So I found out I might have ADD through the suggestiong that my 8yo might have it also since the behaviours they described from her seemed perfectly "normal" to me since I was, and still am, like that.

anyhow, I'm on meds now, yet school is out and we haven't figured out to get her meds yet because of several things:

On one hand her brain is still developing and shes smart enough to cope with her lacking skill is writting for example. Shes learning to type instead and getting accomoddations throught the school. What makes her so great is her creativity and I fear meds might stiffle that. Also, I don't want to start (at 8) the meds rollercoaster of dosage trials...

On the other hand I feel I might be a tad bit selfish not get her medicated while I am obviously benefitting from the meds after 29 years of not knowing why I was such a scatter brain! I mean, my kid is just like me...no different at all. But I don't remember suffering from ADD in gradeschool (as in feeling out or sad about my skills etc), I was so smart I could compensate for my inability to read as well, or comprehend reading and my slow writting. But now in grad school it's hard to compensate finally the meds are helping me after 8 years of college and rollercoaster bad grades, but I'm thinking she might benefit from having her developing brain also learn to compensate.

She has no behaviour issues, shes a sweet scatter brain of a girl that takes a really long time to do assignments and may be at school for 7 hours and write all but 2-3 words. But ask her what happened and this kid will tell you all the details about what she learned.

Any thoughts from parents out there?

My son is 8 and has ADHD. He also is dyslexic, which is a horrible combination when trying to learn anything, especially reading and writing. His perception is confused to begin with, and his impatience and short attention-span don't allow him to focus enough to think about things the way they are, instead of how he sees them. We have him on Strattera, and it has helped immensely. He is a good kid and wants to do well, but his grades werer in the tank before. He pulled a straight F average up to C- or better, with only two six-week periods left in the school year.
I am opposed to drugs of any sort, but my wife and I had no idea how to help him, and the Strattera became available. If her grades aren't suffering, and she's actually bringing things home that she learned in school, and she's not a behavior case, then I would wait until she "hits the wall". If you don't know, this is a time in a lot of ADD kids' lives where their native intelligence kind of stops letting them coast through school. The smarter the kid is, the later it will happen, but it happens with most of us.
If you do opt out of the meds route until she's older, make sure she is on guard against her natural proclivities as an ADD kid. My own life would have had an entirely different quality if I had known why I am like I am. Like many things, fighting this condition--and even benefitting from it--requires education.

thanks for the comforting words!

she has disgraphia. Her equivalent "IQ" in writting (for lack of a better term) is <55. She's simply unable to produce written work. You can almost see her little brain thinking really hard about how to produce each letter.

She reads at a 6th grade level and her vocabulary is commensurate with this. Her ability to remember scientific facts is, well for the scientist that her mommy is, heartwarming!

But she barely passed 2nd grade, not because she didn't know her stuff, but because anything written never got finished. Homework took us 3 hours, IF it got done. Hubby and I just lost our patience and she was finally tested last Feb.

3rd grade is going to be scary. We've considered homeschooling so that she could gain confidence from reading and science and well, we could work on the math and writting.

So far she can't write to save her life...and if she had no arms she'd be a straight A student. I even kidded with the panel after the testing results...

I said: Ok, lets assume I cut off her arms then...what accomodations can she have? Because just because she has hands doesn't mean she knows how to use them for writting. So, let's all picture her completely armless, now how can she attend school?

I got a laugh, but that little joke got her a lot of services and ideas from the panel, including having a writter, perhaps use of a computer, or even oral exams.

I often just tell her "mommy will write it for you, whats the answer?" and she'll give me the answer. This kid ain't dumb...she's just hopelessly distracted and has no patience for writting and will do anything to avoid it!

My youngest could not get written work done due to dysgraphia and ADHD. She had accomodations at school including shortened assignments and use of a voice to text software (Dragon Naturally Speaking). When we started meds, her writing became so much better and faster with good spelling that she no longer uses the accomodations. The school is still working on cursive with her. She was struggling to get Fs and Ds and now easily gets As and Bs. She is making the most out of her talents and is no longer anxious, depressed or frustrated about school.

My oldest used to fall apart by the end of each school year and go from As and Bs to Cs and Ds (lost and unfinished work). We worked on different organizational stratagies that just did not help. This year the problems started earlier in the year so we started med on a trial basis. I am amazed at her progress. Instead of falling apart, she is getting straight As and has qualified for honors classes next year. She says that she can "hear" the teacher better, finishes her work easily and does not lose it. She is now able to live up to her full potential and she is so happy with how she is doing.

That is just our experience.

I also have an 8 yo girl who was officially diagnosed with ADD this year. Although she doesn't have dysgraphia, reading and comprehension are difficult for her. We tried Adderall and have had great success. She has improved in all areas, include a tremendous improvement in self-confidence. And interestingly, she seems to be even more creative than before. I think the medications have given her the focus to write stories and draw much more than before.

