Kids on ADHD medications

My 12yo son is on dex and has been for a while. We tried Ritalin but it didnt make any difference to him at all. He still has his bad days but we have more better days now. We have seen so many specialists over the years and spent a lot of money on natural products. With the use of medication and the specialists we see, we will get through this. It is not easy living with a child that is like this and others can not understand what it is like unless you live with a child with ADD. He will be weaned off his medication slowly during this year and we will see how he goes. He has improved by probably 85% now compared to not being on the medication. He was even expelled from 2 schools when he was 7 years old.

My son is on dexedrine too. I know it's really hard to medicate our kids - we all feel like we are somehow letting them down, or not trying hard enough, or taking the easy way out. But the bottom line is, some of these kids really need the meds. Mine is one of them. His life is so much better since he has been on the meds.

Good for you Raevyn! I get totally upset when parents do what they think is right for their children and are criticized by others for it. If you would have said you did not put your child on medication and it worked I would have had the same response. Any parent who is doing whatever it takes to help their children is doing the best they can; and it is way obvious you are doing that.~Donna
By the way, I have adult ADD and take Adderal XR - it has done the world for me in the way of helping me to focus!

After 3 years, my 12 year old was diagnosed with ADHD/ADD. He's now taking Concerta and his grade have also improved from E's to C's and B's.

I can't help but wonder, yes for some medication is the answer but when I was young (I am only 26) there wasn't much talk of ADD/ADHD. Now it seems like that is the first thing out of a doctor's mouth when ever he hears about a kid that likes to daydream. I had this problem back in school and due to the fact that the schools I was in weren't ver engaging, I and my grades suffered. I learned on my own that there wasn't going to be anyone to push me, so I have to motivate myself. I still have these flights of imagination and I can drift off and not even notice it my self. The good thing is that it hasn't hampered my work. All I am trying to say and please don't take it as criticism for my family medication is only a last resort. I am very glad to see that your son's grades are improving and that you don't like the thought of ritalin. I think it does more harm than good.

i am so pleased to hear such a positive description of this treatment. Our eldest daughter is showing signs of ADHD and my wife would like her assessed but i think 7 years old is too young but i think it is something we need to look in to, thanx again

Well, every medication works differently for each person. That is to be expected. I don't have kids that are on that. I hope it'll work out for you somehow.

My daughter is 12 years old and has been on long acting Dex for the last two years. Before that we trialled a couple of other drugs (and drug free therapies) that sent her weight plummeting, kept her up half the night and zoned her out completely. She has finally got the right dose etc and is a different child from the one that was diagnosed about 4 years ago. It has been a struggle within ourselves and with our daughter but she is much more focussed without taking away that wondeful creativity that makes her unique. I just get so frustrated when people label us and her for being ADHD or taking medication especially with her being a girl, people are so shocked as they see a stereo typical picture of ADHD. We can only hope and pray for the best for our children and love them.

I have two sons with ADHD and one with ADD one takes concerta, He and one of hit brothers both also take abilify which is a mood stabilizer. The oldest one no longer needs his medications. He took them up until he was around 16 but does ok without them now.

The two younger boys, one with ADD and one with ADHD will probably need to remain on theirs for quite a long time. We tried going off the meds for a while last summer and it was a disaster. We won't be trying it again for a while. It was so hard for them to be off of the medications. They needed to be put back on after a very short time. They do quite well on the medications.

My son has been diagnosed with ADHD-inattentive type about a year ago. I am still very hesitant to put him in meds. So the doctor advised me to take him out of the regular class and put him in a special section where he only has to take 5 major subjects in 3-hr days. He is doing well in school right now and we make it a point to praise him and show him how much we appreciate his efforts. He can also concentrate more because he has fewer subjects to study, and he is enjoying himself because the teacher pays him more attention and makes him feel that he belongs. i'm not closing my door on the possibility of meds helping him even more with school work, but i'll wait until the doctor's reevaluation before we finally decide on that one way or the other.