different on different days.
We've also noticed a big drop in appetite which is worrisome since he was a very, very picky eater to start with.
I feel tired and disinterested with focalin...now. However, it worked the first 3 years I took it. I am considered asking to sample another medication. Any suggestions?
I started it after high school. Now I am about to graduate from college, and it hardly works at all. Honestly, I am only tired and thirsty when I take the two 10 mg XR doses. (morning/afternoon)
If anyone has trouble sleeping at night, try a supplement called melatonin. I take 1-3 mg to sleep at night. You can get it at whole foods, GNC or pretty much anywhere. Hope this helps.
As far as side effects are concerned, I'd say give it at least a month. My son is a picky eater too but since he's been off of the meds, his appetite did come back a little more. It has definitely been hard since I, too, have to repeat directions over and over again and tell him to do things more than once, but it was worth the wait since I know now that much of his behavior (tics, sounds, movements, fears) were mostly caused by the Focalin XR. It's funny though but he never had a problem sleeping while on Focalin but now he just does not want to sleep until late ever since he's been off of the medication. It could just be the summer thing...
Hi,
I am actually 31 years old and never took medication before two years ago. I was prescribed a low dose of ritalin which I took for six months. On a good note, it did what it was supposed to. However, I would snap easily at people, and I found that it changed my metabolism a little.
I then changed to Focalin 2.5, which I still take, and has been wonderful. I still take a small dose, but it is a big help. In a matter of one year, I was able to move from California to Abu Dhabi, where I have since applied my focus to my business. I can't begin to tell you the difference between last year and this year. I highly recommend Focalin to adults with attention deficit (I still think that a better term is artistic personalities :)
I need to find a good doctor in the UAE who can refill my prescription.My 12yr son was taking ritalin LR for 4yrs but we found that it no longer was working as well as it used too. We recently changed doctors and had him retested. He is now starting up on Focalin xr 10mg. I have seen on the board that most people are taking this but taking additional doses in the afternoon. This is what I am hoping to avoid. Since he is in middle school, he would like to avoid any trips to a nurse in the middle of the day. He is borderline adhd but has some issues with impulsiveness. He is fully aware of what side effects to look out for. Is there any here with similar issues and only taking focalin xr once a day?Our doctor told us that Focalin XR works for about 8 hours for most people. My son just started it 1 week ago. It seems to last about 8 hours for us. Some people use the fast acting Focalin as a booster for afterschool/homework. I think concerta lasts 12 hours but you have to be able to swallow pills.
My son was on folican 40mg and I thought it made him very angry. It would wear off in a couple of hrs and then back to his hyper self. So now he just started vyvanse 25 mg a day and clonidine.
Theresa
Diane V, Yes he does have a therapist. I have called her and am awaiting her to call me back. He does say things like, "I have no idea why I act the way I do. I'm just stuipd." This really hurts me when he says things like that. He seems to have alot of problems fitting in with the kids his age. Most of his friends are younger than him. For the most part I don't worry about that, but now that school is starting again I am concerned. The school board here moved him to a different school this year and I think this is causing him alot of anxiety. How do I encourage him to try to make friends? He is always concerned that everyone is talking about him. This is hard because my daughter does not have ADD or ADHD and has lots of friends. I believe this is bothering him. Is there a light at the end of this tunnel? Any hope for these kids in the future for a good education, job and their own family life?my daughter used to say things like, I don;t know why I do that. Still does sometimes. I've stopped asking her why are you acting like this if I can. My daughter is also moved to a new school thsi year. Why have they moved your son? What kind of school? Maybe there will be more appropriate peers at the new school?
We have the same issues with the sibling. My younger daughter is only 6, but does a LOT of things, gymnastics, cheerleading, takes spanish, yoga, lots of group activites that my oldest couldnt handle. We tried all that stuff with her younger, but it wasnt working. It's VERY difficult to make them feel ok about it and also encourage your other child. Does he do anything extra curricular? Sports or drama or music or scouts? If not, I'd really look HARD for an outside activity. My daughter LOVES art and horses, so we try to keep her in riding lessons and art classes when her schedule permits. She's developed 2 good friendships with school/neighbors and has met 2 new girls this summer, one from her new school and one from my Mom's neighborhood. It helps, but it is quite a struggle.
