Our 6yr old had the gene sight test and it revealed that he would have significant side effects with any stimulant medication. His Dr prescribed him Methylphenidate anyway... It work for a short time but then we noticed he stopped eating and had a major rebound of adhd symptoms when the drug wore off. It has helped with his aggressive behavior and impulsive nature but has done nothing for his focus.
We hope to start him on a non stimulant to see if that works either inconjunction with methylphenidate or by itself.
My little guy is my whole world... I pray that he can get some relief from his adhd symptoms. We tried speech and occupational therapy for 2 yrs prior to medication.
God Bless everyone!
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LilwithADHD
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If there is a high cardio sport they like sign them up. It has a huge impact on attention, focus, emotional regulation, etc. They need getting their heart rate up 30 - 45 min, on most days to have the most benefit. It can take a couple weeks but it's worth the wait. Another great gift is getting them into meditation- even 2 minutes can have a big impact - maybe as a wind down to help sleep?
You don't have to sit still to meditate either. See if there is one you can do together, it's good for everyone.
Stimulants didn't work for our son (started meds at 4, he's now 8), but guanfacine ER and atomoxetine helped him a lot. He was able to go from co-teaching to a regular class and is doing well.
we did gene sight too. Meds didn’t work for our son, but psychiatrist recommended broad spectrum micronutrients which worked wonders for him. Wishing you the best!
My son takes Methylphenidate (Ritalin), but there is a huge difference between the immediate release (lasts 4-5hrs), and the extended release (lasts 9-11hrs). By the sounds of it, you seem to be describing a immediate release (and short acting) version of Methylphenidate. When my son took that version, he had to take it several times a day to account for his medication coverage. The side effects (which are typical) are those you described with the irritability and lack of appetite. Unfortunately, and I have said this countless times with these meds, you may address one issue but then get several others in its place. It truly takes an interplenisary approach between prescriber, dietician, and other kinds of resources to hopefully address the meds shortcomings. Easier said than done, I know. To address more medication coverage, there Methylphenidate LA (long acting) which in my son lasts up to 11hrs. Eating is still an issue but it has somewhat gotten better.
Thanks for sharing. We're thinking about doing the gene test too. We tried methyphenidate ER (e.g. concerta) and amphetamine salts ER (e.g. adderall). Our 8 year old had bad reactions to both (so I'm assuming genetically stimulants don't work for him). He's currently not taking any meds except multivitamins, probiotics and melatonin (on school nights it helps calm him). He also uses the Calm app and listens to sleep stories to fall asleep.
But I echo what @BLC89 said about the exercise and physical activity. The play therapist suggested taekwondo which has been AMAZING! He loves the rituals (of bowing and vocalizations), and feels empowered by learning the moves and self defense. There's also little goals to earn stripes and belts, so there's always visible achievement, which motivates him. He feels like the characters in his video games, of course. But that also helps motivate him. It seems to help with his focus, in general, and they encourage discipline and respect - which is helping at home.
He also does soccer, and an outdoor afterschool club where he runs around in the woods. We're privileged to have access to these things. They've helped a lot with behavior.
Also been focusing on a big breakfast in the morning which we weren't doing in the past. Now always lots of protein somehow. And really trying to cut out dyes in food - which is so hard. But we're improving.
I learned all these tips from this group. Can't thank you enough for sharing your experiences. Very very helpful!
hello First off I’m sending hugs and well wishes your way this is a struggle. I’ve been there for many years, it’s not easy. This sounds similar to our son who is now nine he has had a lot of medicine changes and therapy over the last few years. currently he is taking Concerta with a low-dose of allergy medication cyproheptadine which seems to boost his appetite his psychologist recommended that because his appetite was pretty nonexistent you may want to talk to your medication prescriber. Our son had huge reactions coming down from methylphenidate. Alot of therapy he has had over the couple years was how to deal with big emotions that’s helped tremendously he’s also taking a combination of vitamins that I think are very important for him magnesium multivitamin probiotic omega. Good luck with your journey unfortunately it takes time as no Child is the same and no medication’s react the same for children don’t give up you will get there trust your instincts if you don’t think what’s working right now is working try something else you’re going in the right direction hang in there!
I wasn't diagnosed until university, and when I was prescribed a stimulant, it helped with a few things, and I thought that it would 'fix' me. It sucks that it reeeaaaaallllly doesn't.
What medication DID do for me, however, was provide me with the ability to more effectively learn and practice skills to navigate/accommodate the adhd.
Don't expect any medication to make your kid no longer have adhd. Expect medication to be one of many tools to manage it, and it can potentially be a critical one that makes the difference between being able to use the other skills or not.
Jessica of the "How to Adhd" YouTube channel has a video that demonstrates extremely well what a difference medication CAN make in her video "What happened when I stopped taking my medication"
My son was at about the same age as yours when he was diagnosed, and you CAN teach him about adhd. You can draw attention to areas where he experiences challenges and help him keep from judging himself for it, and instead understand why it happens and how to work around it. I never really found a good teaching resource, so I did my best to educate him in tiny doses, and help him learn to spot the challenges, and learn to not use it as an excuse, but as a sign that he needs to take a different approach.
When he was first diagnosed we had been getting daily calls from the school due to behaviors, and now he's a great student with lots of friends. He still has challenges, and we do our best to work together to solve them. We still get incredibly frustrated with him about certain things, and we do our best to try and manage those emotions in ourselves.
Learn everything you can about adhd from a number of sources. A good primer is a 3hr video by Barkley called "adhd - essential ideas for parents". The how to adhd channel is also a great one for learning about it from the perspective of someone who lives with it.
Good luck, celebrate the wins, and focus on his strengths and leverage his interests as much as you can. My son struggled with reading and had zero frustration tolerance for it, so I played board games with him, and gradually shifted to games that required more reading. He's 10yo now, and loves games like Dead Reckoning, March of the Ants and Agricola, and he's the kid I catch reading under the blankets an hour after bedtime. Hold onto the knowledge that adhd doesn't have to define his life, and the struggles now aren't necessarily one's he'll struggle with forever.
Thank you! I want to badly to help him. I feel like I'm failing at every turn. Hearing him tell me that he wishes I was dead and that he hates me, well, I feel broken. I just want him to be happy.
That test isn't always accurate. I'd still try stimulants if needed. You know within a day or two and they're out of their system hours after taking them.
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