JonnyT Report post Posted June 11, 2005 Hi, Our son aged 6 and a half has a diagnosis of Aspergers with overlying ADHD. At present our home life is non existant due to his agressive and disruptive behaviour. However School think he is a little angel despite the fact that educationally he is way behind. The problems are compounded because he has a twin sister whom he has throttled and banged her head against a wall several times. The last such event resulted in weals on her neck and hand marks that lasted a week. Obviously it is totally impossible to supervise 24/7 Our son only has to be challenged to absolutely explode. He cannot walk past a flower without destroying it, deliberatly kicks and throws stones at Cars and just has to be defiant and disruptive at every juncture. This hasn't been helped as his Psychotherapy is being stopped due to a NHS reorganisation. We have it in writing that this is not a clinical decision. Over the past few months he has become noticeably more fidgity and is always lying down with his legs in the air. Our family therapist has now suggested that we are at the point where we need to try medication. Does anyone have any experience of any medications for this sort of behaviour? Thanks Paul Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Gordie Report post Posted June 11, 2005 (edited) Avoid peroxetine (Seroxat) - I think it actually made me (a 24-year-old Aspie) aggressive, when I wasn't originally. I was about 19 when I was taking it for a while, to treat my depression. I had also not been diagnosed with Asperger's at that time. I started shoving my mum around whenever I got angry with her (but never went any further than that - it was still more than I had ever done before though). Actually my memories of that time are a little "woolly" now. I'm not sure when exactly I was at my most aggressive. I do know that it stopped when I started taking reboxetine (Edronax), which I took for about 5 years - I was much more stable on that, with no obvious side-effects experienced. But before then, when I first got depression, I took two other types of anti-depressant, the first of which was the controversial peroxetine (Seroxat), and the second of which was venlafaxine (Efexor). I'm not sure if I was still showing aggressive behaviour while on the latter anti-depressant or not. So I wouldn't want to dissuade you from that, seeing as I can't be sure either way. Do avoid peroxetine (Seroxat) though - it sucks, and has made the news several times as it is such a controversial drug. It's just not worth the risk if you ask me. (Actually I just remembered doctors are now recommended not to give peroxetine [seroxat] to anyone under 18 anyway, under any circumstances, because of all the controversy surrounding it. So you shouldn't even get offered it for your son, if everything works as it should. ) I'm afraid I wouldn't have a clue as to what to suggest to reduce his aggressive behaviour though, as it was something I never naturally exhibited when on no medication at all. James Edited June 11, 2005 by Gordie Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
loulou Report post Posted June 11, 2005 Hi Paul, I can't advise on what medication would be suitable for your son, but i can share my experiences. My son is the same age as yours, and has the same diagnosis. He was tried on Ritalin (Methylphenidate) for his ADHD, which i can say DID calm down his hyperactivity. However, it accentuated his ASD, making him very obsessive and really unhappy. Last week, he was tried on the slow release Ritalin (Concerta), as the paediatrician thought the peaks and troughs of normal Ritalin may have been causing his mood swings. Unfortunately the slow release Ritalin was no better. We are going back to the paediatrician next week, and she wants to try him on Strattera, which is a new mediacation for ADHD (non stimulant). Apparently it works better for children with ADHD and ASD and helps with anxiety. I think it's very difficult for children with a combination of ADHD and ASD. It's not easy to tell where the behaviour is coming from, and what should be treated. Looking at what you wrote about your son, it would seem that his behaviour is ok at school? This made me think that his outbursts at home could be due to his AS and not his ADHD? In which case, would ADHD medication be of any use? There is lots of information on other threads relating to ASD children who "cope" at school and then kick off at home. My son has been out of school for 15 months now, due to extreme anxiety after a fixed term exclusion. He showed similar behaviour to your son (at home and school). Since he has been at home, his violence is much less frequent, and he is less destructive. I'm lucky in a way that i don't have any other children for him to take out his anger on. It must be very hard for you. I'm sorry i can't give you any real advice. You need to discuss all the options with your son's psychiatrist or paediatrician. There's information about medication on other threads that might be worth taking a look at. Loulou x Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Gordie Report post Posted June 11, 2005 (edited) *looks back at his last post, shaking his head, wondering why on earth your son would ever be treated with any medication for depression when he doesn't have depression* Just ignore me - I'm weird. James Edited June 11, 2005 by Gordie Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Amanda32 Report post Posted June 11, 2005 (edited) Hi James You are not weird...... Take care Amanda Edited June 11, 2005 by Amanda32 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
oracle Report post Posted June 11, 2005 Both of my sons can be aggressive. My eldest had a complete breakdown aged 11 years and pre dx of AS. We had two years from hell with him but we did eventually turn a corner. While I would never say never where medication is concerned we did manage to turn our son around without it. Maybe because he is very afarid of medication and we felt the fear of the meds could prove to be an even bigger trigger for his outbursts? He was very challenging for a great deal of the time. When the anxiety and stress were taken away the the behaviour and triggers started to recede. The same applies for our youngest. Matthew probably has ADHD as well as autism and he can't sit still for very long but when we took him our of school within six months we were dealing with an altogether child. We can often be found at our Marina at 10pm with a child whizzing round on a bike. Often we do not get to bed before 2am but it is something that we have adapted to. As you get older you need less sleep - well that's how it is for me. There are many of us on a SEN HE group who all share the same experience with our kids. Take away the stress and it can make a difference. But you can not ignore behaviour which could eventually lead to someone being hurt. I feel for anyone in that posiiton - maybe we were just lucky? We still have our bad times and blows ups but on the whole things are much better. Carole Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Corcaigh Report post Posted June 12, 2005 Yes, agree totally with Loulou, it is actually well documented by researchers that Ritalin makes ASD-related traits worse. I am really sorry that there are some consultats who still ignore this kind of research and keep prescribing amphetamines to ASD children! Paul, I can only imagine how your life must be disrupted and how must be hord and depressing for the parents! <'> I wish you could find a really supportive therapist whe was willing to work with the whole family and within the home enviroment (my son's therapist comes home to my son for hs sessions, we do not bring my son to him). Before starting medications (even though you must be at your wits' ends and I can symphatise with the fact that you want some kind of "normal" family life) I strongly recommend you give Beahviour Analysis a try. If it is consistently enforced, it can produce miracles. For whoever is interested, follow this link http://www.iaba.com/newsltr.htm to get some issues on line of the IABA (Institute of Applied Behavior Analysis) newsletter, is well readable and very interesting indeed. Good luck, Paul, keep us posted with your development Martina Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
asereht Report post Posted June 12, 2005 My son 14 often lies down with his legs in the air! We were offered medication for him as he can get aggressive when stressed but decided against it for now as it would only mask whatever his problems where not solve them. I got good advice on meds here at the time if you look back over my posts you should find it useful to you . Good luck in whatever you decide. Theresa. Gordie- you are not weird! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