The nice thing about ADD medications is that you can try them, and quickly assess whether or not they are helping. We saw a huge difference in reading and writing the first day on medications. And you can also stop the medications whenever you want. There is no build-up or tapering off period needed.

Good luck!

Dradd,

I am trying to see where you are coming from - but having a hard time grasping the fact that while you are benefitting from meds, which have helped your own writing ability (and help you to get through school), you would rather that your daughter learn to cope with a handicap than give her meds. I would be interested to see a legitimate study that shows brain development is impaired by amphetamines. Ritalin has been being prescribed for ADHD/ADD for over 50 years, I would think there would be plenty of studies out there. I have not seen one though... What I do know about brain development is this: creativity and normal brain development are impeded by STRESS, and that the most learning peaks between the ages of 3 and 10 (though learning can continue throughout our lifetime). If your daughter is under a large amount of stress from her ADD (or presumed ADD - but obvious disgraphia), then trying the meds would be the obvious choice, as you can quickly discontinue them, and there are little if any lasting effects with short term use of amphetamines. As a poster above related her experience, wouldn't it be worth trying to see if your daughter could write normally?

Just my two cents.

At Heart

http://www.behavioralandbrainfunctions.com/content/2/1/2

study in 2006

while I see your point of view and I see that you are trying to see mine, you cant compare my grown up brain to that of a growing 8yo.

Kids are not little versions of grown up people. As a parent its not a simple decision like: gee, take this pill, it'll make you feel better.

I think whole heartedly that people have an amazing ability to cope and if she can have accomodations to overcome it, than I think I should seriously weight my options.

Pill is the easy way with possible serious repercussion we don't yet know.

Your argument that because it's been used for a long time therefore its safe is ludicrous! So was lead paint and smoking...

It took me less than 30seconds to google "ritalin effects brain development" and find something. Please, I hope you don't give this kind of shruggish advice to other parents or imply selfishness on my part specially since I am so obviously struggling with this decision. Back up your statements next time you dish out advice like:
and there are little if any lasting effects with short term use of amphetamines I really don't need your two cents...I need facts and research and people who have experience with THEIR kids on these meds. These meds aren't bandaids...they are serious psychoative drugs that require serious thoughtful consideration.

It took me less than 30seconds to google "ritalin effects brain development" and find something.The article you provided was referring to animal experiments with methylphenidate, not human experiments. It goes on to mention that the "abuse" of methylphenidate (specifically by IV) "may" impair brain development, but it goes on to say that, "one should be assured that MPH is only given to children with clear ADHD symptomatology leading to psychosocial impairment. The animal data suggest that under these conditions MPH is supportive for brain development and the related behaviour in children with ADHD."



What this article is saying is that those who abuse methylphenidate, or those (people or animals) who take it who are not ADHD "may" actually impair their brain development, and that the "animal data suggest" that methylphenidate "is supportive for brain development and the related behaviour in children with ADHD."

http://www.behavioralandbrainfunctions.com/content/2/1/2




Underlining is mine...




Therapeutic effects of methylphenidate

"The most commonly used genetic rodent model of ADHD is the spontaneously hypertensive rat (SHR) [rev. in [68-70]]. "

:eyebrow: Hypertensive rats may make good research animals, but they do not have ADHD.


In this model, reduced DA transmission was found in the PFC and striatum [7,71]. In the NAc, D1 receptor densities were increased, while D2 receptor densities were lowered [32,72-74] – which is in line with the current conception of ADHD in humans as outlined above. Oral MPH treatment for two weeks significantly changes these receptor densities to normal values [32,74]. Accordingly, Russell and colleagues [7] reported that MPH treatment alleviates ADHD-LIKE symptoms in this rodent model.

Normal values and ADHD "like" symptoms...hmmmmm.


In our lab, we studied the long-term plastic effects of MPH in a model of hyperkinetic behaviour that bears some resemblance to ADHD, i.e. gerbils after an early traumatic experience [33,34]. Early trauma is not a typical, but a possible factor in the aetiology of ADHD [75]. A single high dose of methamphetamine (MA), administered on postnatal day 14, causes a syndrome in young-adult gerbils that is characterised by hyperactivity, increased fearfulness and impaired PFC function in both working memory and extinction

This study admits that the gerbil :eyebrow: behavior bears "some resemblance" to ADHD...again, the rodents do not actually HAVE ADHD. Early traumatic experiences do not cause ADHD in human beings.The single "Large" dose of methamphetamine hardly resembles anything like the human experience. I doubt that most human beings administer high doses of illegal methamphetamine, or the legal form, Desoxyn, to infants.





In this animal model of early traumatic experience, we applied MPH both orally and (see below) intraperitoneally (i.p.) during adolescence (PD30–60) to isolation-reared, MA intoxicated gerbils. While the oral application was designed to match human medication, the i.p. application was meant to study the effects of MPH abuse.

Alrighty then, we are not discussing abuse of medications in a young child are we? I hope not....