This post is to give an example of how every child responds differently to medication. My 10yo son started on 5mg of Focalin XR in Dec of 2006. We noticed a difference right away. He went from stuggling in class, throwing trandrums at homework time and watching his grades drop to becoming an honor roll student. Once we started him on Focalin, is teacher had nothing good reports for him and he tested for the AIG (gifted) program and passed with flying colors for both math and reading. (Unfortunately, his cummulative grade for the school year was too low to get in, but at least he was able to test into it and pass!). We kept him at 5mg for a few months and then felt the need to increase to 10 mg. He stayed at 10 mg for almost a year until we saw him slipping back into some old ways and saw his attention diminish as well. We talked to the Dr about increasing his dosage, but she suggest that we switch to Concerta (partially because my husband is on Concerta and it was working well for him). My gut told me not to do it, but I didn anyway. She started my son on 18 mg and it worked for several months in regards to his focus in school and his behavior, but it wore off early (9-10 hours) and I felt like it had a different emotional effect on him than the Focalin did. I would ask him about it and he said he felt different, but couldn't put his finger on what was exactly "different". He stayed on 18mg fro 6 months and then the beginning of this school year, we noticed that he struggled from day one. He lacked focus and homework time was becoming an issue again. We were also having trouble keeping him focused during his nighttime activities, such as baseball. He is one heck of a good ball player (plays Pitching, Catching and 3rd base positions), but the lack of focus goofy behavior was becoming a problem, especially since most of his games were after 6pm and his meds had already well worn off. We talked to the Dr. and she increased his dosage to 27mg. To my surprise, it actually made him worse. The meds wore off later in the day which helped for baseball, but his school work was still well off mark for what he is capable of and his teacher was calling frequently to ask me about him not turning in school and homework. It was to the point where he thought that if he didn't write his homework assignments in his daily agenda that he convinced himself that he didn't actually have homework! I also noticed my son becomming a bit down in the dumps and then having mood swings. I continued to monitor things for a few weeks, but then he developed an issue with his teeth chattering...and not because he was cold. That was it for me. We have switched him back to Focalin (10 mg to start) and it is working out great so far! He is back to his happy-go-lucky self, his teacher is pleased with his focus and his homework is taking a quarter of the time that it was before...and with NO complaining! I can see a big change in him on so many levels and, best of all, he is very happy with how he feels now!
So...for those of you considering Focalin, but have been scared off by all of the negative posts about it, please know that there are some success stories out there as well!.
Hi Everyone!!! My 4 yr old son has been on Facalin XR for a week and I know that it takes a couple of weeks to see results with his hyper activity, .....but I was wondering if anyone else has noticed any emotional type of side effects. He is really whinny and cries at a drop of a hat. He is not more sensitve to noises. This is the first type of Med he has been on for this and I'm a little concerned....Any feedback would be GREAT!!!!
Thanks for the Help
Hey there, I am an adult with ADHD. I have been on adderall 20MG XR for 2 years now. My Dr. wanted me to try Focalin 20MG XR. The adderall works but I may need to go somewhat higher. I tried the Focalin for 3 days. The first day was okay, second day I started to feel really strange and anit social...the third day was bad..I went out with some friends and by the middle of breakfast I wanted to go home and lay down and not be around people. I felt really trippie..and strange in my head...Needless to say, the next day I went back to my Adderall...I personally didn't like the effect from the Focalin..
My daughter does very well taking Focilin 5 mg every four hours. However, when she was switched over to Focilin XR 10 mg.... the results were dismal. Has anyone else experienced this? Anyone know why the immediate release worked well but the XR did not?I have a 9 year old 4th grader. She has been on Focalin since 1st grade. 7.5 mg twice daily and a 2.5 mg take-down dose 4 before 3pm. The medicine allowed her to stop failing her classes, she has achieved honor roll since 2nd grade. Her self-esteem is wonderful now. She must go to the nurse twice a day to take her Focalin so I asked her doctor if we could try the longer acting Focalin XR. We started it over the summer but as you know, it's really impossible to judge the effects of the meds without her being in school. Her dose was 20 mg in the AM.
She has been unable to finish her work, depressed and moody. I called her doctor on Monday and asked his permission to put her back on the regular Focalin. She reports a serious improvement in her work and ability to concentrate. Don't they test this stuff before they give it to our kids?
Also, she takes 1 mg Risperdal and 50 mg Imipramine at night that allows her to sleep because I don't care what anyone says, the Focalin keeps her up without it.
One thing she is having and it started around the time she started on the xr. She has what she terms daymares. My fear is that they are seizures. I've witnessed one of them and her body stiffens and then she shakes. I don't relate them to the XR but I'm wondering if anyone else out there has a child that has a fearful perception that they have to shake off. She states she feels as if she is in the daymare. Anyone ever experienced and of this?
