Medicating for ADD

[lisko15]

I’m not sure what I’m looking for by this thread, I guess input from other moms that have trialed a medication for ADD.

DD is 8 and in 2nd grade, and has recently been diagnosed by our family doctor and the school psychologist with ADD. Her focusing and concentration have been an issue since toddler-hood and since preschool its been raising the same red flags in the classroom. She gets distracted by everything in the classroom, she has a lot of trouble following directions for lessons, and she needs constant 1 on 1 reminders to refocus.

It seems to really be hampering her education at this point.

I’m working on getting her into a Pediatric Behavior department at a local hospital to see some specialists, but until then (as the wait for an appointment will be LONG), I’m battling quite a bit with trying a medication or not.

Her teacher this year is amazing and so in tune with her, she would be able to tell me quickly "Yes, it’s helping", or "No, it’s not". Still I am so concerned about side effects. DD is super sensitive to everything, she is already underweight, and has issues with anxiety and irritability. Will a medication just amplify all of these?

She does attend the sensory room each day at her school and the teacher finds this really helps for a time for her afternoon focus. Maybe if she could stay in the sensory room all day! (ha ha)

We’ve tried fish oil, but we’ve been unable to find it in a form she’ll consistently take without a major battle.

Any input would be good, experiences, other modalities to help? If the medication will really help her not be so LOST in the classroom and during instruction that is a great thing… but I still hesitate so much.

[karne]

*

Edited by karne - 4/1/11 at 11:05am

[Emmeline II]

Originally Posted by lisko15 

DD is super sensitive to everything, she is already underweight, and has issues with anxiety and irritability. Will a medication just amplify all of these?

She does attend the sensory room each day at her school and the teacher finds this really helps for a time for her afternoon focus. Maybe if she could stay in the sensory room all day! (ha ha)

We’ve tried fish oil, but we’ve been unable to find it in a form she’ll consistently take without a major battle.

Any input would be good, experiences, other modalities to help? If the medication will really help her not be so LOST in the classroom and during instruction that is a great thing… but I still hesitate so much.
 

Not "will"; medication could cause anxiety and irritability to get worse, but it can also help if it is resulting from the ADHD--I would go to a child psychiatrist for medication though, not a ped. ADHD medications also have the tendency to suppress the appetite so you'd have to watch her weight carefully. My son isn't sensitive to medications and hasn't had any side effects except from Intuitiv which we tried to help with his tics (he had them prior to any medication). My son has gained 3lbs since starting medication in August, but he also grew an inch so he is still quite thin--we are a tall family and nearly all his cousins are long and slim so though we are not worried we are watching his weight.

A Full List of ADHD Medications - Health and Life

ADHD Medications

You could try Dr. Sears Omega-3 DHA fruit chews instead of fish oil; make sure the chews are not the regular multivitamin one. I've found BOGO coupons for Dr. Sears even when he hasn't had a sale advertised on his site.

[Evan&Anna's_Mom]

We medicate my 8 YO DD for ADHD.  I know its not the popular answer here, but for us it has been a lifesaver.  She can focus and learn (advancing 2 grade levels since we started medicating about a year ago).  Her teachers, her gymnastics coaches, and her parents (especially  her parents!) are able to actually interact with her without frustration resulting from her constant singing/bouncing/talking/whatever.  Most importantly, she feels better about herself and her abilities and has stopped referring to herself as "bad".  In fact, she will ask for her medication if I forget because she likes herself better and the way the world reacts to her better with than without it.

I would definitely recommend a psych. with a specialty in ADD/ADHD for the Rx and guidance.  Ours started us with a omega 3s and caffeine and only suggested actual medication after those proved ineffective. We started with basic ritalin to see if that was helpful, then moved into time-released options once that looked like the way to go.  So we started with the lowest doses/options and moved up in small steps.  In the end we have had fantastic results with Vyvance. 

It has had no effect on her personality -- she is still her bubbly sparkly self.  Just able to sit and listen rather than turn circles all the time.  Her Dr. said that any impact on personality was a clear indication of wrong medication or too high a dose.  So no "zombie" child here.  It has had no impact on her sleep, anxiety or other issues.

It has had the impact of decreased appetite and she was already underweight.  We combat that by making sure what she does eat is high calorie/high nutrition and supplement with vitamins.  It is the only worry that I have about this, but it seems worth it.  We also do make sure she gets food when she is hungry -- even though its often right before bedtime and not so convenient.