That MPH restores the DA innervation of the gerbil PFC that was lesioned by MA indicates a beneficial effect of MPH treatment, which is confirmed by studies demonstrating improved attention and working memory in animals treated with MPH [82,83]. Since no impairments in long-term memory have been found in ADHD patients [84], and MPH, consequently, does not seem to influence this neuropsychological function [85-88], it is not surprising that we did not detect any effect of MPH on the hippocampal cell proliferation (data not shown). As numerous endo- and exogenous substances, including many psychopharmacological drugs, have been demonstrated to alter the dentate mitotic activity [rev. in [89], this result rather underlines the specificity of MPH as an enhancer of PFC/NAc-based function. In conclusion, a transfer from animal data on MPH to MPH treatment in human ADHD is always limited.
Although we did not find altered DA fibre densities in the NAc, MPH treatment indeed exerts significant and long-lasting functional effects in the NAc: In contrast to other stimulant drugs, MPH does not sensitise the rewarding effects of other drugs, but instead reduces the risk for substance abuse both in rats [100,101] and humans [[102], rev. in [103]], although there are conflicting results in rats [104].

Looks like the rats have a lot to worry about.

Conclusion
MPH is an indispensable drug that beautifully fits the pharmacological demands to regulate DA dysfunctions in ADHD. In patients with this disorder, MPH simultaneously compensates a prefrontal DA hypofunction and probably restrains an accumbal DA hyperfunction in the long run. Animal studies suggest that this effect is supported in the PFC by enhancing the maturation of DA fibres [33,34], whereas adaptations of pre- and postsynaptic receptor densities are elicited in the NAc. Both clinical and preclinical studies converge to confirm that in subjects suffering from cognitive-motivational and neural impairments, MPH has long-term beneficial effects in several respects, e.g. by reducing the core symptoms of ADHD as well as the risk for substance abuse [e.g. [102,103,115]. A certain reservation must be deduced from the observation that both the DA innervation and the behavioural function of the amygdala are altered by MPH, making animals more fearful and sensitive to stressful stimuli [33,101]. However, since the behavioural study used normal rats, further investigations are needed to check whether adverse emotional effects are also evoked by MPH in animal models of ADHD.

This latter consideration directly leads us to one of two important caveats concerning the use of MPH: Behavioural studies show that MPH is ineffective in rodents without attentional impairments [82], as far as attention is concerned. In contrast, MPH elicits locomotor sensitization in non-hyperactive rat strains, whereas it has no such effect in SHRs [98]. The assessment of DA fibre densities confirms that these are only improved in previously traumatised animals, but unchanged or possibly even reduced in healthy controls [33,34]. Transformed to a clinical perspective, this might suggest that physicians are possibly dealing with (at least partly) quantitatively and/or qualitatively different responder systems when treating the brains of children with or without ADHD [see also [7,116]]. This perspective is supported by different effects of MPH on neuronal excitability (measured with transcranial magnetic stimulation) in healthy persons compared with ADHD patients [96]. However, as discussed above, there are also partly conflicting data [90-95], making it impossible to arrive at a firm conclusion so far.

Finally, being a psychostimulant, MPH has unfortunately also been discovered by some as a drug of abuse that is intravenously applied. First results on the long-term effect of such abuse in animals has shown equivocal results, with negative effects similar to methamphetamine in low but no effect with high doses of MPH [33,79]. It remains to be checked whether it may even be neurotoxic under such conditions. Nevertheless, the wealth of human and animal information on MPH shows the great value of the drug which has to be handled with care to use it in the right way.




I really don't need your two cents...

When you post a thread or reply in the open forums of ADDF, anybody and everybody is permitted to reply. Members are asked to refrain from barring others from their right to post.

The article you provided was referring to animal experiments with methylphenidate, not human experiments. It goes on to mention that the "abuse" of methylphenidate (specifically by IV) "may" impair brain development, but it goes on to say that, "one should be assured that MPH is only given to children with clear ADHD symptomatology leading to psychosocial impairment. The animal data suggest that under these conditions MPH is supportive for brain development and the related behaviour in children with ADHD."



What this article is saying is that those who abuse methylphenidate, or those (people or animals) who take it who are not ADHD "may" actually impair their brain development, and that the "animal data suggest" that methylphenidate "is supportive for brain development and the related behaviour in children with ADHD."




Looks like you and I are the same page Lars. ;)

Dradd please refer to the conclusion of the study you hyperlinked.

{dradd source conclusion}

This latter consideration directly leads us to one of two important caveats concerning the use of MPH: Behavioural studies show that MPH is ineffective in rodents without attentional impairments [82], as far as attention is concerned. In contrast, MPH elicits locomotor sensitization in non-hyperactive rat strains, whereas it has no such effect in SHRs [98]. The assessment of DA fibre densities confirms that these are only improved in previously traumatised animals, but unchanged or possibly even reduced in healthy controls [33,34]. Transformed to a clinical perspective, this might suggest that physicians are possibly dealing with (at least partly) quantitatively and/or qualitatively different responder systems when treating the brains of children with or without ADHD [see also [7,116]]. This perspective is supported by different effects of MPH on neuronal excitability (measured with transcranial magnetic stimulation) in healthy persons compared with ADHD patients [96]. However, as discussed above, there are also partly conflicting data [90-95], making it impossible to arrive at a firm conclusion so far.

