We had the second opinion appointment with a different psychiatrist today. She suggested 2 options. Currently difficult child 2 is on Concerta, Intuniv, Celexa 10 mg. and Risperdal .25 mg. She suggests we first try to baby step the Celexa up because the biggest issue currently for difficult child 2 is the anxiety. However, I've mentioned this before, both my difficult child's had terrible reactions when I tried upping previous SSRI's that we tried. That's how we ended up on Risperdal in the first place and I'm thrilled that we've been able to back difficult child 2 down to .25 of the Risperdal from a high of 1.5 mg. She had a term for rage induced by SSRI's that I can't recall. She said it happens to kids sometimes. So, I'm petrified at the thought of upping the Celexa. She feels that when it's baby-stepped up, it decreases the chance for the rage issue, and that at a higher dose, his anxiety might improve and then we could drop the Risperdal completely, which is my goal. I just don't know if I can do this.
However, she also suggested that we could come off the Concerta and the Celexa (and the Intuniv too, maybe - not sure about that one) and try Strattera because it's an ADHD medication that has been shown to improve anxiety too. Personally I'd like to try this route. The 2nd opinion psychiatrist felt we should try the first treatment route before trying the Strattera for a few reasons, a main one being that we've had a lot of life stressors recently (mother in law passed away and a few other things), and that bc of that, we should stay the course we are on but up the Celexa because she feels difficult child 2 is undermedicated for the anxiety. The 2nd opinion psychiatrist also concurred with-the neuropsychologist's recommendation of weekly therapy which I'm pursuing aggressively.
Would love to hear from people about their experience on Strattera. This board has been so helpful in my information gathering efforts. Thank you!!
However, she also suggested that we could come off the Concerta and the Celexa (and the Intuniv too, maybe - not sure about that one) and try Strattera because it's an ADHD medication that has been shown to improve anxiety too. Personally I'd like to try this route. The 2nd opinion psychiatrist felt we should try the first treatment route before trying the Strattera for a few reasons, a main one being that we've had a lot of life stressors recently (mother in law passed away and a few other things), and that bc of that, we should stay the course we are on but up the Celexa because she feels difficult child 2 is undermedicated for the anxiety. The 2nd opinion psychiatrist also concurred with-the neuropsychologist's recommendation of weekly therapy which I'm pursuing aggressively.
Would love to hear from people about their experience on Strattera. This board has been so helpful in my information gathering efforts. Thank you!!