Medicine for my daughter

[Yadii]

Greetings! My 7 year old daughter was diagnosed with ADD in January. She has a hard time focusing at school and is falling behind. At school she gets one on one time with a special instructor but I feel like it’s not enough. She’s falling behind in reading and comprehension. We went back to her psychiatrist and he recommended we get her on Quillivant XR. My fear is that she will develop an addiction or be more prone to one in her adult life if we start her on meds at this age. What’s your experience with this? Any help is greatly appreciated!

[Onthemove1971]

All parents fear things for their children. From the research I have done, it is the opposite when the symptoms from ADD/ADHD are left untreated sometimes people turn to other ways to help themselves.

Stimulant medication only helps the child focus and when a child is more focused it may assist them in improving reading comprehension.

No to worry you, but have you considered getting assessments to see if your child has any learning issues? It is common for some children to have learning issues when a child has ADD/ADHD.

Have you tried assisting her with Audiobooks in addition to visually reading? Many children who have issues with focus can benefit by listening and reading together. You can try this at home and see if it helps. When there is a book she is suppose to read, search YouTube or your local library for the audiobook and have her read and visually follow ( some kids like to follow with their finger and some not).

One last thing, if you have already set up a 504/I.E.P plan in school that is great. If not it could really help.

We are always here for you.

Take care,

[Penk234 in reply to Onthemove1971]

I would highly recommend checking out Bonding Health and their free resources!

[BLC89]

I second the idea Onthemove1971 put out there.It is untreated ADHDers that have a much higher likelihood of substance abuse issues. Please don't hesitate to medicate from fear of addiction.

There are several medications available and they work for about 85% to 90% of folks who try them. So if the first one doesn't work keep trying, its likely you will find one that does.

For many the meds are life changing/saving because they quiet the background noise and allow for better focus.

If you choose to medicate do that first then see what other issues there may be. It could be your child can't focus long enough for good reading comprehension.

ADHD often has a coexisting conditions like dyslexia or other learning differences. All manageable especially when the ADHD is recognized.

Kudos for getting your daughter the support she deserves.

BLC89

[Onthemove1971]

I also wanted to add, please consider an IEP so she can have goals written to assist her. This way you can watch the progress and if there is not progress you can call another meeting and change the time spent with her or setting she is receiving the instruction. I can not express how much tutoring (not some other curriculum) helped our son. To have some to discuss the concepts helped make him successful.

Here is the best thing about medication...

If she tries it and it doesn't work you can stop it.

Most medications, if they are stimulants you will/should know the same day they take it. Or with in 1-2 days.

We are always here for you.good luck

[Yadii]

Thank you everyone for your support! She is in an IEP and didn’t meet the reading or comprehension goals for the first quarter. She met her math goal but the SDI Strategist mentioned that the math goal was way too easy so she changed it for next quarter. We will get her on meds and keep an eye on her. The psychiatrist said that the risk of addiction is pretty low but I’ve watch the documentaries on opioids so I am somewhat concerned. I also understand that opioids are on a whole different level. I am more at easy knowing others are going through this and are successful with medication.