Finally, being a psychostimulant, MPH has unfortunately also been discovered by some as a drug of abuse that is intravenously applied. First results on the long-term effect of such abuse in animals has shown equivocal results, with negative effects similar to methamphetamine in low but no effect with high doses of MPH [33,79]. It remains to be checked whether it may even be neurotoxic under such conditions. Nevertheless, the wealth of human and animal information on MPH shows the great value of the drug which has to be handled with care to use it in the right way.

{End quote}

~underlining and bold mine~

There is a difference between those who have ADD and those who do not in the response of those who do not have ADD is likely to be more sensitive to CNS stimulants.

The last line - MPH is of great value if monitored by a qualified doctor and taken as directed.


Dradd when you ask a large percentage of people for an opinion you are going to get some answers you may not like, it is simply the way life is.

It took me less than 30seconds to google "ritalin effects brain development" and find something.

I could probably do the same with looking up brain damage and moderating forums. . . .You can counter alomost any thing out there.

Actually medication is a hotly debated subject especially in children. I understand this is a hard decision for you and frustration is certainly understandable.

When I feel under fire it helps me to remember two things

#1 People do not respond according to who you are but who they are.

#2 If some one accused you of being the King of England would it make it true?

To others please do consider your words carefully when responding. I have done a LOT of things to myself I would NOT have done to my children. We as parents are more apt to risk our own health than that of our children. . . .he perceives a risk and should not be criticized for being cautious.

I have severe ADHD and dyslexia and medication may have made dealing with them easier but I did manage to compensate even though ADD medication treatment was not avalible. I excelled early in my life and I believe learning to over come some pretty difficult issues like ADHD and dyslexia when very young helped me learn how to cope with difficulty early and well. Although we as parent want to make life easier for our children than we had it and no one likes to see thier child struggle. In all honesty a little bit of hardhip is probably good for a child because in life we are going to face it sooner or later, I believe it to be better for them to learn how to face hardships while enjoying the support of loving parents. I have faith that dradd ain't going to let his child drown. . . . .if he wasn't a loving parent he would not be here.


Please have considerate for each other and realize we each have a right to our own perspectives. The rudeness and accusations are un-called for and do nothing to provide support. Isn't life hard enough already without having to quarrel.

I didn't ask you not to reply...I asked you not to reply without using cold hard facts. I can't just place my kid on a drug just like that. Instead of your previous tone and putting me down impling I was being selfish, you could have simply helped me with fact to help me dicide this dilema.

If I were any less of a parent I'd jus tell the doc to give her the meds and not care about what or how much.

instead I came here for some ideas since obviously she's young and requires quite a bit more consideration...afterall she's not volunteering or old enough to choose. I must take the decision to medicate her very seriously and you so obviously were dismissive of the heaviness of this decision.

Again, we're not talking band-aids here. This si something that affects the very organ that makes us who we are and I think it bears as much thought as anything else that is psychoative.

We as parents are more apt to risk our own health than that of our children. . . .he perceives a risk and should not be criticized for being cautious.
exactly what angered me.

dradd take a deep breath here okay, I am not even sure who you are addressing in this last post but a little emotional distance may help you stand your ground a bit better.

I may self have no problems with you wanting to be very cautious with your child's health. Good parents do those kinds of things. I know you are simply being a concerned parent.

On one hand her brain is still developing and shes smart enough to cope with her lacking skill is writting for example. Shes learning to type instead and getting accomoddations throught the school. What makes her so great is her creativity and I fear meds might stiffle that.There was a study done on the postive effect of ADHD meds on the developing ADHD brain, but it's late and I don't have the link.

Loss of creativity on ADHD meds is a myth. I know several very talented, creative people with ADHD who, without the benefit of diagnosis and medication, were not able to reach their potential. How do they know? Improved performance on meds.

It could be that ADHD meds might not help with her writing output challenges.

Again, we're not talking band-aids here. This si something that affects the very organ that makes us who we are and I think it bears as much thought as anything else that is psychoative.The heart?

the original person that bugged me...

Thanks for the calming words...I'm a bit grumpy tonight on this Adderall and I notice my already short fuse is much shorter at night now.

Tonight I had Tinnitus and yesterday a bad headache. And while the meds are great when they are "on," when they wear off it's a rough ride. I'm an adult, I can rationalize hmmm these meds gave me tinnitus/headache/dry mouth...an 8yo can't and won't make that connection.

dradd take a deep breath here okay, I am not even sure who you are addressing in this last post but a little emotional distance may help you stand your ground a bit better.

