ADD Meds

If you are using a general doctor for prescribing this, don't. A psychiatrist knows these meds better. They follow up better. They know which families of meds they are in so they won't waste your time prescriving teh same family of meds that didn't work last time.

Your child's teacher will be a great person to get feedback from so schedule some meetingd with her to let her know he'll start a med and when it is effective and what changes she sees or not. You take note too along with any other person over 16 in your family.

A good ADD counselor will also be helpful. They know tricks that make studying and memorizing a bit easier for them. They know how to help them socialize better and understand body language signals better. There are some classic things that really work.

If you ever have problems at the school with his IEP and accommodations, one thing I did was draft a letter showing my child's strengths and weaknesses. Sometimes, they were the same (e.g., stubborn also can mean persistent and tenacious. A benefit sometimes, a problem at others. Eagle to volunteer can also mean wants attention. Sensitive can also mean empathetic to others. the therapist made a little adjustment, signed it, and the Vice Principal thought he was a genious. That he wished he had a letter like that on every child in school. Anyway, it was a breakthrough moment.

With meds, my child began remembering what she read and said it was easy. Before that, she couldn't remember what the paragraph said right after she read it! Congrats on getting the diagnosis. Meds are important. AND so it counseling.

I read books (e.g., Teens and ADHD) and went to A.D.D. organizational meetings and/or bought their tapes (from seminars from those gatherings). We're still working on the depression that comes on and off with ADD and taking meds when you're out of college and the sleep disorder.

Hi! I teach kids with special needs and so I can give and educator's opinion, one who also happens to be a huge advocate for children. So here's my two cents: There's research out there that connects the symptoms of ADD to a side effect of red food dye. It's something you may want to investigate and adjust at home. Lots of people don't know about it so I wanted to be sure to give you that to research as well. Kids who are sensitive to it display the exact same behaviors and difficulties as I can imagine your son has had. Just a tidbit for ya.

Now, understanding the above may or may not be to your interest I think I would try the Concerta first, at the lowest possible dose. From a teaching standpoint, several of my kids are on this particular medication and it seems to have a decent effect for the kids with minimal side effects. Be sure to watch him closely as one medication often leads to another and another and another. Once he begins taking medication it's possible he'll have trouble sleeping. Once that happens, doctors are more than happy to prescribe another pill for sleep. Anti-anxiety medications also become common in the 'cocktail' as well. I can tell you are concerned about the meds and only want the best for your son. There are lots of dietary options out there you can work on and try. I know it's hard to think of another rough school year for him but in the end, you have to do what you feel is best for him. No matter what that is.

My son is 8, and we have tried Concerta. It definitely helps at school(many less trips to the principal's office), but yes it does have side effects. My son is taking the lowest dose because he's less than 50 pounds and my 13-year-old cousin takes the adult dose. The very first time my son took it, it made things worse but after he had taken it for a couple of days his body got used to it. It causes sleeplessness if it doesn't wear off fast enough. Also stomach aches and lack of appetite. I try to give my son a really good breakfast because he'll just pick at lunch and dinner. We skip weekends and holidays, so he can catch up on eating then. My aunt just serves dinner really late, and gives my cousin bacon as a bedtime snack. The doctor said to try antacids.
One issue I have with it is that the teachers are so happy with the results and they're praising him for doing a better job at school and trying hard. As if he was never trying before.....

I answered this question for another mom so am just copying you my answer. hope it helps
My son has had several different meds for adhd. He was started on ritilin. It was not a good fit at all. Made him very aggressive which up to that point we had never (and have never had again) had a problem with. It also made him very emotional and he cried a lot. that was never an issue before either. They switched him to adderall. which worked very good for about a year and a half. he took one before school and another at lunch time in order for it to work thru the school day. the only down side to that was he couldn't go to sleep at night. so then had to have a pill for that. I was not happy with that at all. he was then switched to a slow release form of adderall. THIS WAS A MIRACLE DRUG. lol He was on it for several years. It got him thru the school day and homework and then ran down before bed time. However over time it also lost its effectivness. When he was in 6th grade he was switched to Vyvance. THIS WAS THE SECOND MIRACLE. He was on it for about a year and a half. His grades improved dramatically his attention span was great. Last summer (end of 7th grade) he asked if we would let him try without meds. We agreed, doctor agreed and he is doing spectacular. It has been a year and he is on the high honor roll, joined the choir and the wrestling team. Just wanted you to know that your child going on meds now doesn't mean they will be on them for life. Some of the ADHD behaviors do get outgrown. Some don't. But the positives way outweigh the negatives. I swore I wouldn't let him be put on meds. And fought it for a year. But his kindergarten teacher told me at the time I have all the extreme kids in the district and your son is my extreme in the classroom. So glad I listened to the doctor.

Some of the other posts mentioned going to a specialist in this area, so I'm going to tell you who we go to for my daughter, age 9, who has been treated for ADD since 2nd grade. His name is Dr. John Blair. He is out of Aurora. A trip for us from Westmont, but well worth it. He wrote a book about ADHD and if I remember correctly, had a son with ADHD. Good luck.