Given the positive impact on her school and self esteem, its been the right decision for us.  I am glad we approached it slowly, but also with an open mind.  It helped that I liked and trusted the psych who we work with.  And that her teachers could give me so much information about changes at school.  I'm sure its not right for everyone and I'm sure that some people/teachers medicate rather than address underlying issues.  But for us this was absolutely the right answer and I'm glad we have this option.

[philomom]

After years of trying everything other approach.. we broke down and got my son Concerta at age twelve. He's a new man. He has great grades and a better social life than ever. Not a zombie. Sill gaining weight and he's able to sleep nights. His pill lasts just for the 8 hour school day.

Honestly, I wish I'd broken down and tried it sooner... it would have saved us a lot of heartache but we got Mothering magazine and they said to not drug your kids. But you know what my dh said that put things in place for me " If our kid needed glasses, you's get them, right?" Of course. He needs it. Its not a whim. He gets a healthy diet.. has outdoor time.. limited screen time and chores. We tried a gluten free diet and removed all sugar and food dyes.. these things helped but they did not help enough for him to be a happy, normal kid.. the pill does.

[karne]

I edited my first post because I wanted to think about this a little more.  What it comes down to, for us, is a profoundly positive experience medicating for ADD.  I frankly wish we had done it much earlier, but we wanted to try "everything" else first-diet, OT intervention, fish oil, etc.  We being cautious, but there was also the fear element, ie "Don't drug your kids".  We have had no side effects except decreased appetite during the day.  We make sure that the food we provide is nutrient dense, and available when the hunger is there.  We also take weekend breaks from the meds.

[sleet76]

We are one of those families that tried medication early on for ADHD, after trying other things for only about a year.  We've had almost two years of a happy family and a kid who likes himself and can function positively in society.  All of our lives are greatly improved, especially my son's.  Many of the medications are easy to trial with no major time commitment for a build-up phase of weeks to get it into the system--if it seems to not work or be a negative thing for your child or family, then you stop, and your child has it out of his/her system in just a few hours.  I knew in the first 2 hours of our trial that we had found the tool that would allow my son to have a normal life.  

[columbusmomma]

This is another post about the positive effects of ADHD meds. DS started on vyvanse last year in 2nd grade. It has been very beneficial for him. Not a change in his personality at all. He can focus in school and doesn't spend time in trouble. He is doing great with his peers and his grades. We also make sure he has lots of physical play time, esp. outside. We also do omega 3,6,9 supplementation. His diet is pretty healthy too. I don't know where we'd be without medication!

[FarmerBeth]

Been there!  Our son actually suffered a depressive episode due to how he felt about himself and his ability at school.  He initially went on Straterra, with great results, and was able to concentrate enough to be the "real" kid with the great ideas I knew at home that he wasn't able to express in the busy school environment.  (We had previously homeschooled and he entered public school by his own wishes to be part of the community.  School success wasn't an issue for us parents but it sure was an issue for how my son felt about himself).

[queenjane]

My adopted daughter spent the past eight years in and out of different foster placements, disrupting most of them due to behavior. When she moved in with me, she was taking vyvanse for ADHD. Her previous foster mom said "it didnt do anything to help" and since i'm fairly "anti med" i took her off it for the summer. We spent many months dealing with very difficult behavior. In December she started Focalin XR (a mom on an adoption board im on said it did wonders for her dd who's behaviors sounded like mine) and the improvement was drastic and immediate. I went from wondering if we ruined our family by adopting this child, to parenting a fairly typical little girl. Her ability to focus in the classroom GREATLY improved...her teacher went from saying "i can't do this all year, i just wont!" and daily phone and email contact about behaviors, to saying she is doing great. I havent seen any negative effects on her personality (quite the contrary almost everyone is more willing to be around her now that she isnt so impulsive, doesnt violate personal boundaries so much, isnt so in your face and bouncy), no health issues, i suppose she may have decreased appetite (but mealtimes are often a control thing with her so who knows)...its been such a lifesaver for us. I missed her dose last Saturday and her behaviors started almost immediately. I wont say meds are for everyone but for us its been a great thing and a very positive impact on her life.

[SoCaliMommy]

  We don't medicate. We did try Concerta for a month with no change for my daughter and we only did it because the dr pushed meds.   My son recently saw a dr who said that if he does have ADHD and we chose drugs he'd been having monthly EKG's. Since moving my daughter is now starting to read at grade level which she was far behind at her other school.

[Guinevere]

Originally Posted by lisko15 

DD is 8 and in 2nd grade, and has recently been diagnosed by our family doctor and the school psychologist with ADD. Her focusing and concentration have been an issue since toddler-hood and since preschool its been raising the same red flags in the classroom. She gets distracted by everything in the classroom, she has a lot of trouble following directions for lessons, and she needs constant 1 on 1 reminders to refocus.