Thanks
believe
We tried Focalin XR 10mg this week. My son is 10 and has been on Ritalin LA 30mg for about a year now. It worked ok, but we notice it wearing off sooner and sooner and thought it was time to change dose. Doctor recommended concerta 36mg.... which he was on once before, but had bad insomnia and was up cleaning my house at 12am! Which would be a lovely side effect, if it weren't a school night! 
But seriously, we wanted him to get the proper amount of sleep, so he was switched to the Ritalin. We just started him on Concerta again, but were having the same effect of insomnia. Otherwise it worked wonderfully. He was cheerful, chatty, compliant and happy. It was just the lack of sleep thing again. So we called and started the Focalin. After 2 days... the results were immediate and bad. 
It was almost as though he had no medication at all. The former premedication attitude was back. He was mouthy, miserable, fought all day with his brother and friends who were over and threw things. He was irritable and cranky and even he and I had a fight. Once he calmed down, he asked if he could please switch back to the Concerta. I let him go back to the Concerta and we will just monitor sleep times and dosage time in the am... trying to keep him on track and get him sleepy through other methods like regular bed time, warm bath before, etc. 
So my experience on this particular medication was not good at all.
I won't make him take it again, and that was just 2 days of the stuff!
I think we also need to pay attention to what our children tell us as well. He liked how his personality was on the Concerta. He didn't like himself on the Focalin. He doesn't want to be confrontational or mean, he just couldn't help it on that particular drug. These drugs and their dosages are extremely tricky to get right... and the effects are so different on each child. It is also scary to switch and try other things... I hate being in this position. However, I must admit ... they have been the saving grace of our family this past year. Without the meds, we had a very unhappy child, brother and household was in constant chaos. So I will choose the meds over that... but I pray they are the right thing and that I am doing what is best for him.
Just wanted to add that my son test-drove Focalin XR 10 mg for 2 different days in the last week or so and did fine. Smooth takeoff and landing, no emotional outbursts. He has mostly inattentive AD(H)D. The med lasted about 8 hours in his system. The true test will come next week when he starts school. BTW, in the last 2.5 years he has been on Concerta (stopped after 1.5 years because he began to feel flat and inhibited), Adderall XR (stopped after a week because of major facial tics) and Strattera (stopped after 2 major migraines in 3 days). Of course, every kid reacts differently to each med. Unfortunately, it does involve a bit of trial and error until you find the one that fits best for your kid.
How is Focalin xr working for anyone else who is trying it? We tried the short acting this summer with no stomach ache and good results. My son started school on 5mg XR, but has moved up to 10 mg due to not much resulting change for about a week. He seems to benefit from it, but this being his first med at school, we are not sure what to expect.
It does seem to wear off without mood problems for him, which is good. He said he gets a slight stomach ache in the morning at school for about 15 minutes. I'm having him eat more breakfast and drink more water when taking it, so I'll know after school today if it bothered him.
Anyone else using Focalin XR?
HI, My 12 year old has been on focalin xr (10mg) for about a month now and he has been very, very hyper and not focused at all. He was on straterra for about 4 months and I thought it was a wonder drug!! What a total difference, but it slowly fizzled out on us,He got back to the "old" David. We have an appt. in a week and I'm sure we'll try something else.Hi we just got our scrip for Focalin XR 10 today. My 9 yr old has been on Ritalin every 2x a day for a year and that has been working fine, but he wanted something that would last all day ( meaning he didn't want to go to the school office at noon) so the Dr. suggested Ritalin LA, but sent out the scrip for Focalin XR. Apparently Novartis is marketing Ritalin LA as Focalin XR?? I thought that Focalin was supposed to be the more active form (isomer) of Ritalin? Anyway, I'm dismayed to see so many reports of negative reactions, I'm tempted just to keep him on the plain old ritalin. he had no side effects from Ritalin so I'll write back with our experiences in a few weeks.
Got a quick story regarding my daughter's experience with Focalin. As I mentioned previously, I saw the DR in the morning with my daughter, and got the RX for Focalin 5 mg filled on the way home. My daughter, who always refused to read 2 consecutive pages of any book in her life ... got home and read 200 pages of THE GOOD EARTH. It was miraculous. After 2 weeks of Focalin with great results the Dr. switched her to the 10 mg XR so she wouldn't have to take it at school. The short version of the story is that it was a disaster. The XR was like an entirely different drug for her.
