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loulou

medication vs no medication

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Hi,

 

Kai is 8 and has ADHD and ASD. He's been on and off various meds for a few years now and i'm finding it difficult to get the right balance. Every time he has an appointment with his paed, he kicks off and goes ballistic, so she's not getting a balanced view of what he's like.

 

He has Concerta (slow release ritalin) 18mgs, which is the lowest dose you can get. It does calm him down, and he works much better at school. However, in the last month or so it seems to be making him really down. He becomes very negative about everything, withdrawn and won't leave the house. At school, his teacher says he is "perfect" and gets top marks every day.

 

I've tried him without it a few times to see what happens, and he is much happier, smiling and being his "normal" silly self. On the downside, he is very very hyperactive (bouncing about, crashing into things, jumping all over the place) and is impossible to get through to because his mind is all over the place. I didn't tell school when he hadn't had it (as an "experiment") and each time he got much fewer points for behaviour/work.

 

I'm finding it hard to know which is the worse. I'm really beating myself up over this too because i don't want to keep stopping and starting the meds, and i'd rather he didn't have to take any at all. I asked him how he felt about it and he said, "when i don't have it i'm naughty."

 

Any suggestions?

 

Loulou xx

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Hi Lou lou

 

What you have described is the very same for J when he was on Ritalin, and added on that was he didnt eat, he jumped at his own shadow and he was white as a sheet, we couldnt evaluate it as school as they where against J having it as they felt he didnt have ADHD, though he was distracted, figeting, having to ask repeatadly for what to do even though he had been told what to do and constantly been isolated in the classroom from other peers as he disrupted the class, please to add he is no longer in this school but because the old school didnt participate in the monitoring I dont know if he improved.

 

However he is in a different school now and they straight away achnowledged his ADHD, but because he was beginning to get so unwell with lack of food, and his withdrawn behaviour we decided to take him off it and he hasnt been on any thing since, J is suspected of ASD and I am aware that it can make certain parts worse, so sensory distress increas, phobias, and obsessions.

 

Until I am certain what it is that J has actually going on for him I have adopted routine and reward system and I have help in the home in the evenings twice a week, also his school have been extreamly supportive and with assistance from the LSA he is supported in class to help him keep on task if he is distracted, in severe periods he is removed and given a quiet area to work in with an assistant.

 

Routine is very structured with every task rewarded and praised, all on a visual display and prompts to assist to help him remember what he has to do.

 

J is defo back to his normal self, eating better, and looking healthy again, for J ritalin didnt agree with his immune system and thats his experience, I am not against medication as I understand so many get positive results.

 

but for some it just isnt compatable, that is why not one ADHD sufferer is on the same dose, it works differently for diffferent people.

 

We have a combination of things to help J with the hyperactivity, he swims and cycles everyday, he has an effective anger management programme, and his violence towards me has reduced, as we help him communicate his frustration and things to help him calm down.

 

Not saying we dont have moments but things have improved with all the different things in place, for me it was the practicle support, the care worker at home and his LSA at school.

 

I feel with what we have in place is more suitable than medication, also he is still young and I can manage him for now, but every day I read a technique and try it and most of the time it works as it is aimed at a child with a learning difficulty and so it has a different angel or perspective.

 

For J medication it certainly hasnt helped him.

 

JsMum

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el started off on concerta but after several months she became very low. i was very aware of it and felt like the school weren't listening to me, el was getting very paranoid too and increasingly violent. in the end her class teacher admitted that several staff members at the school had expressed concerns about el's mental health so she came to me and was honest about her meds not working....... :wallbash:

 

so el came off the concerta and went on to strattera......this didnt work very well at all for us and after nine weeks i took el off it.

 

several months went by with el refusing meds, and also i didnt want to put her on them after what she had been through. however, things were getting pretty awful at home and school. we finally met the paed who had followed el's history, he came to a meeeting at the school after i threatened to take her out of school if she wasn't statemented.......at this time the school were not recognising el's asd at all!!!!

 

anyway he asked us to try equasym and el agreed as she was feeling really down with herself as she was unable to control her temper, concentrate etc....and this has been the medication that has seemed to work the best for her. i know it sounds weird but its not as "harsh" as concerta.......she is also on the melatonin and risperdal......

 

tbh if it werent for the stimulant meds el would never be able to do any work at school, statement or not.....and she was constantly getting into trouble for her impulsiveness and disruptive behaviour. is there any way you can ask them for a meds review for Kai? it might be worth trying a different med if this one isnt working.

 

its a nightmare isnt it.....you are not alone! >:D<<'>

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its a difficult one. my daughter has the mix to and shes been on meds for almost 3 years. without the meds, serious problems, with the meds, problems we can all manage and my daughter expresses a preference to have them control her "naughty boy brain" can't argue with that!!

 

i think your lad says it all, and has expressed himself well "I asked him how he felt about it and he said, "when i don't have it i'm naughty."

 

im guessing that means he feels more in control.

 

i think as parents there is a lot of guilt about our kids needing medication to control behaviour, but i try not to look at it like that. my daughter NEEDS her meds to function and have the best chance of her education. without meds she would definately not have a future. i guess you have to weigh up the benefits against the side effects and what YOU think is right for your child.

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