If he already shows aggressive tendencies then Adderall is not the drug for him. Adderall's most common side effect is increased aggression. Both of mine were on Adderall and their aggression went up big time. So they didn't stay on Adderall for very long.
Tammy
ditto to tammy's comment. both of mine tried adderall and had increased aggression and keith had hallucinations. i had to file a report with the mftr and with the fda, over the hallucinations. it was really bad.
we went to strattera and metadate for keith and just straterra for kameron, but kameron is undiagnosed for anything other than add....he is a work in progress.
good luck,
kate
My son is 5 and is mild PDD and MAJOR sensory issues, developmentally delayed and he is on Clonidine in the day and night. I find it to help get him to sleep easier, but does not do much for him in the day. Anyway, the doctor wants to try Adderall and was wondering if anyone else's child was on it and what do you think of it? Helpful? Any major side effects? I am nervous about starting a new medication. My son can't focus on anything. He is very learning disabled. Can't even really write. He starts full day kindergarten in a special needs class and I am so worried how he will do. He gets mad and frustrated so easily. He is very hypersensitive to sounds. He will go into a rage if he hears someone getting yelled out!!! I can't figure that out!!!!! It is sooo very stressful with my son. I feel like nothing helps him. Some days I feel like I am dying a slow death......
Thanks!
Marie
The adderall I had for my kids I got refills on. There are two different types of adderall. I can't think of the second adderall, what it is officially called. Now with concerta, I do not get refills on that at all.
Tammy
The Adderall Tyler had been prescribed was Adderall XR - Sorry I should have done better homework... I was under the impression it would be the same no matter if it was XR or not.
Adderall also didn't help Tyler... plus it is somethign like a class 3 narcotic so you have to get a new script each month because the Dr is not allowed to call or fax in a scropt and there can not be any refills on the bottle.
Adderall CAN increase aggression but remember all kids respond differently.
Clonidine I have heard of being used for sleep and to help calm during the day but it is in and out of the system so quickly (about 4 hours)
I'm curious what seems to be the biggest problems.... Is aggression a result of frustration from not being able to focus or from sensory issues or is aggression and sensory the reason he cant stay focused? Have you tried using headphones that reduce background noise?
our son shawn is now 9 and has been tried on adderall twice.both times he became very violent and aggressive.he is currently on 4 different meds that seem to be doing well for him at this time.valium,prozac,abilify,and trazidone.hes just like you decribe your son.hes in 4th grade with a first grade level and in special ed most of the time.i feel the same way about him as you do.some days i feel like im being punished for something but you just got to keep the faith and keep on fighting for what is best for him.and so far ive found that you got to fallow what your gut and heart tell you to do.just dont give up.i hope all this advice helps you out and it might also help to do research before you make any decisions. im sorry your going through all this like i said ive been doing it with my son and im pretty sure all of us here feel for you any time you need to talk or spout off give us a yell.
ttsunrise ( proud mother of shawn )
My DS is 10 and has been on Adderall XR for two years. We did haveXR could be a time release sorta like Concerta is. But who knows, the FDA has some screwy rules out there.
Tammy
My son has been on Adderral, most of the shcool year last year. We had more problems with agression before he was on than after. He is actually very calm on this. In fact, the doc nver mentioned it. He is also on Abilify for agressive behavior, and that is a miracle. He doesn't hurt his brothers very often now. It was almost daily before. He is in a regular class in 4th grade last year and ended the year with a's and b's. We had to stare at the report card to make sure it was his. He was failing 3rd grade at a different school. I love the Adderral.
My son was on Adderal XR. It was horrific for him. i've heard/read on the CHADD posts of parents that had the same terrible experiences with it. It is a narcotic, an amphetamine. It is a very potent drug. I hated it. Benjamin was zombied by it. He went totally flat-lined on a small dose. The rebound effect was unbelievable, a major Jekyll-Hyde scene. I was terrified of what I was doing to my son. We didn't stay with that craziness long. Janet
Paul was on Adderal and then on Adderal XR--he did ok but it was an iffy improvement. Didn't have any increased aggression but wasn't sure it was helping. Took him off for 6 mos or so and then tried Concerta--fabulous. He's been on that for 3 years. We tried to up it late spring as he was having a lot of trouble--and he is getting bigger so....Well that was a really big bad idea. He was insane. But he has had psychotic reactions before to meds or to too high a dose. We dropped him back down the next day. We waited a month or so and then layered in Abilify. Fab. He's doin' great.
You can see by reading this how different all of these children react. And they change and suddenly what worked doesn't anymore.
My OPINION, my advice is get a good dr who knows pediatric psychotropic meds. Usually not your family dr--a psychiatrist, neurologist, developmental specialist--who knows kids. And it could be a pediatrician, it's just more of a specialty than peds think it is. Psychotropic meds are tricky. But if you and your dr are thinking of trying something....try it. You don't know how your child will respons. There is nothing lost by trying it. In my opinion. And just because one stimulant doesn't for ADHD on your child a different one might. They may be in the same class of drugs but they are not the same. There are stimulants, anti-depressants, anti-psychotics and then little odd ones like Clonidine which is a blood pressure med. Paul has tried more than one of each class of meds and has had bad rxns to one and is fab on another. It takes a long time to get it all titrated. Its a cocktail. And very knew.
Ok, ok I'm putting my soapbox away. I just never would have seen my son smile at 8 months if it weren't for Phenobarbital which I resisted for months while Paul (and I) suffered with his terrible colic.
Every kid is different. You know pretty quickly whether or not it's going to be helpful. I give an appropriate period of time for that med (work v. close with the dr) and if I can't see a clear positive change I stop the med (with the dr).
Soapbox gone.
pat
I take Adderall XR,and it works for me, I too also have sensory issues [QUOTE=Powaygrl] I take Adderall XR,and it works for me, I too also have<FONT face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"
size=3>My OPINION, my advice is get a good dr who knows pediatric
psychotropic meds. Usually not your family dr--a psychiatrist,
neurologist, developmental specialist--who knows kids.
pat
[/QUOTE]