We then switched back to the regular Focalin. Before going on it she took a practice SAT exam ... and scored 430 on the math section. The next time she took the practice SAT exam, which was after being on Focalin, her score was OVER 600. Thats 170 points in 4 weeks. Nothing short of miraculous. She just started her sophmore year in HS. I make sure she calls me via a cell phone every 4 hours during the day to confirm she has taken it. If I don't get the call, there are consequences.
I have also read that citrus should not be consumed with concerta. This was on a medications websight, however, so it would be best to check with your doctor.My 7 year-old son was diagnosed last spring with ADHD. He took Focalin 2.5 mg at breakfast and again at noon. The psychiatrist also prescribed Clonidine to help him sleep at night. He did much better for the remainder of the school year. Before school started he was prescribed Focalin RX at 5 mg - I give this to him in the morning before he goes to school. And we still take the Clonidine. I believe he's doing well with the Focalin - but he is so hyper in the evenings I'm ready to pull my hair out. The Clonidine does help him sleep - I have forgotten to give this to him a couple of times and he was awake well past midnight both times. We see the psychiatrist again next month and I want to talk with him about possibly adding another dose of Focalin in the late afternoon and the effects of the Clonidine, which I recently learned is actually a blood pressure medication. I'm looking for any feedback about this particular combination of medications. Thanks.
My 10 year old, 5th grade son started Focalin XR a week before school. He's gained nearly 6 pounds and for the first time in his school life, he's eating lunch. After meeting with his teacher, she tells me that he is not "active", just "absent" from learning while at school. She said that he often needs to be redirected, like a typical ADD kid. He isn't bouncing all over though. At home, he's okay, unless we're doing homework. It's more of a struggle for me than for him. He's "all over" the place, but pretty happy. We've tried Adderall XR, and short acting Adderall and although they worked the best, he got pretty aggressive and destructive over time. Of course he was an A student while on it, so we were willing to keep going. We tried Strattera over the summer and it worked to elevate his mood...very delightful child, but very unfocused. Now I don't know what to do! I've called the Dr. and asked for an increase in the Focalin XR, but after reading all of these posts... I'm not sure. It really has been a blessing to see him devour food and feel so good about finally weighing 70 pounds.
Any ideas?
eadsj2,
What dose Focalin XR is your son on? Mine is on 10 mg, but we add a 5 mg dose of short-acting Focalin at 4 pm to help with homework. My son (dx ADHD and anxiety) is 12 years old and in 7th grade.
"BTW, make sure you don't give your child orange juice to swallow down long-acting stimulants. Acid can eat away at the time-release coating and affect med delivery."
I saw this info. somewhere and looked online because no one ever told us this. This is only for amphetimines (sp?) and not for meds like Concerta. You can eat or drink anything with Concerta. Lisa
[QUOTE=Bussey]Hi Everyone!!! My 4 yr old son has been on Facalin XR for a week and I know that it takes a couple of weeks to see results with his hyper activity, .....but I was wondering if anyone else has noticed any emotional type of side effects. He is really whinny and cries at a drop of a hat. He is not more sensitve to noises. This is the first type of Med he has been on for this and I'm a little concerned....Any feedback would be GREAT!!!!
Thanks for the Help
[/QUOTE]
Well We did end up switching his Meds to Ritalin LA and have seen much better results, I just didn't like the side effects I was seeing while he was on Focalin XR
I think we finally have my son's meds figured out as well. We got him back on Concerta 36mg, but had lack of appetite and insomnia. We dropped it down to 27mg and he seems to be eating better and sleeping better. I hope we finally have our answer. The Ritalin LA was actually the best, but it wore off too fast in the afternoon after a while. My ped told us it is because it only lasts 8 hours. The concerta lasts 12. Whew... this stuff is exasperating. And it is amazing how differently it affects each child. You really have to experiment to get it right.. which is difficult in itself.
Good luck to all!
Tammy
I got the info about not drinking OJ to swallow Concerta from our ped, who reads a ton himself and is rarely wrong about stuff like this. So I trust him more than I trust a website. JMHO.
Sorry! My son is taking 10mg of the XR. I've asked lots of question of his pediatriciam and I'll find out tomorrow the magic she has in store for me. I'll let you know what she says. Are you happy with Focalin XR for your son?
We are very happy with Focalin XR for our son. While Concerta worked, it made him feel flat and inhibited. I think he feels he can still focus on Focalin, but doesn't entirely lose his spontaneity (which he feels is important to maintain his quirky personality). Our doc says our son can go up to 15 mg Focalin XR, but we're finding he doesn't need it. As mentioned above, we do sometimes add a 5 mg short-acting Focalin dose at 4 pm to get homework done. Your ped may decide your son just needs a higher dose of Focalin XR, or another med entirely. Hope things work out for your son.