I may self have no problems with you wanting to be very cautious with your child's health. Good parents do those kinds of things. I know you are simply being a concerned parent.My only point is that you can't just dismiss long term effects when right of the bat on the abstract the authors mentioned how little has actually been researched on long term effects...
Anyhow, back to data I'm off my :soapbox:

I found this on Google Answers:
http://answer.google.com/answers/threadview?id=572351

It's long but very thorough.

another HUGE concern is the apetite issue. I ate almost nothing today. My daughter easts like a bird.... do all ADD meds curtail appetite like Adderall and Ritalin?

another HUGE concern is the apetite issue. I ate almost nothing today. My daughter easts like a bird.... do all ADD meds curtail appetite like Adderall and Ritalin?
All of the stimulant ADHD medications do. I have never tried any of the non stimulant ADHD medications.

That being said, it is often a side effects that does go away in time for most. When it was an issue for me years ago, I found it very helpful to drink a meal replacement shake like Ensure.

The meal replacement shakes are tasty, convenient, and are loaded with calories. There's a coupon that you can print off from the Ensure website that you can take to a local retailler for a free sample of Ensure.

PS There are many generic meal replacement shakes on the market that are just as good as Ensure. I just mention the name Ensure because most people are familiar with it.

Dradd, I truly believe you want to learn about the facts so I know you won't mind when I say I'm worried about the number of myths you seem to have collected. I prefer sites like PubMed or the Mayo Clinic for medical information. I don't have any university degrees beside my name because of my ADHD, but I am a life-long learner.

I am sorry you are having such a difficult time on Adderall. I started taking regular release Ritalin in 1996 and it was all good. I am living proof that the appetite suppressant side affects of Ritalin are temporary for most people. I was a skinny, hyperactive kid without medication and would probably have stayed skinny with meds until puberty changed things.

I understand I would probably be equally as angry if I felt attacked for being cautious.

dradd you are correct I am trying to Google up long term effects and I can't find any over 14 months my self Apparently methodology in doing so is a problem.

I have been on ADD medications for over a decade without problems but I was an adult when I began taking medications. I know adult brains are different.

We may have to wait for Imnaple to nap so she maybe can find the hyperlink-lol

The best I could do for you ;)

Medicating young minds (http://www.adhdhelp.org/MedicatingYoungMinds2.htm)

MRIS had already shown that the brain volumes of kids with ADHD are 3% smaller than those of unafflicted kids. That concerned researchers since nearly all those scans had been taken of children already being medicated for the disorder. Were the anatomical differences there to begin with, or were they caused by the drugs? Attempting to answer that, Dr. F. Xavier Castellanos of the New York University Child Studies Center took other scans, this time using only kids with ADHD and comparing those who were taking medication with those who were not. Reassuringly, he discovered that they all shared the same structural anomaly, a finding that seems to exonerate the drugs.

Dr. Steven Pliszka, chief of child psychiatry at the University of Texas Health Center in San Antonio, went further. He conducted scans that picked up not just the structure but the activity of the brains of untreated ADHD children, and compared these images with those from children who had been medicated for a year or more. The treated group showed no signs of any deficits in brain function as measured in blood flow. In fact, he says, "we saw hints of improvement toward normal."

The news was less positive when it came to bipolar disorder. Chang has looked at the brains of kids treated with Depakote, and while his study is as yet unpublished, he says he noticed some anatomical differences that could result from treatment-and he wasn't necessarily happy with them. "We are seeing that medications do affect the brain acutely," he says. "Is that a good thing, a bad thing? We just don't know."

Even if it were possible to conduct extended studies, getting volunteers for the work is difficult. The attrition rate is high in any years-long research, especially so when the subjects are kids, who bore easily and, at any rate, eventually go away to college. On average, 40% of children will drop out of a long-term study before the work is done. And that assumes their parents will even sign them up in the first place. Some brain scans involve at least a little bit of radiation-something most parents are reluctant to expose their children to, particularly if those kids have no emotional disorders and are simply being used as a baseline to establish the look of a healthy brain. Getting good scans from kids who have diagnosable conditions isn't easy, as any radiologist who has ever tried to conduct a lengthy MRI on a child with ADHD can attest. "Holding still is not exactly what they do well," says Elliott.



Until all these things happen, the heaviest lifting will, as always, be left to the family. Perhaps the most powerful medicine a suffering child needs is the educated instincts of a well-informed parent-one who has taken the time to study up on all the pharmaceutical and nonpharmaceutical options and pick the right ones. There will always be dangers associated with taking too many drugs-and also dangers from taking too few. "Like every other choice you make for your kids," says Chang, "you make right ones and wrong ones." When the health of a child's mind is on the line, getting it wrong is something that no parent wants. -With reporting by Dan Cray/Los Angeles, Alice Park/New York, Kathie Klarreich/Miami, and Leslie Whitaker/ Jefferson City
***End Quote

~Underlining mine~

If any thing dradd maybe this will help you fend off the wolves, in other wards your concern is justified your decision not easy. I wish you the best.

Okay I ws doing some thing . . . .. hmmmmm if I could only remember what.

Thanks! they are GREAT posts and uber informative.

meadd that was really good.

