Our son’s pediatrician had asked us to consider a medication vacation this summer by either reducing dose or skipping weekends. Since going on medication over a year ago, we’ve only missed one day by accident and it seems to cause all kinds of problems and took a few days to get back under control.
He’s 7 years old and will be in out of school care for the summer and don’t think it’s the best idea, but do want to consider it if it’ll help him bulk up a bit.
Does anyone else do this? What are your experiences?
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BlueysMom
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He’s still doing ok on the growth charts but could stand to do better. You’d swear he disappears when he turns sideways. He also tends to lose weight in the summer.
My Dr has said that about our daughter as well. They suggest maybe stopping on weekends for her to bulk up with food. We just recently came back from a weeks vacation and did not give her medication for her to bulk up on food. While she did gain a couple pounds her temperament was off the chart. So I guess it’s a bit of give-and-take..
I Literally have to Force her to eat something in the morning while she takes her medication lunch is very sparse and dinner is her biggest meal. While she has not lost weight she has plateaued and has not gained weight. She is 10
Good luck
In the summer if we have no plans I will usually skip the meds. My son is usually pretty good if we are hanging out home all day and he will constantly ask for food those days. If we have plans I definitely give him the meds. Do what you feel you need to do.
I have tried this for a week after school was over just for my own personal reasons. I never loved the idea of medication so a holiday from it makes sense to me. My son is also 7 and let me tell you that week was extremely difficult. I kept telling myself that the medication was really just needed for school and that we could deal with the change in behavior without it over the summer. My house was a war zone that week, everything was a battle, nothing could get done, even with the extra reminders and extra understanding that things would be harder for him. The defiant behavior started as well as a lot of new things I had never seen before. Each tough day snowballed into the next and it got to the point that if we weren’t going to allow him to do whatever he wanted, when he wanted for however long he wanted then the battle just wouldn’t end. As much as I agree with the holiday I too want him to enjoy his summer without all of these difficulties. He’s in camp now and we have gone back to giving him the medication everyday and when he’s home we are all able to enjoy our time together without everything being a battle. When he isn’t taking the medication he absolutely eats more. He has always been on the skinnier side and has bounced back and forth about 3 pounds on and off the medication. We used to just not give it on weekends and he would eat a lot more during those days. I will definitely try the holiday again in the future as I tell myself that as he gets older some of these behaviors may be outgrown.
Wow, this sounds identical to my son. And he's currently on medication. We are raising his does, so hopefully some of these behaviors will subside with a higher dose. But the war zone this house has been--- oh. My. Gosh. So miserable!!!! Thanks for sharing!
I try to do the same with my 10 year old daughter also let her skip when she’s home with me on weekends. She eats a lot more then. I feel the same like I have to force her to eat when she’s on the meds. The days she’s not on the meds she can be extremely hyper and non stop all day long so I do it when she’s with me. The doctor mentioned stopping them all summer to gain some weight but it’s hard to do because I have a sitter and family members watching my kids and it’s hard for other people some times when she doesn’t take her meds. She hasn’t lost weight she’s kind of staying the same. In the beginning she was losing a little.
As the mother to a 23 year old, I can tell you that ADHD affects everything - not just school. I think if you read one of the posts below, you will see that even young kids struggle with the effects of ADHD when they're not on medication. I know that some of the side effects of the meds are concerning, like weight loss, etc. But I can tell you that the pros outweigh the cons. Any organized activities like camps or sports would cause difficulties and a vacation could end up being a nightmare. ADHD is forever - it's a neurological disorder that requires specific medications to fully control the symptoms. I can definitely tell when my son has not taken his meds - he is so disorganized and can't get anything done, and now he finally realizes this! You really aren't doing your son any favors by not giving him his ADHD meds, especially if he really has behavioral problems. And you're not doing yourself or your family a favor either because again, ADHD affects both son and everyone else around him! I would keep the routine going.
Thanks for the different perspectives everyone. When I can catch my son in a moment of clarity, he’s great at communicating what it feels like in his brain. On our way home yesterday, I asked him about the day he didn’t take his pill and how it felt and he said it didn’t feel good and he didn’t like it. I think for us, that’s answer enough.
I do get curious to see what he’d be like off meds but get that time in the morning before he’s eaten and had his meds and while waiting for them to kick in.
I was talking to an adult adhd once about it and like others above have alluded to, she thinks it’s crazy to say that just because you’re not working that day or in school, that you don’t need to be able to focus or be calm.
If I’m ever brave enough, I might consider a slight decrease on certain days...
If I took my grandson's off their medicine for the summer I wouldn't be able to live with them. Some kids only has minor ADHD and that would be fine but kids that have major behavioral problems feel better about themselves if they're under control. And their parents aren't ready to run away from home
We've taken our 12 year old off meds for the summer. He's doing ok with behavior. We really hoped he would gain weight. I think he's acquired an eating disorder since he's been on vyvance. He has chewed the same bite of food for 12 minutes before...a bite of pancake. Now he has to still be told to eat constantly at a meal or he just sits there. He's gained 3 1/2 lbs in 23 days but it comes with so much nagging. I just hoped being off the meds he would be like any other jr. high kid that wants to snarf down as much food as possible at meals. Not so. If I wasn't on it he would skip meals all day long I think.
You may want to try giving him smoothies. You can make them as fattening or healthy as you want. i have a fantastic tasting one if he likes chocolate, peanut butter and banana. Tastes like a milkshake.
My younger son is 13 w ADHD and ODD. He hates that he has no appetite and things don’t taste good when he’s on meds so he refuses to take meds when he’s not in school. So weekends and school breaks are without meds. It’s been good in terms of him gaining some weight. But it’s definitely more difficult for me (and the rest of the family). I’m not going to try and force him to take it and I’m glad to see he’s not so skinny, but it would be nice if he took it some of the time when he was home. Lol
I would never take him off the meds cold turkey! Some meds are addictive and taking him off may result in withdrawal symptoms and even if they aren't addictive get a second opinion from an expert (most pediatricians are not when it comes to drugs) about what it will do to his system giving him meds, taking him off, putting him on.
By the way, my son got sick and was unable to swallow his meds, he really did start having withdrawal symptoms. Thank goodness it was only a couple of days before he was able to get back on the meds and get back to his usual not perfect self, chuckle, chuckle.
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