Hi again.
I got a note from my sons teacher yesterday praising him! He stayed on task and finished his work. I nearly fell over. The school has been great with helping him and he is only on 5 mg of XR. I know this probably won't last but, it's great to be proud of him! Anyone know if taking the pill whole or opening it up into something makes a difference in how the body takes it in?? On it for seven days now. First three days he took it whole and the last four opened into applesause. He also slept through the night last night.
Rion'sMom38618.238125So happy for you and your son! Focalin XR is also working well for my son. We open the capsule up into chocolate pudding and my son just gobbles it up. Even though he's 12 and can swallow pills, he is phobic about choking so we use the pudding. Our doc says it doesn't matter if you take the pill whole or open it up into food. However, you should not use something acidic like orange juice because that will affect the time-released coating on the granules. You also should put it into the food and have your son eat it right away; otherwise it can start to dissolve in the food and affect how it works. Hope things continue to go well for you.
I talked with the nurse yesterday and we're going to:
1. add 5mg Focalin XR to the 10 he already takes for 2 weeks
if there is room for improvement we'll
2. add another 5mg XR, making it 20 for 2 more weeks
We're also adding a short acting 5 mg at 4 at the afterschool. They were more than willing to medicate him for me ! I'm going to try the 4:00 dose tomorrow to see if it will interfere with sleep on Friday night. We'll try it on Saturday too. If he can't sleep at his regular time... I'll forget it.
Sounds like a plan!
Please let us know how it all goes.
Wow, lots of probs w Focalin xr. I'm glad one person had a good story. My 8-yr old son had a pretty good experience w Adderall, although it didn't address all his attention probs. Doc didn't want to go from 15mg to 20, cause of his weight issue. Now we're going to try Focalin xr. He didn't have a good response w regular ritalin LA, so I'm not optimistic.
One week on Focalin XR and DS is still doing fine. He tells us he's focusing well at school. Focalin has had little effect on his appetite, and we're observing no rebound issues in the afternoon.
BTW, make sure you don't give your child orange juice to swallow down long-acting stimulants. Acid can eat away at the time-release coating and affect med delivery.
Focalin XR 20 mgs caused son to be more hyper. Is this normal?
Good morning,
My son has been on meds for ADHD since January this year. Tried Adderall for 6 months and worked fine for his hyperness and did get school work done. Ticks developed but weren't to bad. Meds seemed to wear off around 4 months (impulsivness back, crying back and even some depression), so Dr. upped his meds and the mouth ticks did get worse so we took him off Adderall.
Starting Focalin XR 5 mg tomorrow (crosses fingers), so I'll update early next week with the results.
Sounds like what happened to my son... the effectiveness of Adderall did wear off. That's been the case a lot of times.... amazing at first. so-so later one. We're also trying focalin XR.. starting Monday. Thanks for any updates.
I tried focalinXR 20 mg and even 30 mg and it did not work at all. I was on ritalin before but it made me a act like a juerk. I am on concerta now it seems to bee working pretty good.Bumped our 8yr old son up to 20mg from 10 mg of Focalin XR after two days per doc's instrux. Saw many side effects. He complained of very itchy eyes, face and skin. Snorting and some kind of disturbing throat tic. Dizzyness, nausea. It was very freaky, and we didn't like what we were seeing at all. Now we're going back to 10. We'll see what happens.I'm surprised your doc had your son go from 10 mg to 20 mg after just two days. Most docs give it a week or two before making such a precipitous change. My 12-year-old son is on 10 mg Focalin XR and doing just great. If you find that your son needs to go higher than 10 mg but are afraid to try 20 mg again, your son can take 15 mg by taking a 10 mg capsule and a 5 mg capsule at the same time. Hope it works out for your son.
focalin xr sucks. for me anyways. regular focalin is way better.
My 11 year old started on 5 mg focalin XR in mid August, then a few weeks later, 10 mg. Now we tried 15 mg yesterday. This is our first medication, but the results have been smaller than expected so far. We'll have to see how 15 mg helps next week at school. He said he thought he might have focused better yesterday on his first day of 15mg. I wish I could be a fly on the wall at school.
The good news is appetite and sleep are unchanged. He is gifted and adhd inattentive. I'm trying to keep him in higher level courses because he understands the work and it hold his attention better but has trouble completing some types of work in a timely manner. I may ask the dr. about concerta next time. He only weighs 63 pounds, so I don't want any appetite suppression if we can avoid it.
