NEW mom with Son 8 years old with ADHD...and i am feeling frustrated.

[sonyacuellar]

Hello everyone! My son was diagnosed with ADHD over a year ago. He is currently taking vyvanse along with intuniv ER. Vyvanse is his second meds, first was a patch but it didn't work. He is in the 3rd grade, and everyday is a struggle. First issue is he dosent eat. lost 8 pounds since he started vyvanse, and his sleeping patters if off. he up at all hours and wont go to sleep at a reasonable hour. Lately he has these outbursts that sometimes last up to an hour. He angry all the time when hes with me or at home, but at school and at doctor visits hes so quiet and polite. HEs a totally differnet child. UNBELIVEABLE!! I have a hard time getting him to do his homework, can take hours to complete if at all. Hes mean to his sister and me. Has occasionally talked about death which is becoming more frequent. I am so frustrated and i cry at times cause its so much to handel. I need advice from anyone, on what yall are doing. I am not sure if the meds arent working, or he has other issues. any advice will be greatly appreciate. thanks

[ChrissyWelsh]

SO sorry to hear what you are going through. I take my son to a psychiatrist for his ADHD treatment and the counseling he provides helps us. My son went through the sleeplessness and lack of eating. He did not gain weight or grow for over a year. He was taking focalin at the time. He did begin eating better especially when the meds wore off. I give him melatonin to help him sleep - if you son gets some sleep maybe the irritability will decrease. I also use essential oils for may things - including sleep and focusing.

[mvang03 in reply to ChrissyWelsh]

Hi! What e oils do u use? Do u use a diffuser too?

[gthom]

My thoughts are with you and your family, it is really hard, we know your pain. I took my son off his meds because of all those negative side effects and then some... I'm NOT suggesting you do that because I'm not a professional, just a mom. My son will be seeing a therapist, soon I hope, and currently I am to (this is the first one who can actually relate to me), that's been really helpful. He's mean to his sister to.... choke, punches, calls her names and even peed on her once. The only thing that works for me is threating to take the TV away or giving him the TV.... it's the only thing that interests him. Time outs do not work for us, they can go on for hours or he destroying the room he's in. I get the split personality thing to, it's the same for us..... hang in there, you can do this. Just keep loving yourself and your son!!!

[advocating4alton]

I’m sorry I know your story very well...my son was taking vyvanse ans intuuv as well. I chose to stop him on those because the response was not what we expected. However my son has Autism as well. So I fought to gain the program and modifications he needed to get through school days. I in turn can handle him and his emotions off meds at home. I know all our situations are different and I am blessed to be able to stay home and give extra attention needed but it’s not easy. I will say for sleepless nights GUMMIE MELATONIN worked for us.

Our psychiatrist said up to 10mg. Would be ok and it works wonders for the nights my sons sleepless nights. It is natural!

I pray things get better for you...it is trial and error but please trust YOUR MOTHERLY INSTINCTS.

[Julief1976]

Intuniv made my son very angry and pms like

Symptoms. Very irritable. Focalin works for us. We give clonodine and melatonin to help him sleep and give periactin to help stimulate his appetite. Good luck and hang in there

[carey957]

Oh no! It took us awhile to get my son on the right medication. He took two different ones that caused him to be very emotional, almost depressed, and he's a pretty silly, smiley kid. Just gets into EVERYTHING. Have you tried Focalin ER (extended release)? We have the generic form, my son takes it right before we head out the door in the morning, and it usually wears off around 4 or so. I try to get his homework done RIGHT after school because otherwise its a mess! He too lost weight & didn't want to eat. So I feed him a breakfast with protein (usually cheese & some sort of a meat, he isn't super jazzed on eggs) then I give him his pill as we're leaving (so that he has it for the time he's in school). I don't know that he eats much at lunch, but once his meds wear off, he eats like a man, and I let him. My pediatrician suggested getting him some carnation instant breakfast powder to add calories in his milk. Once his meds are out of his system, he is a handful... I too, have been driven to tears on many a night. Mornings are awful, lots of yelling and frustration, evenings are the same. I give my son melatonin a half an hour before bed. It works. He takes Zarbees chewable sleep melatonin for kids (I get it at Target, but they sell it on Amazon). He's 10 now so he takes 3 of the 1 mg tablets... you can also buy chewable melatonin on Amazon at higher doses (3mg & 5 mg) if he needs a little more. It's been a GODSEND for bedtime. Hope this helps you! Hang in there Mama, parenting is hard!!!

[AlwaysRyan]

Hi!

Does your son have a 504 Plan or an IEP? If not, you might want to look into this; it seems he needs some accommodations to assist him with his school. The meds can have major side effects that may not be ADHD related but a side effect. Have you tried getting him up earlier in the morning so when he does get home, maybe he will be tired? For his outburst that last about an hour, maybe figure out what set him off and work from there. What is his temperament in school besides being quiet and polite? Does he complete his assignments in school ? Does he has any behavior or academic issues at school?

Good Luck!

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