Off meds for summer

[azgin]

We are considering taking our son off meds for the summer. The pediatrician is fine with it. Id like to here your thoughts and experiences. Thank you!

[Onthemove1971]

For us, there is no way I could survive a summer without medication. Plus why the whole summer? I/he would be miserable!

No thanks

[Gary_B in reply to Onthemove1971]

Our son took an adhd medication vacation last summer. His psychiatrist said she was all for taking time off over the summer. His issues are mostly impulse control and executive functioning skills needed for school and he was a lot more physically active over the summer which helped. The time off also helped with his weight which is affected by the meds. He’s 13 and is prescribed Cotempla XR-ODT. He also takes a generic Zoloft which he continued over the summer.

[anirush]

My grandsons have trouble with aggression. No way I'm going to put up with that for a whole summer.

Sometimes when you take a child off a medication it wont work the same when you put him back on either.

Pediatricians aren't always experts on ADHD. My grandson's pediatrician told me that I would be better off with a psychiatrist because he didn't know that much about medications.

[seller]

You don't say how old your son is, but our experience has been that kids 10+ probably need their meds all year long. ADHD is a neurological disorder that does not ever go away completely and affects behaviors in all areas, not just school. You will want your son to "buy into" the fact that he needs this medication on a daily basis before too long, so it's a good idea not to let him think that it's okay to not take it.

[Dsmith05]

Taking breaks from stimulants can be healthy. It can prevent tolerance to a dose or particular medication preventing the need to switch doses or meds. It can also help with the side effects. When I took my son off stimulants permanently he ate for a full 2 weeks non-stop! And he had not been taking them on weekends,vacations, or holidays already. he, also, started playing outside again and I mean a lot outside which I think is healthy for him.

Every kid is different. My son is aggressive at school but not at home. He can do his chores without meds and his schoolwork/extra academic work easily at home, but not so much in the classroom or in groups. Other kids may need extra help in the summer. Here is an article that goes over both points.

medscape.org/viewarticle/51...

[azgin]

My son take the meds to help him stay focused and listen during school. He is basically the same kid on them as off of them at home. We don't notice a big difference in his day to day behavior. A break from the meds wouldn't hurt him during the summer. I could see if he had some of the other issues you all have mentioned, like aggression. Thank you for the replies. Good points all around.

[Clarabelle95]

My son (14) takes focalin xr during the school year. He needs it mostly for executive function issues. Last summer we had him stop taking the extended release and had him take non xr for swim practice and that was it. Were there some trying days where I wished he was taking his meds full time? Absolutely. But he really wanted a break and I wanted him to eat! It worked for us. We will see how it goes but plan on doing same this summer.

[Ocjd]

This is a very good thread. I am more than willing to see how DS14 handles being off of his XR Concerta 36mg this summer once finals are over. He is finishing his freshman year in HS and has a heavy load of honors classes. I'd love for him to be able to eat like his old self and put some weight on his 6ft1 117lb frame at least for a little while. Problem is he starts ACT classes a couple of weeks after school is out so we are considering having him just on the Immediate release Ritalin for that which lasts about 4 hours. He only takes 10mg anyway. He generally just needs meds for focus at school and on homework.

The problem is that his Concerta helped with his social issues as well but I guess we need to find out if he's learned to keep up his good habits on his own but he's still young for his grade and won't turn 15 until right when his soph year starts. This was his first year on meds and he's doing great in school.

We did not really give him medication vacations this school year because he always had homework.

I would love to hear other parent stories about their experiences.

[Hidden]

My daughter is 12 and there is just no way I could take her off her medication. She actually asks for it and likes how it helps her. She is also diagnosed bipolar, but for the ADHD she likes that it helps her focus. He psychiatrist recommends the consistency of the medication for her. I know there are a lot of people who take the vacation from meds, but at least for my daughter I feel and her doctors believe she needs the consistency. Good Luck!

[coopha]

We take ours down for the summer, but not totally off. He is in a much better mood when we take the Vyvanse away and he doesn’t need it if he’s not at school.

We just stay on anti anxiety meds only.

[Pennywink]

My son asked to try without the meds this summer. I told him we'll give it a test run for a few days - but I don't anticipate it lasting that long even. Usually 9a is the longest I can take it without medication - lol. If I didn't want him to put on some weight, I'd probably say no completely. Plus, I don't want him to think that medication is a bad thing that he needs to try to overcome.

[Janice_H]

Hello, allowing your child to take a break from medications is always a great idea. I tried it last summer. My son remained off medication for the entire school year that followed.

You will be fine as long as you are able to cope with any changes in behavior and impulses. Allowing lots of physical outlets may help (biking, hiking, sports, etc.)