Mom's with Kids Who Have ADHD

You need to find a Pedi who has an interest/specialization in ADHD IMMEDIATELY!!!! I am telling you this as a Mom of 3 with AD/HD and the Daughter of a Pediatrician, who has AD/HD and also has a special interest in it. Something that he has taught me is that not many Pedi's really take the time to understand AD/HD or the medications. Remember too that different medications at different levels will effect each person differently.

Call the Dr's who did the initial diagnosis and ask for referrals and then compare the lists...do it ASAP.

Good Luck

The first thing my pediatritian did when putting my son on Adderall for ADHD was tell me all of the side effects and what to watch for. We started him on a low dose and she saw him in two weeks to monitor. We upped the dose and she saw him again in two weeks and then a month after that to make sure that his behavior hadn't changed. She still sees him every three-four months to monitor side effects/behavior and talks to him about how he is feeling. She never assumed that he had behavior issues before being diagnosed, which he doesn't, because she has made the effort to get to know my son personally. It sounds to me like you have a judgmental and uncompassionate doctor - I would change peds. because there are better ones out there for sure :)

This is why a qualified psychiatrist is preferable to the family doctor who is usually acting outside his area of expertise in prescribing psychoactive, and is very much less likely to accurately understand the side effects that the child is likely to go through.

It is possible to say that it was irresponsible to not know the side effects, but by that same ruler, he should have made you go to a psychiatrist in the first place because he isn't an expert.

No, it's not weird to switch doctors, but be aware that you may run into the same problem with the next family care doc trying to manage his meds.

I read your question with great interest as I have a son who has just received the same diagnosis and we are figuring out what intervention to make.

My understanding is that the largest study of ADHD pharma interventions bore out the recommendations below, that a psychiatrist follow the child for meds. As per that study, Family physicians and pediatricians are likely to underdose. Also, with all the formulations changing and new introductions and constantly updated info on side effects, a specialist is way more likely to be on top of the latest and greatest.

As for your specific experience, your pediatrician sounds like a dud and you should switch. However, don't dismiss his ideas completely, there is a very very small chance he is on to something and even if drugs or peers were not the problem now, at the age of 13 kids are very impressionable and if life is stormy for your son now, extra vigilance is warranted, so don't let yourself be surprised.

Good luck, I am standing in line right behind you for this roller coaster.

Cheers

K.

I would deff. change doctors. Talk to different doctors either in the practice or outside of the practice to get a feel on how they would deal with these issues. My son sees our family practice doctor for all his meds at this time. He is 6 1/2 and was diagnosed a year ago. I trust her and she knows my family. She did send us to a psycologist to test him and get ideas on what meds she recommened because of his age. You have to find a doctor you can trust regardless of wheather it is a family practice dr or a specialist. I would not go back to the psycologist she sent us to because of the way she treated me and acted like I just did not want to deal with my son. My family dr had no issues with putting him on meds. It may also take some time to find the right medication for your son. They affect everybody differently. Just use the resources you have and continue to advocate for your child.

Most pediatricians are not qualified to prescribe medications for ADHD. They simply don't have the necessary expertise. You really need the expertise of a psychiatrist. What are your concerns about seeing a psychiatrist? Ours has been a tremendous resource and source of support.

Vyvanse is a form of Adderall, which has the nickname "Maderall." We saw the side effect ourselves when our son was on Adderall. As it wore off, he went into random rages. We stopped that med almost immediately.

Not all ADHD medications will have this side effect. Our son is currently on Concerta and has no side effects. The only issue we've had is that we constantly have to change dosages as he grows because it can stop working as well. Otherwise, you shouldn't have to settle for unpleasant side effects. There are a lot of ADHD medications out there and through trial and error and the support of a psychiatrist who's extremely familiar with the full line of medications, you may find just the perfect medication for your son.

Good luck!

L.-
This makes me soooooo mad. Your pediatrician is not listening to the one person who knows your son best, YOU! I would change doctors immediately.

My son has severe ADHD(oppositional/inattentive). It took me three peds, before I found one that dealt with this family disorder (ADHD affects the whole family, even if only one person has it.) The first wanted to throw my son on medication without evaluating him, the second took one year of evaluation before prescribing and then had him coming in every two weeks to evaluate for months, possibly even a year. She claimed she wanted to make sure the appropriate medication levels. I honestly think she was scamming the insurance company and me. Finally, after several recommendations from other parents with ADD/ADHD kids, we landed with our current ped. He listens to me, and my son. He talks quite frankly with my son (which I love) about how important school is, to be active, not to play videos, smoke, drink, do drugs and avoid girls ;-). He also tells him his medication is crucial for his early success. My ped believes that by the time my son is an older teen, he will self-medicate with caffeine to cope.

