Medication for a 4 year old

[9-9GL]

Has anyone started a stimulant at the age of 4? Our son has extreme tantrums and can be aggressive. We are doing PCIT and tried Guanfacine but so far we haven’t seen much progress. His psychiatrist said the next step is trying a stimulant. I’m just nervous because he is so young but also want to give him the help he needs. Anyone feedback is appreciated.

[Trying1978]

All I know is what I was told & read re our son (almost 7): just behavioral stuff until PreK years are over. Not saying I agree, just what they said & we read. Hang in there!

[MNmom99]

hi there I can relate to your struggle. Our son was diagnosed with ADHD around 4 years old in the peak of covid everything we tried was over zoom as far as therapy counseling ect. We tried all kinds of therapy CBT removing red dyes and focusing also on nutrition until we were at our last hope and reluctantly we went to a stimulant Metadate prescribed by his pediatrician I think he was just about 5, i was so scared to move him to a “so harsh sounding medication” I had an anxiety attack days before we started him on it. We didn’t make the decision lightly but ultimately it was a good decision and what he needed. We noticed a difference right away, he started low and gradually increased which is common. Now he is 7 and on Metadate cd 30 in the am and a 10mg dose after school. We also tried vyvanse which ended up giving him bad side effects, teeth grinding like crazy at night, trouble sleeping, aggression irritability and bad breath, sometimes it’s hard to seperate what is ADHD and what is the medication side effects so I’d recommend to pay as close attention to all behaviors it didn’t dawn on me the dental effects some of these medications can cause. On Metadate his appetite decreased but we just try to get food in him as often as we can. I feel your pain it’s so hard to decide medication for such a tiny body but in our case it’s what he needed. Not sure if you’re aware of the artificial colorings in so many foods that can affect kids with ADHD but they sure do at least in our case so no sour patch kids or other foods with red dye for ours he had tantrums and instant hyperactivity within 5-10 minutes of some foods. Good luck with your journey. Sending hugs as I know it’s such a hard decision to make.

[SunshineF]

yes, we recently started medication for our 4.5 yr old. We Started first with guanfacine (non stim) and added a Ritalin (stim) a few months later. So far the combo seems to be helping with his behavior. We tried adderall before Ritalin and he had pretty bad side effects (no appetite, disturbed sleep, irritability and emotional, negative self-talk, aggression) so we stopped that and then tried Ritalin. It’s been much much better. Deciding to medicate was not easy for us and still isn’t to be honest but we didn’t have any more options as hed been receiving multiple forms of therapy for over a year in addition to parenting training, etc. he’s finally having great days at pre-K and he’s so proud of himself. That’s what I’m holding onto. Best of luck! You’re not alone ❤️

[UncleMuscles]

My boy is turning 8 soon. After dropping out of PCIT at that same age 4-5 due to headbanging, we didn’t go straight to a stimulant. We removed a medicine that was little-known in the literature to cause tantrums: periactin. This removal plus parent training in the home helped resolve tantrum behaviors for a year or so. He never headbangs anymore. We got on a stimulant a year later, so at about 6 years old, because inattentive behaviors showed up in kindergarten.

As we dropped out of PCIT we just confirmed the doctor’s initial hesitation at enrollment - that he was too young for it. You may be seeing the same result.

[MommaofandwithADHD]

This sounds very familiar to us. By 3 we’re were asked to leave 3 daycares due to aggressive behaviors. We tried nutrition, removing red dye, everything we could but we were out of options. She was put on a stimulant, and a mood medicine. Because of her age they tried the oldest one. Ritalin. It made her rage. It was so bad that I stayed home with her for a few days until it worked out her system. Although it was so bad even I didn’t want to be there. I was scratched, punched, kicked, bit, you name it. They put her on guafacine, and also something for moods. We tried prozac, Zoloft, periactin, and a few others. We then started adderall with the guafacine, and saw small improvements, but when the adderall would wear off she was raging again for about 45 minutes. So we finally adjusted the dose to do a 10mg in the morning, and another at lunch to get her through daycare. We just didn’t go anywhere with her after her medicine wore off. By 6 she worked up to a 25mg XR adderall but it had terrible side affects. We were finally able to get in to a pediatric psychiatrist this past October. He completely changed her medication. She is on a mood stabilizer, resiperadol, guafacine, and vyvanse. We are no longer prisoners in our own home. On this regime we are finally able to do behavior modification and discipline. We are discovering other things that she exhibits, like PDA, sensory processing disorders, and auditory processing disorders. Now that she is not raging all the time she can let us know what is happening. Hugs to you.