back on ritalin

[hev]

steve on 18mg ritalin in morning for behaviour,75mg clonidine for ticks,the ticks are gone with the clonidine but the ritalin making no difference at all,hes been on it a week now,is that long enough? im also feeling that im putting him on tabs as i cannot cope with his behaviour,i feel guilty,i know he needs some medical help but i dont know what,hes so veryhyper the whole time,angermanagement aint helped,hes a very big boy does that affect the dosage?

[loulou]

Hi Hev,

 

<'> I have just put Kai back on Ritalin b/c his behaviour was getting unbearable. I feel guilty too, but we shouldn't. It can't be nice for them having their brain and body whizzing about all over the place. Kai is on 18mgs Concerta, but he is still hyper. I was told the dose is NOT size related and different children respond differently to different doses. I would have a chat with the peadiatrician about it.

 

All the best,

 

Loulou xxxx

[justamom]

Just a quick question regarding the ritalin, do your children have to be hyper active to be put on ritalin because my MIL said that i should consider ritalin for Keegan for concentration at school??? Is it used for both?? Is it also used to control behaviour???

Edited May 30, 2006 by justamom

[darky]

Just a quick question regarding the ritalin, do your children have to be hyper active to be put on ritalin because my MIL said that i should consider ritalin for Keegan for concentration at school??? Is it used for both?? Is it also used to control behaviour???

 

 

hi there, yes ritalin is used to control symptoms of poor concentration and inability to focus. not all kids with ADHD are hyperactive and have bad behaviour, this is a myth. there are many types of adhd and ADD being one, thats ADD without the "H"

ADD is not easily diagnosed, because the kids dont have problems with "hyperactivity" they tend to just tune out all the time, appear dreamy, do not seem to listen even when spoken too directly, and find concentrating on school work very difficult and as a result, very often underachieve.

[justamom]

Hi darky,

 

thanks for the reply, i might have to consider ritalin for my son with regards to the concentration because the school are complaining about his concentration and his behaviour in class.... I will have a word with my GP

[Nikki]

I would be interested this too as my sons school have just suggested we look at starting him on ritalin to help improve his concentration & stop him leaping around in general.

 

I have not read up too much on Ritalin - does anyone know where I can find out some more info?

 

They see this as challenging behaviour but I think the thing would be for them to address the issues of what may be causing / triggering this beahviour at school in the first place by observing him to see where & when this happens etc

 

Although we get some behaviour like this at home its not an issue for us & I am kind of reluctant to start anything until I think we have exhausted other avenues.

 

Any comments really welcome

Thanks!

 

Nikki

[darky]

can i just say, have your children been dx with asd? if so it could be sensory. its worth considering. my daughter is on concerta (a slow release ritalin) it really does help to calm her down and control her impulsive hyperactive behaviour. however, we have just had a sensory profile done on our daughter and she has vestibular and propioceptive dysfunction. because of this she fidgets and squirms in her seat all the time due to her not knowing where she is in space and constantly needing to "ground" herself. it seems natural to me this would effect her concentration and ability to focus. just thought i would mention that.

 

however, when ritalin, concerta works its fabulous and really does make a HUGE difference. without it my daughter would easily be in a sen school totaly under achieving, its really given her so many oportunities.

 

if you want some "factual" information and lots of peoples experiences of the stimulant medications used in ADHD, i would suggest adders.org there is a forum there and an "ask the expert" its a great place, just like this one

[justamom]

Thanks for that darky, yeah my son has AS and his teachers are complaining of bad behaviour in class, (year 7 main stream)shouting out and no concentration, we are having a meeting next week (canceled twice) to find out what else is the problem..

 

I have always said straight off NO - because being very naive i thought it was just for hyperactivity and he is very active but not too overly active or maybe we have just gotten used to his overactive behaviour - but have looked into it more and it could help his concentration...

 

thanks for the forum i will take a peek!!!