I appreciate reading everyone's experiences.
I'm think the afterschool would be willing. We're usually home by 5:45, then homework, dinner, feed the dog, bath routine and he goes to bed at 8:30, we read and he's fast asleep by 9:00 unless he's too difficult to focus for homework. When things are unruly, like tonight, I scribe for him. That helps a lot. I know with the Adderall short acting...that'd last about 4 hours! I don't know.
I usually pick my son up at 5, he goes to an afterschool for playtime/social skills group. We don't have age appropriate neighbors and he needs all the social practice that he can get. I worry that if I give him a short acting dose of anything when I pick him up, that it'll disrupt his sleep. We can't afford that!
Can you authorize the aftercare to give him meds?
What time do you try to get him to bed?
Still waiting for the Dr.. My son is practically manic at homework time. Tonight he couldn't even sit in a chair. Thankfully we have a carpet runner over the carpet... or it'd have a path dug out!
I'm back with my update.
This is the 5th day for my 8 year old son to be on Focalin XR. I'm hearing from school that he is staying at his desk, finishing his work and his impulsivness has simmered done. He is hyper on and off in the evening and I'm looking into something for it (over-the-counter herbals maybe). So far so good, but it is only the fifth day. I'll write again in another five. 
We're still happy with Focalin XR. It does wear off after 8 hours so you who are having difficulty with hyperactivity in the evening might want to consider a dose of short-acting Focalin at around 4 pm. It might help the evening go more smoothly. Just a thought . . .
Hi again,
Day 11 of my son being on Focalin XR. He has been just about sleeping through the night. He doesn't wake me up anymore, I just find he moved his bedding to the floor to sleep, so I know he's been up. Does that everytime he wakes up. Mornings off to school have become more relaxed.
I'm not moving him around the house to get things done. We've been getting to school early too. BIG improvement. His mood seemed alittle lighter this weekend. No tantrums. I think we find a med that works so far!!
I really hope it continues to work for your son the way it's worked for mine. Keep us posted.
I will! Thanks again for all of your support. I wish I had known about this list when he was destroying the dining room furniture and drilling holes in the sheetrock walls. Of course there was the permanent green paint track all over the new carpet (through the den, kitchen, dining room, hallway and into his bedroom...out the window and into the yard~ no question about where the hotwheels should drive...) and the missing window screens on EVERY window in the house. I'm really not missing those days at all. Funny though, he maintained and A-average all the while.... such a puzzle of a beautifully wonderful and magical little boy.
We started Focalin XR 10mg in the summer, about a week before school started, and after a 2 week weaning of Strattera. Strattera was a wonderful mood enhancer but didn't manage the inattention/hyperactivity at all. We're still waiting for the pharmacy to fill the regular Focalin 5mg so we can try it with the after school folks for homework. Maybe next week. Good Luck with the switch. It was teriffic for us.
We are also thinking of starting focalin this weekend - thanks everyone for the posts - good to read the good and bad. I was trying to start on a weekend so we could do a second dose around 4 if we had a noticeable wear off. We have been having a rough time since he has been off strattera - I forgot how hyper he is, he has also been moody still so we may wait it out just a little longer. This is all too much sometimes, I really wish they came with instructions!
I will keep you posted if we start but I am glad some of you are having success, smallmom congrats on the luck you are having so far - 
Hi. I just found this forum today and it has been so informaive!
My 11 yo son will begin taking focalin xr this wkend. He was on concerta, but we found that it was not lasting through lunch at school. He was on a very high dose... his pediatrician called him a "rapid metabolizer." He was taking a 54mg pill and a 36 mg pill every a.m. at 7:30. But by 12:30, it was gone. He had no trouble sleeping on the med and certainly didn't have a decrease in appetite. Anyway, his dr. thinks that the focalin xr may work better because she said it releases differently than the concerta.
He will be taking 30 mg of the focalin. All of the other posts were for a smaller dose, so I was just wondering if anyone is taking this large of a dose? Any and all help is appreciated.
Leanne
my 5 year old was put on focalin this week we used it for 2 days it was horrible so we are now trying concerta the focalin made he so hyper he was just jumping every where all night long we did not sleep at all we just started concerta today so we are waiting to see what happens with it we have already been thru ritalin adderall straterra focalin and now concertaHi all - - -I just wanted to say my 10 yo son has been on Focalin XR, 10 mg for about 2 months. I have to say, I like it sooo much better but it doesn't seem to last all school day long. He rebounds on it just like the others at 4:00.
