Still haven't filled the RX for Risperdal

[nandz]

I know I have mentioned this before, so please forgive me for venting about it again. I am just trying to figure out what to do and it helps to talk about it. My son's dr gave him a RX for Risperdal for his moods and to help with his aggression and hitting himself, etc..that was over a week ago and I still have the RX in my wallet and I haven't filled it yet. I made the mistake of reading the insert and potential side effects. That was enough to totally freak the life out of me and that's why I am holding on to it. My feeling is giving him just enough medications to help him function (semi) normally and be able to get through school, social activities, etc..anyone else have these fears about medications? I am just at a loss of what to do. I don't want to give my son something that may potentially harm him. I know its sort of like a catch 22 because he is on Adderall and I know those have side effects as well..so I am really torn about it. I guess it is our choice and not the dr's choice, but if it will help him, I would be happy, but the fear of the unknown is holding me back.

Me--ADD/Anxiety Disorder--on Zoloft, Concerta, and Ativan

Son #1 --ADHD/ODD/Possible Mood Disorder--on Adderall

Son #2--a silly 13 month old!

 

[hearts and roses]

I think many of us here can understand your anxiety about another medication for your son. My H and I debated the medications for over 3 years before finally putting our daughter on them. By the time we made that choice, I have to admit, it was not only for her benefit but for ours as well. Her meltdowns were disrupting our home and interpersonal relationships, she wasn't able to get homework done, I wasn't able to get anything done, I almost lost my job, and H and I were in a constant state of flux in our relationship. It was not healthy. So, at the urging of her Dr we finally relented.

My difficult child was on risperdal for a few years. She did eventually stop after 4 years (I think) because her adolescence was in full swing and the risperdal intereferred with hormonal changes - for her.

Not a Dr, but I think that if you've been working closely with your Dr and you trust her/him, you should go ahead and give it a try. Try to imagine how out of control your son feels when he is dealing with that inner aggression and hitting himself, how crazy he must feel and how out of control he must feel inside. What helped H and I make the choice to medicate difficult child was after many particularly difficult meltdowns - she screamed from her room, "WHY DIDN'T YOU TELL ME I WAS RETARDED??????" through sobs. It was so upsetting to realize how miserable she felt and that she had such a distorted view of what was going on with herself. We had to act.

I wouldn't say that any medication is perfect, however, there are a few goods ones out there that treat certain symptoms and do a good job - not perfect - but they do help make things more manageable.

Another thing you can do is schedule an appointment with Dr to go over your concerns so he/she can tell you exactly what the likelihood is of your son experiencing which side effects, etc. Hugs~

 

[susiestar]

medications are a tough call. Risperdal was the 3rd medication we tried for Wiz. He was 7. I hated the potential side effects but EVERY medication has scary side effects. Even aspirin, advil and tylenol. Many pharmacists have told me that if aspirin came up for approval as a new medication is would NOT be allowed because the possible side effects. Our pediatrician does NOT endorse tylenol (acetominophen) for children for any reason. The docs in the practice think it has too many chances for causing problems.

Your son's behaviors are causing problems for him. Our son's behaviors caused HUGE problems for the entire family. He was so aggressive at home he was dangerous to be left alone in a room with his little sister even for long enough for husband or I to use the restroom. We trialed risperdal for this very reason. He HAD to learn to be less violent. He was unable to learn this with-o medicine. We prayed that with medicine he could experience being less violent and then see the good in not being violent. So hopefully someday he could go with-o the medications and still not hurt anyone/anything. We were TERRIFIED that he was going to seriously injure someone or even kill one of us. It was a realistic fear, totally grounded in the reality of him.

How big are the problems that your son has? Are they keeping him from having a good quality of life? The medications can always be stopped. Almost every side effect will stop, esp if the medication is stopped so soon after problem side effects start. How badly does your son need the chance the medication may give him?

I won't lie. Some medications cause bigger problems than they fix. Effexor did this for Wiz and I. I would no sooner take effexor again in any form than I would eat rat poison. It totally changed my personality and if I hadn't taken it I might have never realized the problem side effects Wiz was having from it. He couldn't verbalize how differently it made him feel. Simply was unable to. I have a hard time explaining the "brain shiver" feeling i got from the medication also. We have had other medications cause real problems also.

But with-o medications I would not have a 18yo son now. He would be dead or I would be and he would be in prison. This is the ONLY outcome that not having given him medications would have seen. with-o medications he is very suicidal and has been since 2nd grade, and is also very violent with weeks on end where he wanted to kill husband or I or Jessie. We already had lived that when he was 7 and we put him on medications. So for us it was pretty clear cut.

I know it isn't for you. Just remember you can always stop the medications. Just be sure to talk with the doctor or pharmacist before stopping them because sometimes they must be stopped gradually or larger problems can occur.

Hugs. I hope that whatever decision you make is helpful.

