Hi Everyone.
My son is 5.5 years old in Kindergarten so he's definitely on the younger side but his impulsivity and hyperactiveness was affecting him too much at school. It was also a safety issue with a lot of running away/elopement.
He was prescribed guanfacine 1mg (extended release) by the pediatric neurologist. Because he is young we all agreed a stimulant would not be the best idea so non-stimulant was our first attempt at providing him some support. He's been on it about 6 weeks now and we have seen an improvement and the incidents at school although not 100% gone they have gone down which we are happy about. Still doesn't help w focus and/or memory but it has slightly slowed him down so that he can make better choices....
Ped Neurologist told us to give it to him at night 2-3 hours before bedtime. But I believe I've read a lot of posts of kids that take it in the morning. Pediatric Neurologist recommended taking it at night b/c it can make him sleepy but I wonder if we switch to giving it to him when he wakes up in the morning would it have a better effect w impulsiveness at school b/c my thought is he's taking it at 5pm every day so is the effect of the medication lasting throuhg entire day at school (8a to 2p)?
Anyone here that switched from evening to morning dose for Guanfacine specifically? And for situations where it's just the non-stimulant the child is on?
Or would it be better to try increasing dosage but keeping it same evening routine...curious to to hear your experiences. THANK YOU!
How about the best of both worlds.. Could you ask for a 24 hour dose? Our amazing Child Psychiatrist started us at night with a dose that last 24 hours. Our non-stimulant helps to decrease impulsive behavior which is the root of our issues, then the non stimulant helps with focus and mood.
We are so thankful for the medication intervention.
Hope this helps.
is your child taking a non stimulant and a stimulant? The non stimulant my son is on is 24 hour dosage.... but was thinking that the effect of it is stronger first 12 hours but he's taking it at 5pm so 12 hours later is 5am and he's up by 7am so just wondering if we switch to morning dosage would have help him even more at school. I know a lot of students do that nonstimulant and a stimulant but since my son is so young (5 yrs old) we aren't ready for a stimulant yet and this is his first time taking any medication.... staying positive though....medicine intervention is helpful for sure
Yes, he takes a stimulant and non stimulant. Every parent worries about their child and medication. Studies about children with ADHD show the benefits of long term medications.
Just curious why his age worries you?
Stimulants only stay in their system as long as it is prescribed. So if it is dose is given for 4 hours, that means it is suppose to be their body and metabolised therefore uses and then it is no longing in their body until the next dose.
Our child psychartist recommend both a stimulant and non stimulant becuase each medication only has one "job". For our son he must have help decreasing his impulsive behavior and that is exactly what the stimulant does.
I understand your concern, but to me medication younger seem more beneficial. As our children with ADHD get older they gain maturity and this helps them know and understand how to control themselves. When they are younger they have no control.
I am not here to convince you of anything, just discussing the impact of not having the ability to control themselves and the benefits that medications provide.
With any medication you have the option of trying it and if it doesn't work you stop, without any "long" term consequence. The side effects are out of their system when the medication is gone. There is no " build up" in their system.
Hope this makes sense
Best of luck to you.
Well be open to stimulant once our son is 6 or 7. We are just getting started w meds and wanted to start w non stimulant first. But also our son is very slim and a picky eater. Didn’t want to give him a medication that would suppress his appetite and cause other issues. Once he matures a bit I hope his eating improves. Nothing against stimulants just not the time for it yet for our son who’s only 5.