L., if it doesn't make a difference with the insurance I would try to move out of the practice (unless it's really large), because your and your son's reputation will proceed you. I would guess that your ped wrote in the chart that your son has behavior issues, since he assumed he did.

Also, my son seems to be having tremendous success on Concerta. Lastly, there is a really great ADHD group on Facebook and if you have questions about medication side effects they will answer your post and sometimes with brutal honesty.

L., take care and thanks for being such a good mom.
S.

As Amalthea & CAM said; this is a common problem when dealing with GP's & Peds... since this is neither their area of expertise nor study.

((To note, however, V is Lisdexamfetamine... which is not a component in Adderal, although as an amphetamine, is in the same "family" as the dextroamphetamine that IS in Adderall. Just because it's in the same family though, doesn't *necessarily* follow that the same side effects will persist. As an example: A person can have one side effect with DrugA, but add DrugB+DrugA and they get an entirely DIFFERENT reaction. It's more likely, however that the anger reaction is tied to amphetamines as opposed to that specific type. But you would only know by trying. Neurochem is really complicatedly fun, and even experts in the field barely understand it. Essentially any time you give a patient a psychoactive drug, you're conducting a controlled experiment... hence why it's usually best to stick with someone who understands all the ins and outs of the experiment... although anyone can get "lucky" and find their personal magic wand on the first go-round.)

I would at the very least switch peds... but... if it's possible to see a psychiatrist for "med management" (aka 15 minute appointments, just like a Ped, and charged similarly) it may well be worth your time. Anger as a side effect is notoriously common to ANY of the ADHD meds, although they vary by person. I oft times think of finding the "right" adhd med, as "picking your side effects" / finding the flavor you like best. Unfortunately, a person has NO IDEA what side effects a med will give them until they've tried them... and like food... ditto won't know what "flavor" they like best until they've tried them.

http://www.drugs.com/condition/attention-deficit-disorder... has the list of the 56 most common adhd meds... in plain english as well as medicalese. (For super-medicalese click "pro")... for more info on side effects of any of the meds you have to scroll all the way to the bottom and click the link. The quick list of V's side effects don't include mood changes (although, DUH, I'm just a student and I know that by their nature ANY psychoactive drug can cause mood changes)... which is why your ped, at the "quick glance" at side effects wouldn't have seen the following (from the complete list of possible side effects) listed.

" ...new or worsening mental or mood changes; seizures; severe or persistent headache; severe or persistent irritability, nervousness,..."

But to just assume that "Gee, my patient is on a new med, and has these new symptoms... let's not make the correlation" is irritating, but very very common among those who don't work with neurochemistry on a regular basis.

R
adhd-c mum to an adhd-c kiddo

Definitely switch doctors. My son is 12 and has ADD and PDD-NOS. The only time my son sees his pediatrician is at his yearly well visit. His meds are prescribed and monitored by his psychiatrist who specializes in my son's medical issues. I would never go to his general pediatrician for help or info on his specialized diagnoses. I've found they're nice and good to have around for ear infections, etc, but useless when it comes to anything related to ADD or any of the Autism Spectrum Disorders. Oh, and we've tried Adderall and now more recently, Strattera. Both made my son into an aggressive jerk with bad-attitude. So your doc saying your son's anger and tension could not be side-effects is just lazy and bad medical practicing. Anger, anxiety, aggressiveness are all common side-effects of MANY of the meds prescribed for ADHD. Switch peds immediately. Better yet, have a psychiatrist do the medicine management for your son. Good luck!

Updated

Definitely switch doctors. My son is 12 and has ADD and PDD-NOS. The only time my son sees his pediatrician is at his yearly well visit. His meds are prescribed and monitored by his psychiatrist who specializes in my son's medical issues. I would never go to his general pediatrician for help or info on his specialized diagnoses. I've found they're nice and good to have around for ear infections, etc, but useless when it comes to anything related to ADD or any of the Autism Spectrum Disorders. Oh, and we've tried Adderall and now more recently, Strattera. Both made my son into an aggressive jerk with bad-attitude. So your doc saying your son's anger and tension could not be side-effects is just lazy and bad medical practicing. Anger, anxiety, aggressiveness are all common side-effects of MANY of the meds prescribed for ADHD. Switch peds immediately. Better yet, have a psychiatrist do the medicine management for your son. Good luck!