Gosh...I really have to go pack. I gotta drive tomorrow at 6am! Now knowing what I have at least takes the guilt away, but the frustration about why I'm so off task is immense.

ugh!

I had the appetite thing myself. For me it was damned if I did and damned if I didn't. . .un-medicated I would forget to eat, and for the first month medication did effect my appetite. I used the powder form of slim fast with whole milk.

I did this for cost {I still had children at home I had to feed}

Funny thing I noticed . . . heavy people would see me with the slim fast in my cart so they figured using that was why I was soo skinny . . . .not realizing I was using it to maintain my nutrition and weight. Whole milk adds calories. I would some times see them later with a can in thier cart :p My skinny hinny probably helped slim fast sales in that store. . . .sustical and Boost is better tasting in my opinion than ensure. . . . also eliminate all sweets replace with fruit or other nutritious food.

After the first couple of months of mild weight loss after about six months I actually gained a little weight and now maintain a healthy weight for my height.{5foot 6 inches - 120 pounds} I thought for a while there my Adderall was making me hungry until I noticed it didn't make me eat if I took it with a meal. . . .the Adderall wasn't making me hungry it was causing me to acknowledge my empty stomach . . . .one of those duh moments.

I take the regular release Adderall if you have unpleasent issues with the last dose wearing off ask your doc if you may be helped with a "step down dose". I had to do that when I was on Ritalin. A step down dose - My last dose at night I took half the amount of medication I took during the day. The come down was a lot easier and my rebound wasn't as bad. I don't have the problem with Adderall but hey we are all different.

today I had a 1/2 cup of coffee from bfast
1 chicken thigh and 3 mini roasted potatoes
veggies and pasta (one serving only GASP!) lol

I'm a chunky lady so heck i'm not really complaining. When it wears off I like "damn, I'm starving! but don't really want to eat even tho my tummy is growling!"

Back to my daughter: if she took this stuff, this already short / underweight kid on <%3 percentile on the growth chart, will wither away.

darn it, I'm still here...ok, I'm realy going to pack now. ugh, my sleep has gone to hell!

On the weight issue...
My youngest was 9 and 58lbs and size T6 (toddler size 6) when she started concerta (skinny to start with). She lost several pounds and we added guanfacine because we were cautious about the weight loss. She gained back to her starting weight and stayed stable weight for several months but did not gain. We switched to focalin because the doc has found that focalin does not cause weight loss in many patients that have this on other methylphenidates. She has now gained up to 69 pounds in the last few months.

Basically, if weight issues are a problem, you can address them by first trying stratagies to add calories (add olive oil or protein powder to food and drink, make protein shakes and other things to get calories in the child). If this does not work, then changing meds might help. There are ways to tackle this issue.

It is a trial to taylor the treatment to the individual. It can take work and be frustating but may well be worth it in the end. It is easier to medicate yourself because you know how it feels. With kids, you have to depend on thier interpretation of how they feel. My oldest articulates things very well, the youngest not so good.

I think this may be the study I was thinking about and there's also good information about ADHD as well.

http://www.nimh.nih.gov/publicat/adhd.cfm

This study also showed that the ADHD children who were on medication had a white matter volume that did not differ from that of controls. Those never-medicated patients had an abnormally small volume of white matter. The white matter consists of fibers that establish long-distance connections between brain regions. It normally thickens as a child grows older and the brain matures.^{9 (http://www.adhdnews.com/adhd-faq.htm#ref09)}

Hi Drone,

First of let me tell you that I am sorry that I upset you, I was not trying to criticize you, but in my haste to post, I apparently did not censor well what I wrote. Let me start off by saying that I thnk you sound like a great mom, and in your shoes I would want to weigh the pros and cons of medication versus behavioral modification and therapy. Let me tell you a little more about me so that you can understand that I am essentially in your shoes, and I am on your side.

I am a mother of three children, my middle child is 10 and has ADD (only recently diagnosed) which he has had all of his life. I am also a nurse, and have practiced in adolescent psychiatry as a charge nurse for many years at an acute care inpatient facility for adolescents. So, I have worked with many, many children and teens who have been exactly where your child is now (and where my child is now). Sadly enough I hear a lot from parents that "I didn't know he/she felt so bad, they just didn't let me know", and with their fear of not only a stigma from a psychiatric problem (diagnosis), and fear of medications due to lack of education, they avoid medicating their children, essentially burying their head in the sand. This is exactly what I and my ex-husband have done with our son - we have tried the behavioral modification/therapy route for years, and at this point, these strategies (and newer strategies suggested by his current teacher) have not been successful so we are now seeking professional treatment.



Your argument that because it's been used for a long time therefore its safe is ludicrous! So was lead paint and smoking...