With the Focalin XR, it just seems like there's an actual fun kid in there on this medicine, he laughs, teases, cuts up, but still behaves within bounds of allowed behavior, like a normal kid). NONE of us want our kids to look or feel doped up and that's kind of what he did on alot of the other meds. They worked but he always was just way too mellow (until he got upset about something, then it was pure **ll). He also eats with this med (lunch), which he never did on any of the others.
We had issues with Concerta *(had to keep upping dosage, and developed an eye tic)
The Ritalin LA didn't last quite as long and he didn't eat, at all.
The Adderall XR made him extremely aggressive.
We've never done the short acting meds but I guess if all else fails, we could do that.
My 12-year-old son is also on 10 mg Focalin XR. We, too, like it a lot. It doesn't seem to have that "clamp down" effect that Concerta had. My son felt incredibly flat and inhibited on Concerta so he begged us to take him off last February.
You're right, however, that Focalin XR doesn't last all day -- it lasts about 8 hours. If my son has homework he needs to complete in the evening, we give him a 5 mg dose of short-acting Focalin somewhere between 4 and 5 pm.
thanks. The covering doc said to give 15 mg tomorrow. Now I am even more worried about school today. I hope he does well today, I can't handle another meeting with the principal -- she scares me a little. my son started on Focalin XR 5mg, moved to 10 mg and is having problems. His problems are mostly impulse control issues. His doc is on vaca and I'm going to call an assoc tomorrow to discuss -- I have 5mg and 10 mg pills -- would it be SERIOUSLY irresponsible to give him 15 mg tomorrow -- he's 63 pouns, about 54 inches tall and 6 years old -- a very big kid (for his age).I can't recomend a dosage. I would wait for an associate tomorrow.
My son just started on Focalin XR 10mg. (Academically, he did well on Concerta although after several months, he did develop a sniffing and clearing of the throat tic.) He is doing much better on Focalin XR as far as tics go, and he says that he feels much more focused at school than when he was not on any medicine at all. He still has a very minor, infrequent sniffing tic; however, it may still be the result of how his body reacted to the Concerta. I waited several weeks after stopping the Concerta before starting Focalin XR, but since it didn't seem that the sniffing would completely disappear any time soon, I started him on Focalin XR and it didn't make the tic worse. The doctor gave us a 1,2 and 3 pill trial of Focalin XR, but we didn't get to try the 3 pill dosage. I wanted to have him take the three pill dosage on a weekend and we ran out of pills because I continued to give him 2 pills during the week. I called the doctor today to obtain a new prescription and told him that my son noticed a change with two pills, but we hadn't yet tried three. The doctor thinks we should continue with 2 pills (10 mg total) instead of trying 3 pills because my son noticed a positive change with two and since he seems to be prone to tics it may be better to stop at two. I have a feeling that the doctor is surprised that the Focalin didn't make the tic problem worse, so he is being cautious about the dosage. I'm a little leery as well, so maybe it's a good thing we didn't try three pills. Although my son said that he noticed a difference, I'm not sure how much better three pills would be. I'll keep everyone posted.
Things are going really well. So well in fact that he hasn't needed the short acting 5 mg in afterschool. He's even managing to use his free time in school to accomplish some homework. I'm still scribing a lot for him, but I think that's more the dysgraphia than the adhd. He's very pleased with himself and he weighs 71.5 pounds! An all time RECORD! Looks like A/B Honor Roll too!
I hope it continues!
Bump upBump up Hey, I'm hungry now with this all talk of meds and nutrients.
What's for dindin?
I'm sorry, but does anyone have any experiance with an adult taking Focalin XR?
I got off my medication for a while, with the thought that I'm a college boy now, and I should be able to be fine without medication. Well, I went from having a 3.2 gpa in high school, graduating with honors, and doing well enough in my athletics to continue on to a NCAA Division 1 school in Springboard Diving, I went from that to droping out of Diving, going down to minimum full time schedual (12 credit hours), and getting a 2.0 GPA. Now in my 4th semester of college, I talked to my doctor about all of this, and he perscribed focalin xr, 20 mg.
So far it seems to work great - with the exception of shaking hands and changed personality. My attention deficit seems completely blown away from this medicine - although I'm only on day two.
One other really "bad" side effect I had: it feels like cocain when it first hits me. It's like a gun blast to the face - I feel like I could do anything. Fly? All I need to do is go home and start learning how to build a jetpack. I know a few people who know people who majored in Physics, I'll just give them a call and get to work on it... what am I doing at work? I need to get going on this right now.
