medication advice

sarah100

New Member
My 14 yr old daughter has always had strong emotions, anxiety, hyperness, trouble focusing on homework and trouble doing it which lead to meltdowns, but things got really bad in 6th grade with a school change and bullying. There was school refusal, HUGE rages, crying, wanting to die, begging for me to help her feel better, and remorse after her rages.

Since last year she is back in her old school with friends again. Was put on Lexapor 15 mg but starting tapering down as the summer went pretty well with irritability (but less so) and very few rages. So she now takes 7.5 mg. But the rages have gotten worse since the start of 9th grade. She has missed days at a time due to anxiety. Homework takes longer than it should and she doesn't focus, and there is lots of homework, and meltdowns result where she gets really mean, maybe even gets physical, and says wants to die. She was first diagnosed with bipolar by a therapist, but her Child Psychologist of the past 1.5 yrs says its all anxiety. We tried Abilify and Lamictal with her previous BiPolar (BP) diagnosis and did not see any improvements. Her new child psychiatric also gave her a clonopin and Xanax but neither help at all with her anxiety. She is currently taking 7.5 mg Lexapro.

Her child psychiatric gave us paper work for her teacher and us to fill out for ADHD since my daughters therapist suggested she may have this. She had a full evaluation in first grade and was diagnosed ADHD but her anxiety was not so huge and school was tolerable so no medications. If she also has ADHD, and she rages when anxiety strikes, which medication might work best for her. I know it's a guessing game but some thoughts of those with experience is appreciated.
 

ksm

Well-Known Member
Ask your prescribing doctor about DNA testing for medications. Our teen daughter is possibly bipolar, but no official diagnosis. One therapist said possible Histrionic Personality Disorder. All the medications she tried over two years were not helping, and some seemed to make things worse.

The testing shows the liver enzymes in her body and how they break down certain medication. Some medications she metabolized too fast, and others, she was missing the enzyme needed to metabolize it.

It came back with a list of suggested medications, use with caution, and use with extreme caution medications... And most of the ones she had taken was in the extreme caution column.

Check your insurance provider to see if they will cover such testing. Most state insurance does, at least what I was told.

KSM
 

Wiped Out

Well-Known Member
Staff member
Was she diagnosed by a psychiatrist or a psychologist? Also has she ever seen a neuro-psychologist? They can be very helpful.

How is the Lexapro working? My son who is bipolar cannot take any ADs because it will make him manic.

Finding a correct medication can take a long time. For my son it took from the time he was 4 until he reached 13 along with 6 hospitalizations to find the right medications (I believe we trialed over 20). It can be quite the process but now he is doing really well!
 

sarah100

New Member
She now sees a Child Psychiatrists who we are very happy with We have never seen a neuro-psychologist. It was really hard to even get in with the Child Psychiatrists as there are not enough around our area.

The Lexapro is doing no harm, just not sure if it is helping either. She is better than she was, but starting taking it at the end of 7th grade in 2nd school she attended where she endured 2 yrs of bullying. In 8th grade she returned to her old school with friends, so that alone made things better in regards to anxiety. But it seems the bottle has been uncorked, and she has never returned to as she was, which was a girl who got anxiety sometimes, but not the angry, hostile, mean person she becomes now with anxiety.
 

InsaneCdn

Well-Known Member
And unfortunately, you are dealing with the roughest years of a young woman's life... early to mid teens. Hormones. Peer pressure. School pressure, as the work-load ramps up. Social expectations. Family expectations. LOTS of "normal" female teenagers become angry, hostile and mean during this time period.
 
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