It took me less than 30seconds to google "ritalin effects brain development" and find something. Please, I hope you don't give this kind of shruggish advice to other parents or imply selfishness on my part specially since I am so obviously struggling with this decision. Back up your statements next time you dish out advice like:
Quote:
<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=6 width="100%" border=0><TBODY><TR><TD class=alt2 style="BORDER-RIGHT: 1px inset; BORDER-TOP: 1px inset; BORDER-LEFT: 1px inset; BORDER-BOTTOM: 1px inset">and there are little if any lasting effects with short term use of amphetamines </TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
I really don't need your two cents...I need facts and research and people who have experience with THEIR kids on these meds. These meds aren't bandaids...they are serious psychoative drugs that require serious thoughtful consideration.
Let me address some of this. To say that a medication has been on the market for 50 years or more (actually more, they started using it for narcolepsy and for ADHD in Germany in the 30's, and they also used it during the war to give their soldiers more alertness), is no little thing, and certainly can't be compared to either smoking or lead paint. Neither of those substances had to be tested by the FDA to pass rigorous test in order to be able to be given to humans. I don't even really want to discuss smoking since it has caused a lot of pain and grief in my life, and I certainly blame the government for their assistance in allowing tobacco companies to cover up the damage that cigarettes could do for so long. As for paint - well, essentially it is harmful if used in a manner for which it was not intended (eating it). Drugs are the same way (all of them), if used in a manner not consistent with the way it is supposed to be used, it can be (and likely will be) harmful. Over the years I have looked for studies that show what long term use effects can be (not long term abuse, because those studies exist), but there are very few articles available to the general public. If you like I can do a scholarly search at Cornell library (where I have access to medical journals that you have to pay for on the internet before you can read them), however I have done that in the past, and have found very little, other than numerous studies about bad health effects (cardiac damage from abuse, hepatic damage from abuse, etc). I did find a few articles about how they don't know what the long term effects on the neurotransmitters Dopamine, Norepinephrine, and Serotonin would be. There was some suggestion that by constantly flooding our receptors and transporters with amphetamines, the levels of the above mentioned neurotransmitters increases (because the amphetamies cause the sites that store those transmitters to release them) in our bloodstream (which in turn increases alertness, creativity, and focusing ability) and potentially later a loss of storage ability for these neurotransmitters. Essentially the amphetamines put us in a constant state of "fight or flight" (at least for the time that the amphetamines are in our system), by stimulating the sympathetic nervous system. This system is also triggered by stress (even constant low level stress, not just the startle effect of say a deer jumping out at you on the highway). This was a study in 1999 in Germany.


You say to back up my statements about there being little, if any lasting effects with SHORT TERM USE of amphetamines. Please notice that I am referring to taking meds as prescribed (not abusing them), and not long term. I was also referring to affects on the brain. Like I told you, there are lots of studies that talk about potential harmful effects on the cardiovascular system, as well as the liver. The few studies that there are - for instance the one that has already been posted on this thread (regarding the fact that children with ADHD have 3% less white matter in all areas of their brains - and that the number did not change whether they were medicated for ADHD or not, based on MRI scans, and PET scans. Yet in spite of more than 50 years of use, we have not seen studies that show that adults who took Ritalin as children/adloescents for ADD/ADHD have any sort of brain disturbance, or loss of function/use. What most of the studies suggest is that use of combined therapy (meds and behavior modification/therapy) appears to be the best, because those people with a combined treatment often are able to use less meds.

I am not suggesting that the med is the only answer - but I am suggesting that it is not the evil that you are worried that it could be. Have you looked into Strattera (nonstimulant ADD med)? I have given these meds to children/adolescents for years, and have educated them and their parents about the medications, so I feel that I do know a lot about what I am talking about. I am sorry if I sound like I don't (lack of sleep doesn't come across well on a forum).

Andrew Weil MD (who's advice I trust) suggests using short acting meds because of their short half life and behavior therapy in combination - because he too believes that not everyone can be helped by a change in diet or behavior therapy alone.

I think you daughter is already learning to adapt with her handicap to her environment - by your own teaching (ie her typing). I think that you don't have a lot to lose by giving meds a short trial. As you have already posted, the thing I would be more concerned about is its potential to decrease her already peckish appetite.

Again, I am truly sorry if I offended you. I only wanted you to think about the fact that you are receiving tremendous benefit from meds, yet you are denying your daughter that opportunity because of unknowns (that are really not THAT unknown). The only studies you have come up with so far have been about mice/rats. These drugs have been around for a long time - and there have been many, randomized trials/studiies, because that is the only way a med is approved for use. If there were studies that proved there was harmful effects (besides the physical ones I already mentioned) to the brain, then the drugs would be pulled. The FDA didn't hesitate to pull NSAIDS off the market (even though they were even more widely prescribed, with a huge profit margin) because of their potential to cause heart disease (drugs like Bextra, Vioxx). In case I didn't mention it before (it is very late after all - :faint: ) the increase in Dopamine and Norepinephrine are known to increase creativity as well as productivity.

I wish you luck in whatever you decide.

