Nonstimulant Help Needed

[Thankyou11]

Hello I have a ten year old child with moderate to severe ADHD and we are taking azstarys. He needs a higher dose but doesn’t react well to stimulants. He doesn’t feel hungry and has stomach pains when we go up on the dose. So we are trying to add things to his current stimulant dose since we can’t go higher on stimulants. We added fish oil pills and also guanfacine. But guanfacine is a nonstimulant blood pressure medicine that can be used for ADHD... that worries me a bit. Is there another nonstimulant you guys can recommend? Or any other vitamin supplements? I have heard stuff about zinc?? But not sure Thank you

[BLC89]

Hello Thankyou11,A couple of thoughts:

Welbutrin is an antidepressant with the off label use of helping with ADHD. It is different than others because it impacts dopamine receptors not just Serotonin, and ADHDers need more dopamine. It also has few side effects.

The other fantastic natural remedy is high cardio. Getting his heart rate up, everyday, for at least 45 minutes has a huge impact on dopamine levels, Serotonin, lifts mood, increases focus, the list goes on. If there is a sport they like and it involves cardio sign them up.

Another natural remedy which sounds counterintuitive is some sort of meditation. I know it can be tough to get a kids to meditate but there are great guided ones - search YouTube- or moving meditations, walking, Tai chi, yoga, to name a few.

With supplements be sure to do your research. There are only a few brands that, when independently tested, actually have the amount or even the ingredients listed on the bottle - supplements are not regulated. NatureMade, and Thorne are good ones but research before you buy.

With things like zinc and iron I suggest asking your doctor and researching the heck out of it. Zinc and iron are literally metals and can be toxic at too high of levels.

Gluten and dairy free diets have some research showing they can help with outward ADHD symptoms.

Avoiding sugar, high fructose corn syrup and red dye have a bit more science suggesting omitting those has an impact on symptoms also.

They're are a few things to check out. Good luck, and keep trying things, you will find the right combo for your kid.

BLC89

[Thankyou11 in reply to BLC89]

Thank you for the tips! It’s very much appreciated 🙏 going to research Wellbutrin for sure. My son plays soccer so tons of cardio. I need to look into mediation. I keep hearing it is so beneficial. Thank you for putting it back on my radar. Good luck on your journey also!

[Rollersk8er in reply to BLC89]

My 16 year old has had good results with Wellbutrin! Couldn't tolerate any stimulants

[Adhdquestion]

Qelbree is another non-stimulant that can pair well with a stimulant based on clinical trials. Qelbree can be taken alone or with a stimulant, based on the response. You already mentioned Guanfacine paired with the stimulant and if you google it, there are research papers also supporting that pairing. My son was on Guanfacine ER alone and it wasn’t helping enough but I know a few kids that use the combo with success. As for the Azstarys, wondering if the side effects were temporary or were longer lasting when you bumped up the dosage. I know it would be tough to see if the side effects go away as the body adjusts to the higher dose if the stomach pain is severe and he’s not eating much at all. My son only lost his appetite at lunch on a stimulant but was eating a typical breakfast, snack and dinner and his appetite at lunch slowly came back within two weeks. It’s a lot to try to figure out so hang in there and talk it all through with your child’s doctor. We see a child psychiatrist for medication management, which others on this forum have also suggested since they are skilled at refining and optimizing the medication dosage/combination and have a deep knowledge of all the different medications options. My child’s pediatrician recommended seeing a child psychiatrist for the best long-term medication management outcome. Best of luck!

[PurplePizza]

I recommend the books Finally Focused by James Greenblatt and Happy Kids Healthy Kids by Elisa Song. Both have great information on supplements. Of course it’s ideal to talk to your doctor first, and do some hair/blood tests if you need to. Our regular pediatrician was unhelpful in that regard, and our psychiatrist admitted that he is not a functional medicine doctor, so he doesn’t know everything about vitamin/mineral supplementation…but Magnesium, Fish oil and Vitamin D are all pretty well acknowledged as beneficial for most/all kids, especially those with ADHD. Beyond that, it depends on the symptoms you are addressing. For our son, Zinc was hugely beneficial to increase his appetite, and nutritional Lithium was very helpful for his anger/aggression. Also a multivitamin is important…we just started True Hope and it is the first multivitamin he will actually take willingly! Best of luck to you and your son.

[GoDukes]

We had a similar issue with my son. We tried various stimulants for years but they seemed to increase his anxiety and promoted anger issues with him. We even had him on Guanfacin in the evening. Before high school he switched to Straterra which is a non-stimulant and the results have been great. It's hard to tell how much is the meds and how much is him naturally maturing but the anxiety/anger issues immediately went away and he is doing well at school now a couple of years in. Good luck to you!