 

[nandz]

How big are the problems that your son has? Are they keeping him from having a good quality of life? The medications can always be stopped. Almost every side effect will stop, esp if the medication is stopped so soon after problem side effects start. How badly does your son need the chance the medication may give him?

Well, they are big enough to cause problems at daycare and preschool. Of course, the problems are much more here at home with me. I think it's because he feels safest with me at home and therefore feels the need to unleash on me. I want to give the medication a try to see if it helps, but I don't want to harm him either. I know without medications, he would not be able to function when he goes to school in the fall. I know we would have ended up putting him on medications later if we had not done it now. He hits himself in the head when he gets angry or frustrated and his mood swings are awful. His defiant behavior is getting better now that I have some consistent discipline in place for him. It's so hard and everyday is a struggle and a roller coaster. Some days are good, some days are bad..but we are trying to work through it the best way we know how. I don't want my son growing up remember his childhood as one big struggle after another and that mom was always mad at him and frustrated at him. I do admit that I do spank him sometimes, but that's when he won't listen to anything I have to say to him and I do NOT do it out of aggression. It's something to get his attention. It's a last resort. Most of the time, going to his room with no toys, no movies, no tv, or video games seems to work. I have noticed that since he started Adderall, consequences mean more to him than they did before. Before medications, he didn't seem to care about anything at all...now things are meaning something to him.

 

[Shari]

I guess for me, I had to weigh his quality of life. When we started Risperdal, we were looking at major safety issues What kind of life was that for Wee to live?

I didn't want to harm him, but really...was anything on the side of the package really worse than what we had? We decided not much, and the chance was there it would help.

And it did.

 

[KTMom91]

Putting Miss KT on Risperdal was not an easy decision, but it truly was a godsend. As susiestar said...somebody would have gotten hurt without it. While things are not perfect, Miss KT did graduate from high school, and has been in college for the past year. She's still a bit of a space cadet, but I'm comfortable with her driving, most of the time!

As Shari said, look at the quality of life, not just your son's, but the entire family's.

 

[BusynMember]

Yeah, I do get it. My son had those horrible side effects (like the involuntary movements, headaches, flu symptoms, depression) that you read about and, in the end, he didn't even need those medications because he'd been misdiagnosed. by the time he was finished with all those medications I had an eleven year old who never wanted medications again and weighed 180 lbs. It's been five years off medications now and he still hasn't lost the weight. He is a big boy. I'm convinced the drugs affected his metabolism forever.

However....Adderrall was just hideous for us as well. Son just got aggressive and mean on that drug and it scares me as much as Risperdal. If your son is acting out a lot, it could be the Adderrall.

I hate drugs. I need to be on them myself, but, except for the ones I take now, they mostly made me worse rather than better. It's your call what you want to try. If you are sure that the doctor diagnosed your child right and trust him, then give it a try. If you have doubts, take him to a neuropsychologist...get second and third opinions. I am sorry that I was so fast to feed my son medication, but I figured they knew more than me...

My own personal rule is I will only take up to two medications. Any more and I feel like a walking zombie. I may look calm, but that's because I'm doped. I don't like doctors who try to medicate every single symptom away. It doesn't work.

Good luck, and I do understand. It's a hard decision.

 

[Tiapet]

For me, my thoughts are this... medications all have side effects and it was a tough call but like you we knew our difficult child was better on then off. My question, however to you is what was the violence level before Adderall? Have you seen a change with him on it? We've used Risperidal with success and unsuccess. Adderall, now that is one we've had horrible results with and that's why I ask. That one actually "caused" difficult children to get more violent. So if you are questioning yourself I wanted to just throw that out there for comparison. If your son's violence has stayed the same then I'd say that Risperidal may help. If you have seen an increase since the Adderall, then you might want to think about that as the cause and not treat it with another medication. I know I'm adding in something different, another perspective here. Just mho.

 

[Marguerite]

Why don't you talk to the pharmacist? Or the doctor? Let them know of your fears and ask them what they advise. Chances are they are parents too, and have their own views.

I'm not saying to necessarily do what they say, but if you gather information and then make your own decision, you might feel less confused.

The important thing - you MUST make a choice. To medicate, or not to medicate with risperdal. Choosing inaction is still a choice and you need to be confident in owning whatever choice you make.

Marg

 

[dirtmama]

i agree with what everyone's written. my son started risperidal about 3 weeks ago. slowly increasing dosage upto 2mgx2 -he's 55lbs. we saw no improvement at 1st (he was on concerta at the time which we have now stopped) . with-in the last week we have started seeing positive signs as far as his mood --ups and downs. less aggression. he's high energy @ school but we are waiting a bit to add any adhd medications back in. there is no magic pill and there is alot of trail and error...but in the end you hope it's worth it. you must go with- your gut on this...also the point about if the violence/aggession inceased with- the adderal,or with a dosage increase-- that is very important. how long has he been on adderal?