Medication for son

[Numberate]

My 13 year old has been on focalin er for years which has been great for him. But lately we've been struggling with behavior. I finally got him in with a psychiatrist but he said what my son is experiencing is up to him to control and that medication is more for focus and because he is a straight A student, he doesn't see the need to up his dose or add in anything else. That with time and maturity, he'll learn how to control it. I am hoping that he is right. It is really hard to see my son struggle socially and emotionally but I try to remind myself that these are the growing pains of middle school years regardless if you have adhd or not. I am debating on whether or not to see another psychiatrist because I've see on here where medication has really helped some with impulsivity and emotional regulation. But this would be the second de to tell me the same thing. So maybe it truly is just growing pains?

[Knitting20projects]

How is his behavior at home? A psychiatrist told us that about our son because he was awesome at school. Meanwhile, my husband and I were struggling immensely at home with his behavior. I found a new psychiatrist and things have improved with an additional medication (and a better understanding of our son w additional testing). I can’t say that’s what’s happening with yours—just sharing our experience).

[CorsoMom]

This sounds exactly like my son. I do think that children who have adhd are a bit emotionally behind children the same age. With that being said, I also see his struggles with going to a new school and the change! When he gets really nasty we take away all his electronics for a bit and it does help. I keep thinking he will get there. Our struggle is with meds right now. Waiting for an all day capsule as there’s an adhd med shortage! Uggghhh so frustrating.

Good luck with your son. He will come around!

[Mamamichl]

Growing up, no one was even thinking about adhd because of my grades being so good. They just saw me as an emotional girl. Problem is my rsd was out of control and all of my time was either crying or homework. Sometimes both. I actually get triggered when people tell me that I can’t have adhd because I do well academically. I even finished my BA in education as magma cum laude but failed student teaching because of my socials and anxiety. I’m learning not everything is grades. Mental health is high priority, and if you see your kid struggling, it’s natural to try and help. We are also learning that we can’t solve all of their problems.

[Crazyboymomma]

look into Zoloft and Guanfacine!!! Did wonders for my 11 yr old son!

[STARTwHello in reply to Crazyboymomma]

Do you mind sharing what doses your son takes of these and when? Our son has been on liquid compounded guanfacine for a year. He can do a pill now but we are struggling to switch him to the pill without withdrawal symptoms or him being angry/mad. It’s like it’s not processing the same. The XR pill was totally different so we went to back to an immediate release pill and it still doesn’t seem right.

We also tried two SSRIs but he got reckless. That’s why I’m curious about the dosing. Maybe just too much for him right now.

Thank you!!

[Crazyboymomma in reply to STARTwHello]

His Zoloft is 100 and the Guanfacine is very low. I’ve heard that Guanfacine doesn’t always help. The Zoloft made the biggest difference for us.

[Numberate in reply to Crazyboymomma]

We tried adding in guanfacune but saw no difference. But maybe we will try it again. I wasn't sure what to expect from it but his ped told him to take it as a booster for the afternoon.

[anirush]

My grandson was on Focalin XR all through grade school, honors classes etc. In middle school Focalin suddenly stopped working. He started having attention problems at school, behavioral problems at home.With some trial and error he ended up on Welbutrin and Guanfacine. With that and counseling he got into a collegiate program in high school.

His psychiatrist believes they need to learn learn control but their brain needs help. And meds help. Not all psychiatrists are great

I have an adult friend who still needs medication

[Numberate in reply to anirush]

When he first started taking Focalin, we saw an immediate difference. I've noticed a change this past year and I believe it's because of his hormones and age. I even mentioned that to the psychiatrist but he didn't comment on it. He just said that emotions are something that he needed to learn how to regulate on his own. He said if we upped the dose, that eventually my son would just need more and more. He said it likes street drugs. He also said my son was too skinny but he is actually average for his weight and above average for his height. I guess after writing this, I realize I probably should seek a second opinion because the dr didn't seem too concerned with our concerns.