It seems to really be hampering her education at this point.

I’m working on getting her into a Pediatric Behavior department at a local hospital to see some specialists, but until then (as the wait for an appointment will be LONG), I’m battling quite a bit with trying a medication or not.

Still I am so concerned about side effects. DD is super sensitive to everything, she is already underweight, and has issues with anxiety and irritability. Will a medication just amplify all of these?

We’ve tried fish oil, but we’ve been unable to find it in a form she’ll consistently take without a major battle.

 Hi there! My oldest DS, who is 12, currently has a dx of ADD, and I highly suspect 2 of my other children have it, as well, although we are not yet pursuing an official dx for them (strong family history, DH has it, too.)

I culled out a few of your quotes from your OP to touch on. Like with your DD, I've known for a long time that DS had attention and focus issues (and quite a bit of hyperactivity as a preschooler, as well, which he has since grown out of.) But since he was happy and healthy and school was mostly going well, I saw no reason to pursue a dx or official treatment plan, although several docs had tried steering me towards meds for him in the past.

However, last year (5th grade), we really started to see negative effects with his academics. Everything snowballed -- he had a really bad year, and for the first time, I could see that his self-esteem and confidence were suffering along with his grades. Which spurred us into action.

First we tried dietary and lifestyle changes, including fish oil. He didn't mind taking it, but it really didn't help him much, either. We implemented tons of strategies to help him focus, some of which we still do now, but again, with very limited success. Lots of exercise, too, which again helped some, but not enough.

So we went ahead and got the official dx, but were also told the waitlist for any sort of therapy would be several months at least; did we wish to trial medication in the meantime? This was last summer. By that time, my DH had received his own dx of ADD and had started meds during the previous winter. The beneficial effects for him were so immediate and truly transformative, which is what finally made me willing to say, "Okay. Sign us up, we'll give this a shot!"

Your concerns about side effects are not unfounded. Some kids definitely do better on certain meds than others, and in our experience, a fair bit of trialling was involved in finding the right med and dosage. I think, all told, over a 4-month period, we ended up trying 4 or 5 different meds at 2-3 different doses. Some gave DS stomach upset. Some kept him up at night. Some affected his appetite. Others had no physical side-effects, but also no effects, period, on his behavior. Since my DH had immediate success with the first med he tried, at the first dosage he tried, this was all a bit disheartening, but I have since come to understand that child and adolescent neurochemistry is quite a bit more complicated, and that our experience isn't at all unusual. Interestingly, DS ultimately ended up on the same med DH takes: Adderall.

Now that DS has been on this med for almost 8 months, I can say unequivocally that it was the right choice, for him. The difference it has made is remarkable, dramatic, and POSITIVE. His personality remains wholly unaffected, but he is now able to be, as he puts it, the "best version" of himself, and that version is doing some really amazing things this year. His grades and overall quality of academic work are excellent. Even his extracurriculars, particularly sports, have benefited -- he's competing much better. He actually has more free time this year, too, which he loves, because he's no longer spending ALL his time trying to finish his work, find his stuff, or organize his life. He is vastly more efficient and effective at tasks of all kinds. We give him med breaks on weekends and holidays, but he often elects to take meds during some of those times, anyway, b/c *he likes himself better on meds.* Woah. I have to say, I never anticipated that piece of things, but I mention it b/c, obviously, taking meds has had a profound effect on him.

Okay, so that's the good. Here's the less good: he has lost weight as a result of going on meds, and he wasn't a big kid to begin with. There is a definite appetite suppressant effect. I was quite concerned earlier in the year when it seemed like he was going to keep on losing, but...he has since plateaued, and stayed constant. Also, he has continued to grow in height, so clearly his overall growth has not been affected. We provide a counter-balance to the no hunger thing by making sure everything he does eat is calorie dense and ensuring he eats a full breakfast before taking meds in the morning, as well as a large dinner AND nighttime snack. He rarely eats much for lunch/snack time, just isn't hungry.

He hasn't had anxiety issues as a result of the meds, but he's not an anxious kid to begin with. If this were one of my DDs, who does have an anxiety disorder, I would definitely want to thoroughly discuss her issues with the psych to make sure we started on a med not likely to exacerbate.

Good luck as you find your way through the maze of choices. This is definitely not a black-and-white issue, lots of gray here, which can feel really overwhelming, but on the flip side, it also means there's a lot of potential things to try that might really help your DD. Hope this helped a bit...

Kind regards,

Guin