Nonstimulant Medication

[Flagball]

My 12 year old son has no appetite when on stimulant medications. His main symptom is inattentiveness. What experience have you had with non stimulant medication such as Qelbree, Guanfacine, Clonidine, Bupropion?

[Trying1978]

We've only tried Ritalin but boy do I hear you. I think I have bought every food product in existence this year. Tbh I just buy his little sister's squeezy applesauces in gross now bc he'll always eat them out & about! Our Dr told us at his age (6.5), it's just a "calories game. " But worrying about this is a huge part of my life now, too 🙄

[cajunmom16]

We started our 6yo on qelbree in June and while it took a solid 2 weeks to start really working, we like it better than the stimulant he was on previously (focalin). His primary symptom is hyperactivity/ impulsive. He is hungry seemingly all the time with this med which is a huge change from the qelbree.

[BVBV in reply to cajunmom16]

Does your son sleep OK on qelbree?

[cajunmom16 in reply to BVBV]

Yes, we actually noticed it makes him more sleepy overall during the day - he sometimes takes a catnap now and he hasn't needed naps for years - but he seems to sleep fine at night.His biggest complaint is the taste. We have struggled to find something to mix in with the granules (the capsule is too big for him yet) that alleviates the taste.

[gihgetmom]

Hi! My 14yo son was just diagnosed about a month ago as primarily Inattentive, and because he was already having sleep and anger issues, as well as a growth hormone deficiency and social anxiety, our pediatrician recommended starting with 1 mgGuanfacine instead of a stimulant. It has really helped with his overall emotional regulation. He is a much more agreeable person now and it has helped with his anxiety quite a bit. But I'm concerned it isn't doing much for his focus or motivation. It's still summer, so I don't know for sure. But I'm just not convinced it's going to help the way he needs it to when it comes to focus in school and for homework. But I'm a big fan of what the Guanfacine has done so far! We just increased to 2mg so I'm monitoring that now. We were told that we wouldn't see any effects for a few weeks but we saw them within two days. His blood pressure has held steady and we haven't had any side effects like dizziness or fainting.

[Sankhara]

We have only tried non -stimulants. We started with 2mg of Guanfacine & eventually bumped it to 3mg. When we tried 4mg, it made our 12-year-old very sleepy. 3mg seems to work well. We tried Qelbree for three days & he was alarmingly lethargic. I find that Guanfacine helps with mood control & focusing.

I also recommend neurofeedback & Hardy’s micronutrients. Those together have greatly helped getting deep, restorative sleep.

[MyWanderfulBoy in reply to Sankhara]

Can you please tell me more about your experience with neurofeedback? We just started our son (almost 6 yo). He’s a few sessions in. I understand it takes 20-40 sessions to see a change. I’m just hoping to hear a positive experience for encouragement. It’s quite expensive but we figure it’s worth a try.

[Sankhara in reply to MyWanderfulBoy]

Yes, I think the cost of neurofeedback is worth it if you can swing it. I just met a mom who has been taking her ADHD-diagnosed son who is almost 11, to neurofeedback once a week, and she notices a big difference in his sleep patterns. In our case, I bought a machine (from a company called "Neuroptimal"). It was incredibly expensive, but since I have a sleep disorder myself, and I knew we could use the machine indefinitely, I justified the cost. At first, my son and I each did it twice a week, and we noticed that we slept better those nights. About 9 months in, we started doing it every night (as it can't harm you), and that was great. Hardy's Micronutrients made a big difference with regards to not getting up to go to the bathroom in the middle of the night (for my son). I don't know why. I have read that treatment for ADHD is most effective when medication & neurofeedback (and supplements?) are combined.

[Sankhara in reply to Sankhara]

I will also say (briefly) that my 12-year-old is almost a year and a half into these new practices: regular neurofeedback and taking Guanficine, and about 3 months into taking the Micronutrients, and he has made vast strides in getting deeper sleep, exhibiting emotional regulation, and attuning to others. He now has a regular group of friends (something that had been a huge challenge for him). I do still see challenges with regards to him repeating himself over and over when a word or phrase is funny to him (even when this annoys people around him, especially his younger brother). He can also be flippant and disrespectful in ways that are not age appropriate. But he is more self-regulated, very academically focused and stimulated, and growing in noticeable ways. I think that these interventions have largely been successful.

[MyWanderfulBoy in reply to Sankhara]

Thank you so much for sharing. He luckily sleeps really well already so I hope the neurofeedback helps with his focus.

[ELucas13]

We had a lot of issues on stimulants so we tried Guanfacine and that was a real game changer. Guanfacine's initial side effects are mostly fatigue, at least for us, but this goes away. We also have tried Stratterra and Qelbree. Stratterra made him very sick and Qelbree incredibly emotional. Stimulants are, based on my knowledge [not a doctor, here ;)], the best for inattentiveness; non-stimulants will help but are not nearly as effective for the inattentive portion. So if appetite is the only side-effect, I'd say you are doing OK even though it's stressful in regard to the eating.

It's a cost-benefit analysis and I know people will take a break from stimulants just to get their kids eating again, whether on the weekend or when school's out, but this is an individual decision. Everyone's experience is so different so I'd speak with your doctor to figure out your best way forward. We put our kid on Vyvanse (stimulant) in addition to the Guanfacine because the non-stimulant was helpful but it couldn't get him focused enough to get through school/tutoring.

Aw, the art of medicating a child with ADHD!

[blues_22]

We are going through the same thing with our 11 year old. He has been on Methylphenidate for about a year and has lost 3 lbs. and he can't afford to lose any weight. Just last week we started him on Strattera but have to continue to give him the Methlyph. at the same time until the Strattera kicks in. So far no side affects from Strattera but we'll see. Good luck!

[Mom2ADHD]

My kiddo has been on Concerta since second half of kindergarten. He will be turning 11 in about 2 weeks and is barely 50 lbs. We don’t give him any meds during the weekend to try to put some weight on him but recently tried Qelbree for the the weekend. It of course does not help at all with focus but since it’s the weekend he is more manageable and seems happier. We only use if we have some kind of plans during the weekend because it does make him sleepy. As you my biggest issue is no Appetite and his sleep is non existence.