Medication without behavior problems?

[regardingtheboys]

My son (age 9) has a combined type ADHD diagnosis. Of course he has some lagging skills which lead us to the evaluation process in the first place. However, two years since the child's assessment, I am still uneasy with how to proceed. He does not have many behavior problems at school. His current struggles include: slow worksheet pace, poor writing and spelling, and immature interests and social skills. He can be inattentive and stand-offish in the classroom, but is a happy kid. The bottom line is, he may benefit from a stimulant to help him get going (and keep going) on his schoolwork. It feels overzealous though, because he is generally quite happy and not a behavior problem in the classroom. Anybody have advice on, what feels like, medicating for school performance?

[Pennywink]

Have you talked to his teacher or the school? They may have some input. A 504 of school accommodations could help, if one isn't in place already.

[Onthemove1971]

Welcome to the group. I think if you look up ADHD for a definition it would describe each of these issues you talked about. Without intervention, these symptoms will continue in all avenues of life for him.

For us middle school was so challenging. When a child goes from 1 classroom and 1 teacher, to 6-7 teachers and switching classes and all of the social demands it really makes life hard for them.

Here is the good news, if you give medication a try you will really quickly know if it helps him. Most ADHD ( Ritalin, Addrell, etc) medications are short acting so it will help and last a short time in his system, it doesn't need to be taken for a long time before you really see a difference.

If it doesn't work then you can stop and you will know you tried.

Finding the right medication can be a trial and error period. The doctor must get the right type, dose and timing of the medication.

One last thing, with the right medication, he will continue to stay with his happy personality will. I recently saw an adult with ADHD say " taking medication was like a leaf blower, pushing away all of the fog on my brain". Without the medication that person said they were not successful at many tasks like organization, concentration, etc..

Hope this all makes sense.

We are here for you any time.

[Janice_H]

Hello, medication may improve his pace at completing school work but will not improve handwriting, spelling or change his interest & social skills. Does your child have any educational supports in place (504/IEP)? If not, you may want to ask the school about establishing one of these plans. An occupational therapist can help him with handwriting if he has any fine motor skill deficiencies. Using a slanted writing surface or using larger pencils can also improve handwriting. Spelling can be a task for children with ADHD, but with repetition it does get better. Let your son be interested in whatever he likes. If he still likes playing with blocks and games younger kids would engage with, that is alright. Coach him on social skills and encourage him to use the skills you teach him in social settings.

There is nothing wrong with your boy. Accept him for where he is now, lower your expectations, love and encourage him. When we set our expectations too high, we find ourselves disappointed and frustrated. Best wishes and hugs!

[Pennywink in reply to Janice_H]

True - medication will not be a quick fix to all the issues. But medication could improve his ability to learn handwriting, spelling, social skills. It depends on why he is behind in those things. If it was because his ADHD was preventing him from absorbing that information, he could eventually catch up with medication.

Medication has not improved my son's handwriting - so it is an additional issue for him and not just from ADHD. Though it has improved his maturity & social skills over time, as he is now able to process & catch up in these areas.

but you are right - school support is also a vital component here.

[myspecialkid]

I echo the replies above. One thing i would add is the catching up part. Once we got on the right med for my then 7 yr old we noticed homework pace was much faster, but also had to get a ELA tutor to help catch up. The tutor focuses on reading, spelling/phonetics, writing (aka "printing") and comprehension. Most of these early concepts are taught in kindergarten/ early 1st grade. By 2nd grade (which was when we started focalin xr and micronutrient supplements) the curriculum assumes students know the basics so i realized we had to do the extra work at home to help catch up to school peers. Her printing has got a whole lot better and so has her reading level.

It's not overzealous to medicate for school performance if it helps your child focus and understand the curriculum. Otherwise, the child will "get by" while missing the basics.

[Idontgetit]

Hi, I have 1 son diagnosed with adhd at 7. I waited to put him on meds until 9 and that was a mistake. My advice to you would be to check for learning disabilities. I found out my son has mild dyslexia and a language disorder. It affects his reading, writing, concentration. I really focus on medication and therapy since then. If you have any other questions don't hesitate to message me.