Hey everyone! I have a 9 year old son with ADHD, and he takes 20 mg of Vyvanse each morning. It is working very well for him, but he is metabolizing through it very quickly, and it is out of his system by 3:30. I was interested in possibly giving him some CBD oil in the afternoon to help with his symptoms in the afternoon/evening, but I've read here that some are saying that CBD oil should not be given with stimulant meds. Now, is that still the case if it isn't given until after the meds have left the system? Is it okay to give it to him after the meds have worn off to help with the remainder of the day?
I appreciate your kind responses.
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KristiReeAZ
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I have been given my son a low dose of CBD Oil in the morning and afternoon. Our doctor still has not prescribed us medication (that's another discussion). We have seen a lot improvement with his anxiety but not much with the symptoms of ADHD. If you don't mine me asking, approximately how many milligrams of CBD Oil do you give your son?
HELLO! I JUST JOINED! I’M NOT SURE IF YOU’VE FINALLY PUT YOUR CHILD ON CBD OIL, BUT WE ARE STARTING THE ISOLATE SINCE THE BROAD FULL SPECTRUM CBD OIL HAS TRACE AMOUNTS OF THC, WHICH CAN AGGRAVATE ANXIETY MORE SINCE IT SPEEDS UP HEART RATE PLUS AT A YOUNG AGE IT IS BETTER TO AVOID THE THC BUT EVENTUALLY AS THEY GET OLDER IT SHOULDN’T BE MUCH OF AN ISSUE! THESE ARE THE DAYS WE ARE GUINEA PIGS SINCE WE DO NOT FULLY KNOW THE LONGTERM AFFECTS OF CBD OIL! THEY SEEM TO THING IT CAN SLOW DOWN RESPONSE BUT EVERYONE IS DIFFERENT PLUS THE BODY GOES THROUGH WITHDRAWALS WHICH IS SCARY! IT JUST DEPENDS ON YOUR SITUATION HOW SEVERE IT IS! MINE IS PRETTY SEVERE SO I HAVE EXHAUSTED OPTIONS! MY SON IS ON PROTANDIM WHICH IS A HOLISTIC OPTION! HE HAS DEFINITELY GOTTEN BETTER & COULD CONTINUE TO BUT HIS ADHD IS THROUGH THE ROOF & PROTANDIM AT THIS MOMENT IN TIME ISN’T AS AFFECTIVE! IT MAY BE DOWN THE ROAD BUT IN THE MEANTIME WE ARE STRUGGLING! I HOPE YOUR CHILD HAS IMPROVED! WISHING YOU THE BEST
Bring your concerns about the Vyvanse to your son's doctor and talk about changes in dose or a different medication or supportive intervention. That is a better choice and a more effective one for your son than including CBD oil. It may be a relatively easy fix and one that the doctor can better assist you with.
There is not any evidence that CBD oil will treat ADHD symptoms, which are related to executive function. There is limited research into CBD oil for anxiety, which has been done in small groups with adults, only. There is no indication that it would be effective in treating ADHD symptoms in children.
Also, there hasn't been research into possible interactions between CBD and other medications. So you run a chance of a medication interactions, especially since CBD oil is not regulated and you can't be sure of what you actually have.
Furthermore, using CBD oil could make it difficult for you to get good treatment for your son in the future, as many professionals will decline to work with people or families that us cannabis products, including CBD oil.
You might find our Q&A "Will ADHD Symptoms Improve with Marijuana?" at bit.ly/nrcmarijuanaQA to be helpful.
Our son is also on 20 mg vyvanse and some days it’s gone before 3. We’ve chosen to give a “booster” in the afternoon. It’s just 5 mg of Ritalin and it’s so much better. It took a couple of weeks to establish but makes such a huge difference in keeping evenings happier.
Vyvanse (like many stimulants) do have a short lifespan, which isn’t always bad for the long term health of our kiddos, but can be problematic for our kids “surviving” their last class of the day, completing any/all homework effectively/efficiently (without you and/or them wanting to rip your hair out), or participation in afterschool activities/sports. My son has ADHD (diagnosed at 5) and Autism Spectrum Disorder (diagnosed at 9) and has been on Vyvanse since he was 6 (was on Adderol at 5, but the weight loss and lack of sleep was too destructive). When my son began gymnastics, we quickly realized it wasn’t just a matter of being able to complete homework and focus during sports, it was also a SAFETY issue for him and his teammates since gymnastics can be dangerous if you’re not focused and impulsive. We opted to give him a fast-acting 5ml dose of Adderol (or was it Ritalin? It was a tiny oval blue tablet) afterschool (between ages 10-12) on the afternoons he had gymnastics practice (3+ days a week). It made a HUGE difference! I cannot impress upon you enough the benefits of discussing these concerns with his pediatrician/neurologist and if they don’t take you seriously, seek a second opinion elsewhere. As much as our family discourages the use of prescription medications, there are times and needs for them. I’ve seen so many kids who not only failed to succeed but also suffered social, emotional, and relationship detriments because it can take such a toll on them to “keep it together” to behave/act/appear like all the other neurotypical kids. I’d love one day for my son to not be on meds, as he’s getting older, we’re finding him taking more weekends off of meds (his choice) and we’re slowly seeing an increase in his ability to manage (he’s nearly 15 now) the symptoms of his ADHD/ASD, but it has taken a LOT of work at home, school, therapies, ADHD/ASD-specific summer camps (Talisman Programs) and kind/constructive conversations for him to become more self-aware so as to better negate, prevent, or diminish the challenges he faces from ADHD/ASD. At the end of the day, I believe our ADHD/ASD kids are quite brilliant, unfortunately they are on the outside looking in and sometimes feel trapped in their own mind/bodies. It takes so much effort to fit in with neurotypicals, it’s taken me years to personally wrap my own head around it. But I believe their unique qualities can help them succeed in ways that are not as effortless for neurotypicals. Companies like Microsoft are seeking individuals like our kids, because they can hyperfocus and see/do things that blow the rest of us out of the water Best of luck to you and your son. It does get easier, and some behaviors/challenges diminish, go away, or are replaced by different ones, but with your support, it does improve!
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Best of luck to you and your son. It does get easier, and some behaviors/challenges diminish, go away, or are replaced by different ones, but with your support, it does improve!
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