[Momtrying]

Medication helps my sons behavior a lot. It doesn’t help everything, but his behavior is very different when he is on medication. when he isn’t, he has more outbursts and gets upset very easily. He is on Adderall, which does take some getting used to, but it has been really good for impulse control, and Behavior at home. I would definitely get a second opinion. Yes, they will mature, but having to deal with negative behavior in the meantime is really hard on a family. Good luck!

[Numberate in reply to Momtrying]

I replied to another person above but I agree, I feel like I need a second opinion. Unfortunately in my area, I feel like a good psychiatrist is hard to find. The one we saw was recommended. My son isn't terrible but he def cuts with his words, quick to anger and often instigates when he is bored. When we first started taking focalin, we saw an immediate difference. I've noticed a change this past year. So has he. But now he's nervous to even try a different med or the possibility of going up in dose because the psychiatrist said he could have heart problems and chest pain. He also told both of us that stimulants are like speed in the street, and eventually he'd be too dependent on it. I was surprised because again, this psychiatrist was recommended.

[Momtrying in reply to Numberate]

We haven’t tried a psychiatrist yet because the second Med my sons primary care dr recommended worked well. He’s seen two primary care and neither of them seem to worried about him being on a stimulant. They seem to think as he gets older he will be able to wean off of it, or at least lower the dose. It’s hard for people in our situation to be too worried about what will happen with the medication in the future because we need results right now. We need our children to be able to get through the day and not disrupt everything, we need them to not verbally abuse people in our families, and also be able to Follow simple directions right now.

What does your primary care dr think?

[Knitting20projects in reply to Momtrying]

I agree. I don’t know if this is a useful perspective or not. I’m 51 and have zero heart issues (normal ECHO in the past for unrelated reasons) and normal blood pressure, no family history of heart problems. I started a (low range dose) stimulant this spring for ADHD after being told adult psychiatry is now more comfortable prescribing them to adults even over 50. I do think eventually people can develop tolerance and slowly need a larger dose, but if your child or family is putting out fires daily because of behavior, I would personally prioritize his and your family’s functioning. I don’t want to minimize any medication risks. However, being in a high adrenaline state all day can’t be great either (eg constant crisis and fight or flight stress). Kind of like the newer research on untreated depression in pregnancy—-there are likely risks to infants born to mothers with significant untreated depression (and researchers are trying to compare those to risks of infants born to moms on SSRIs in pregnancy). Tough situation, I know. I definitely am a kinder, more loving, more patient mom to my 2 neurodivergent kids since I started medicine for ADHD 😂.

[Numberate in reply to Knitting20projects]

It was very strange because he was telling us the side effects which we were already aware of but he also was asking my son in a way where he wanted him to say yes he was experiencing them to deter him from stimulants. For instance chest pains, he said you don't feel any chest pains? My son said no. He's been on this medication for years. He said no tightness? My son said no. The dr then asked heart palpitations? Still no and he said you don't ever feel funny? Your heart? I was allowing my son to answer for himself and he still said no. Then he was asking about his weight and appetite. He said he was way under weight and too skinny. My son looked at him confused because we just had a physical where the dr said he's on track to be 6'1 and is average for weight. He had a crazy growth spurt. This was not the drs visit I was hoping for.

[Momtrying in reply to Numberate]

Sounds very frustrating, I’m so sorry. Especially when getting dr appts takes so long nowadays. Keep advocating for your son, if something feels off, you’re right to look elsewhere.

[Knitting20projects in reply to Numberate]

Huh. Yes, I can understand your feeling frustrated by those mixed messages between that doctor and your pediatrician. I know it’s stressful too because appetite can be affected by the medication. Our son is very skinny and luckily keeps trucking along on his skinny BMI curve, but it’s been something we’ve had to watch. So frustrating especially when child psychiatry appointments are so scarce!

[Terrilynn04]

My daughter who has also been on Focalin for years and loves it started to take risperidone at night (.5mg ) and .25mg in the am…we noticed a HUGE difference in her impulsiveness and behavior as well as an amazing appetite which is great since the Focalin takes it away…as soon as the Focalin wears off she is ravenous!

[Numberate in reply to Terrilynn04]

Thank you! I will look into that. Focalin is excellent for my sons focus but that's just about it.