I wish I was joking. I'm afraid to tell my doctor this, because the medicine works so well.
mandrake man,sounds like your dose might be too high, or your body is adjusting to it a bit differently. I'm surprised the doctor didn't build you up to that level. When my son started FocalinXR, we started at 5mg. When I started concerta, I started at 18mg. We both worked up. My son can't even tell when the medicine kicks in or wears off.
Remember it may take a while to get the meds right. That doesn't mean your doctor will not continue working with you.
Best wishes!
Mandrake Man, my 16 year old daughter had a similar experience. The time release vesion (XR) of Focalin can be very inconsistent which can leave one either over dosed or underdosed. The answer for us was taking the immediate release Focalin every 4 hours. You can then be sure the proper amount of medicine is getting in your system.
Over the last few days, the "high" effect has substantially dropped off, as well as the changed personally and changed hands, although it still hits really hard and backs down from there. Also: I have a lot of trouble sleeping now at night, I can't seem to sleep for more than 6 or 5 hours per day. Last night I woke up at 2 am and couldn't get back to sleep for two hours. I think that you are right, Nova123, and that it is just inconstantly being released into my system.
Thanks for all the advice.
mandrake_man38840.4438425926My son is on Focalin XR 10mg. He has been diagnosed with ADHD, OCD, Anxiety Disorder and a Language Learning Disability. The Focalin seems to be working pretty good, but he is having to take it 3 times a day even though it is time release. The Dr said that his metabolism is high and the meds are wearing off sooner. He was also having problems with his anxiety and the Dr. also put him on Zoloft 25 mg for that. This past weekend we had to take him off of the Zoloft because he had gotten very irritable and aggressive. He would hit his brother, and would get rough with other kids, wouldn't pay attention in class and was having all types of attention issues. Now that the Dr. has taken him off of the Zoloft he is back to himself, but the Dr. is wanting to try another med. for the anxiety disorder. I don't know a lot about the anxiety meds for children, and it scares me to add another medicine to the list. Any suggestions?Hello Everyone,
We have had amazing results with Focalin 1.25mg for my son. I know that everyone will not be happy with my post, BUT here it goes!
My son is only 2 years old. We could tell there was something a little different going on. I have been ADD since I was a child, so I always assumed this could be it, but knew he was too young to diagnose.
He has been to our Autism clinic, Pediatric Neurologist and Occupational Therapy. No one seems to know what is going on.
My Pediatrician is as frustrated as we are, so... She decided last week to try and rule things out.
SO... she prescribed a VERY low dose of Focalin (1.25mg) He just takes it in the morning since he sleeps 1:30 - 4:30 everyday. The noon dose is not necessary.
It has changed his/our life!!
Ryan has stared to talk since to took it normal tantrums for a 2 year old He WAS having 30+ tantrums a day He is a happy little boy nowThe only problem is our Dr does not want him staying on this. When he is 3 he can go on it more fulltime. She wants him on it for a 3 week trial right now, but he is really to young to be medicated.
I am SO thrilled to have a better idea of what is going on with my little guy!
Jenny
This is my first post I am getting so many mixed thought on Focalin. My son is 8 and was just diagnosed with ADD and mild ADHD, I have known in the back of my mind for a while he had a problem, but not wanting to actually admit it I just kept pushing it off as normal boy behavior. Well it recently has started to affect him a school so I talked to his teacher and we decided it would be a good time to talk to his pediatrician. I did and after a few visits and talks with the teacher and myself he decided to put my son on Focalin XR 5mg once a day, and said we could adjust the dose as needed,we started the 5mg this past saturday and I watched him to see how he would do on it the first few days I thought he was less argumentative, he didnt whine as much and stood there while we talked to him, maybe it was me hopeing the meds worked. It has been 5 days on the meds and though I have not talked to his teacher yet I personally don't think it has done much for him. but I am worried that the next dose would do too much, any thoughts would be greatly appreciated.
mother..... 5mg of the time relaease is a very small dose. If it is supposed to last for 8 hours ... it should be safe to bump it to 10mg. My experience with regular (immediate release) focalin has been much better than that of the XR version. I found that too frequently, it seemed like the full amount of the XR would release in a short period... leaving my daughter overdosed. .... and then undermedicated after a few hours. You may want to try the IR ... and have him take 5 mg very 4 hours.We just started my 6 yr old on 5mg of Focalin XR. How long before we should notice a difference...Hours?Days?Weeks? I'm wondering how long we should wait for a change before we contact his doctor.