ADHD medications? What do yo use?

[Anna1345]

Okay so M has been on Concerta (successfully) since 2nd grade. Dosage adjustments have been made , but over all it has really helped him. Since he has been having some ODD issues really apparent recently, I have been doing research on Concerta and feel that perhaps this may be the cause. Anyone have any other experience of effective ER ADHD medications that DON'T have the side effects that mimic the ODD?

If you had experience with ODD by thought it might have been caused by concerta (or other drug), what did you change to?

What is found that the medications were the instigator?

If you tried more then one, what was you experience with them?

 

[smallworld]

What behaviors are you seeing that make you believe your difficult child has ODD?

Any stimulant like Concerta can exacerbate anxiety and cause depression over the long haul. That's what happened with my son. We've tried just about every ADHD medication out there. None is the perfect medication for him. But over time and through neuropsychologist testing we've discovered that his biggest issue is mood related rather than ADHD. When his mood disorder is properly medicated, his oppositional behaviors improve.

Just something you should consider.

 

[I'm going crazy!!!]

what type of behavior are you talking about the you are calling odd that would be helpful

my son is adhd and odd so let me know some specific behaviors and i can let you know what worked with us and what didn't

 

[Marguerite]

ADHD in itself can produce problems which resemble ODD. I would be interested to see the research that blames the medication - how can it be properly assessed? There are just too many variables.

Anna, have you had a chance to check out "The Explosive Child" yet? I'd be looking at that BEFORE considering changing a medication which is otherwise working. As I said, I would want to really look at that study from a clear scientific perspective. NO scientific study has validity until it has been independently verified. And I've seen a lot of things published, purporting to be 'scientific research' which frankly would never get into a peer-reviewed journal. Most of them get published in either alternative journals, or the conventional media, when the scientific journals reject them for lack of validity. And I AM speaking from experience here; I've had to review a lot of scientific research publications as well as having been exposed to some rubbish research masquerading as 'sheer brilliance'. It wasn't.

Mind you, if I can see a series of serious peer-reviewed independent studies which show Concerta linked to an increase in ODD and I'm satisfied the studies were done in minute detail and rule out any possible environmental factor simply due to the ADHD rather than the medication itself, then I will be a believer.

But all scientists are sceptics at heart - it is the vital anarchy which itself fuels scientific debate.

OK, I get off my soapbox now...

Check out the book. I think it might give you an alternative understanding of the "ODD-like" aspects you are observing. It sure did for us.

Marg

 

[mum2JK&TH]

We find that when difficult child has been on the Concerta for an extended period of time, his ODD tends to worsen, but difficult child has ODD to start with. We ended up taking him off the Concerta completely for the summer and now we only give it to him during the week. If he has hockey on the weekend, we give him a smaller dose of Ritalin. So far we haven't had the extra ODD behaviors. It's more work for us all on the weekends as he is truly ADHD, lol, but I'll take that over the in my face meltdowns. During xmas and march break we will take another break. difficult child also has Tourettes and the medications only make it worse so this break has seemed to help with tics as well.

 

[Sheila]

Puberty could be kicking in also.

 

[TerryJ2]

Good point.

We use Adderal and have had good luck with-it.

The ODD we've experienced was there from the beginning ... it is just now getting better, as maturity and a bit of self-restraint kick in.

Wish I could help more.

 

[whateveryousay2007]

My difficult child was on Adderal XL 20 mg and inattention was a problem so instead of upping his dosage they put him on Vyvanse. HUGE mistake. He took ODD to an entirely different level. He was taken off of it. Now he's back on Adderal until his testing this month. BUT....he's still showing ODD symptoms.

I think it's the medications that bring it out. I'm hoping that testing will clear up a few issues so his medications can be changed again.

 

[Marguerite]

I did some digging, I can find no reference to research connecting increase in ODD to taking Concerta.

While as parents we consider our own child's situation, the whole picture from our point of view, we listen to the doctor and we then make out decision - for our child - we must recognise that for each of us our experiences are different, for widely varying reasons.

So I recommend - consider the complete picture for your child. Do not listen to rumours; instead, check them out. Make INFORMED decisions.

And ultimately - if it ain't broke, don't try to fix it.

Conversely - if it works brilliantly, don't interfere.

In an environment of people being critical of especially small children being put on stims - we began dosing our 3 year old on high doses of stims. To some people this made us bad parents. To our child - I think it was the best thing we could have done. It worked better than we could have dreamed.
But that doesn't mean I think stims are ideal for all three year olds, or even all three year olds with ADHD or autism.
We made an educated, informed decision and it paid off - for us.

It's all any of us can do.

Marg