Focalin

[vivian2222]

Hello everyone,

My son psychiatrist wants to try Focalin this time. This will be the third medication that we have tried. Any common side effects, good or bad experience? What to watch for

Thank you so much

[Onthemove1971]

I don't have any experience with that medication. What I do have is a lot in fact I can't count of the number of different medications and combination of medication he has been on. Honestly I was not worried about how many we tried, I was worried about finding ones that worked. Finally now we are past that and doing o.k. I want to change his afternoon medication becuase it doesn't last long enough.

Good luck

[vivian2222 in reply to Onthemove1971]

Thank you so much 😊

[Hidden]

My son is on focalin and it has really worked for him

[mdmom]

My son is on Focalin, after trialing at least three other meds that were horrible for him, and he is doing amazing. The only side effect we have noticed is not much of an appetite at lunch, but he makes up for it when he gets home from school. It helps him focus so well his teacher said she's never seen such a dramatic change before. We are very happy to finally have found a med that works well.

[Cjkchamp]

Focalin was the third med for my son too. Only negative result was loss of appetite in the beginning. He is doing rally well on it and his appetite picked up over time.

[Elijah1]

We were told the following - give with or after breakfast since Focalin can cause headache or upset stomach (more common if taken on an empty stomach). It can decrease appetite and occasionally cause a later bedtime. These are usually transient side effects. It can aggravate anxiety and make one more emotional or irritable. However, it is usually well tolerated and can be very helpful.

[azgin]

We started focalin during the Thanksgiving break. It's our 3rd med. Concerta and Adderall weren't quite right. So far so good. My son's only compliant is it's bigger size. He's gone to school only one day so far on it. Fingers crossed this is the one.

[Idio]

My son was on Focalin and it improved his focus very well in school, but he said it gave him anxiety and he couldn’t stop worrying. He is 15, so he knew how to verbalize the feeling.

[GoDukes]

My 9 yr old son has been on it for a little over a year. We saw very good results with his attention at school in a short time, and his grades improved. It did reduce his appetite during the day. After six months or so it seemed he would get really irritated in the evening and become confrontational. I'd read that this was sometimes a side effect as the medicine would wear off. We started him on the lowest dose of Guanfacine at night which mellows him out and makes the comedown off the Foculin much more bearable. I resisted medication for the longest time but have been pretty happy with this combination. He is starting to have attention issues at school again so I am considering upping his dosage of the Foculin.

[DublTrublMom]

My daughter started Focalin XR in April and has been doing great on it. She is still on same dose. Her appetite is very low during the day, but she eats a good breakfast and dinner. Other than the occasional "crash" from the let down it's been good. She has been doing great in school and is able to focus.