Adderall- first day

[Aniusia]

Today my son took 5mg of Adderall for the first time. When he came home from school, he says his hands were shaky in school and he felt hyper. He also says he was throwing up. Then , around 2pm he felt tired and sleepy. Is that normal?

[Jorliss]

It takes time for the body to get used to it. The side effects of not being able to sleep at night will go away. I have also experienced the crashes and they are not pleasant. Is he on a slow release capsule or tablet?

[Aniusia in reply to Jorliss]

Hi Jorliss, he only took it one day. He had no problem falling asleep, however he said his hands were shaky and he felt hyper inside.

[Jorliss in reply to Aniusia]

I was diagnosed 45 years ago when ADHD wasn’t even a thing but they were spot in. I have every symptom. I can only tell you through experience it takes the body time for the medicine to kick in. Some doctors will tell you to only give the child the medicine when they need to concentrate. However, if I am not on my meds on Saturday and Sunday I can tell you by Monday I will be up later than normal. That is just my body reacting to the medicine so I know I need to be on them every single day.

I guess what I’m trying to tell you is don’t give up. Continue to give your child the medicine and see if the side effects wears off. Don’t let him give up either. Remember, you are trying to see which medicines work and which medicines don’t and by only giving it to him one or two days is not going to allow the doctor to rule out the medicine.

[Travelling]

Hello Aniusia, yes, that sounds normal. My son is on methylphenidate ( Ritalin) and it has taken some time ( months) to get the dosage right for side effects etc. Nausea is a common side effect and when the meds wear off there is a crash. Speak to your son’s doctor and keep a careful note of how he reacts as there are various preparations including qu CO acting and slow release. Everyone reacts differently and it will need tweaking. Good luck

[Aniusia]

Thank you Travelling, if I see an improvement in his behavior, I would be more motivated to fight the side effects, however, yesterday, when on Adderral, he ended up in In School Suspension. I don't know if I should continue Adderral and give it a chance, or I should stop. I got scared, because he did not have any side effects on Ritalin.

[nurse_nelly]

My son has been on SEVERAL stimulants but never experienced shaky hands. I would skip todays dose and call the Dr.... I have 2 kids who have ADHD and this seems a little odd. He will either need a lower dose of try something else. genesight test is pretty great too. It DOESNT tell you what medications your kid can take but it DOES tell you how their bodys breakdown (metabolize) certain medications and its a good place to start so you have an idea what meds he may have more side effects than others with.

[Aniusia in reply to nurse_nelly]

Hello and thank you. He already had the genetic test done. I did exactly what you suggested. I did not give the Adderral to him today. I was thinking of trying it over the weekend when I can see myself what is going on .

[Eclecticentric77]

It takes the body time to get used to the stimulant like many others have said. I was diagnosed with Inattentive ADHD in my mid 20s, and started taking the same medication your son does, only difference is I take 10mg of it, and combine it with helpful supplements to fight off the negative side effects that come with continued stimulant medication use. Unfortunately a very large majority of psychiatrists do not tell you anything about taking supplements to help fight off the large quantity of negative side effects that occur or can occur when taking stimulant medication. This is something I really hope to change after I get my Masters Degree and become an MFT Psychologist. I'm currently in grad school and have studied ADHD and worked with kids/adults with ADHD for the past few years.

I would highly recommend these to start out with. Unfortunately after about 6 months to a year, the medication will stop working as well as it did in the start. This is primarily due to multiple neurotransmitters becoming depleted, but thankfully supplements can greatly help that. But for now I would HIGHLY recommend you start out with these:

1. A good multivitamin with antioxidants

2. CoQ10 to keep his heart rate and blood pressure from rising and staying at a safe level. This is common with stimulant medication.

3. Melatonin 300mcg 6hr release: this is to help get a really good night's sleep. 300mcg is the optimal dose based off some studies I've looked at and was the primary dosage when first synthesized around the mid 20th century. Studies have shown that melatonin also helps fight off oxidation which stimulant medications are known to produce a lot of, especially after continued use.

4. a good source of antioxidants: You can get this from multiple sources. I take a supplement called R-Alpha Lipoic Acid which is known to one of the most powerful antioxidants out there. It really helps the medication work to its full potential while fighting off oxidation. And another option or addition would be Matcha Green Tea. Matcha Tea has the largest amount of antioxidants out of any other tea.

5. N-Acetyl Tyrosine: This supplement helps boost Dopamine and Norepinephrine, those are the two neurotransmitters most stimulant medications work with. The crash that happens after the medication wears off is because those two neurotransmitters are lower temporarily, which is why people experience irritability, sadness etc. I take N-Acetyl Tyrosine an hour or 30min before my medication wears off and thankfully have not experienced the crash of medication ever since.

6. Flaxseed Oil and Chelated Magnesium: Those two supplements really put the medication in its place so to speak, when it comes to fighting off issues in transference of chemicals and neurotransmitters in the body, skin issues, and when it comes to helping eliminate issues with nausea and especially digestion.

If any of this sounds helpful and of your interest, you can click my pic and it will take you to my profile where I have a link in my bio that includes all these supplements as well all the ones I personally take. I am not selling anything, the link will take you to a helpful google word doc I made that includes information on each supplement, what places sell it, and how much it costs. Hope this helps.

[Aniusia]

The doctor responded and suggested Abilify 5mg-start with half a pill. Stop Adderral and combine Ritalin with Abilify.

Does it all have to be so hard?