At Heart<!-- / message --><!-- sig -->

hi drone,
let me start off by saying what you are doing is comendable. while i think meds serve a very useful purpose i also think that we in general are too quick to find a solution in the form of a pill, just a personal observation though.


anywho my daughter was diganosed with add at eight though we suspected it a little earlier and we had the same concerns you did, medicating a still developing brain was our biggest concern along with several others. we did the lots of research and my wife who is a teacher is very well read in child developement. we ultimately decided that medication would be our last option not our first. our daughter is high functioning with what seems to be a moderate to severe case of add no disgraphia or dislexia which i'm sure would only exacerbate any problems she is already having. In the houston area there is a nonprofit child developement center called depelchin that runs on a sliding scale as we would not have been able to afford therapy otherwise, I would check your area for something similar. we went once a week for about nine months implementing certain practices and skills to minimize the negative effects of add. we also approached the teacher with certain request to help her in school such as seperating her from other students and allowing her to quietly listen to classical music through her head phones while she worked. lucky for us she has a wonderful and very accomadating teacher. of course we explained what we were going to try and why we are doing it so that she would not feel singled out. well with the strategies we tried which are basically effective coping mechanisms coupled with some behavioral therapy she went from being unable to complete her workload which was less than a third of the other students to being able to finish a regular weeks workload in three to four days and is much farther ahead of than the other students in her grade. I should explain that she is in a montesorri school so the work is completed at the pace that the child up til the deadline which is the end of class on friday. her work also increases in difficulty as she masters concepts so although she was in fourth grade she was doing sixth grade level work. I would also like to state that the improvements were not immediate from the time we started therapy it was about a month before we noticed any improvement at all. by three months though her workload was still not quite normal but close to it. it wasn't until the next school year (4th grade) that she really took off.

she still has problems staying on task. getting her shoes on in under ten minutes is close to a miracle sometimes and shes ten now. but she is capable of completing her responsibilties and is developing ways to work with her add and still find ways of getting the job done, a very important lesson for any child or adult.

now i understand that a different set of problems and a different child may not have the same success and that these strategies may not be effective for all. but all psychotic drugs change brain chemistry it is the basis of how they work. and to put that into a developing brain is not a decision to be taken lightly. moreover it is my understanding through talks with doctors and through research that doctors dont really know how or why these drugs work they just see a measurable improvement and know that they do. it should also be noted that much of the research done on drugs is carried out by the pharmaceutical companies, and therefore we should consider a possible bais in their findings.

Hi Dervish and Drone,

I am happy to hear that your use of behavior modification, and teaching your daughter coping strategies has been successful. I see how that can work in a non-public school setting like a Montessori school. In a public school where I live, given similar circumstances (I have a son who is 10 with ADD) in order to use the type of strategies you are using (ie, segregating your daughter away from the other kids, using headphones while working on her assignments), my son would need to be in a smaller classroom setting - necessitating an IEP. I have not had my son go that route, he can get extra help (such as rescource room assistance) without IEP classification, but is not very helpful at this point yet.

I want to address something you said:


now i understand that a different set of problems and a different child may not have the same success and that these strategies may not be effective for all. but all psychotic drugs change brain chemistry it is the basis of how they work. and to put that into a developing brain is not a decision to be taken lightly. moreover it is my understanding through talks with doctors and through research that doctors dont really know how or why these drugs work they just see a measurable improvement and know that they do. it should also be noted that much of the research done on drugs is carried out by the pharmaceutical companies, and therefore we should consider a possible bais in their findings.

First of all, I agree that every child is different, with different sets of problems/circumstances, and not all strategies are effective for all children. You mention "psychotic drugs" - assuming you mean amphetamines or stimulants, belong to a classification of drugs called Central Nervous System Stimulants, and do not work the same way that antipsychotic medications work. I do not agree at all that doctors and researchers do not know how or why they work - they work by increasing dopamine and norepinephrine at the synapses, thus increasing the alertness and focusing ability - essentially stimulating the sympathetic nervous system (which is what is triggered when you are in danger (for instance a car crash, or any other circumstances where you are in danger of being hurt). Yes of course pharmaceutical companies do much of the research, but all research is submitted to the FDA - and they are not biased - except possibly biased towards patient safety. If a drug is not safe for use, the FDA will pull it from the market. Many other researchers out there are not affilliated with drug companies (such as NIMH).

You say all "psychotic drugs change brain chemistry - it is the basis of how they work"
What do you actually understand about this? Amphetamine's effects are temporary, as they have a short half life from 1 - 3 hours. They increase the amount of dopamine and norepinephrine at their synapses for a short period of time, thus causing the "measurable improvement".

I agree that the average person does look for a quick fix to problems (sometimes including putting their children on meds), however, sometimes meds really are the answer to the problem. Personally I think a combined approach yields the best results.

At Heart

by increasing dopemine and norepinephrine in the brain you are changing the brain chemistry, even if its only for a short time, the more often its used the more often brain chemistry is changed, i dont mean that it permenatly changes brain chemistry as there are no conclusive long term studies on this as pointed out earlier in the thread.

also that doctors do not know exactly how and why these drugs work was not meant as an absolute statement but simply as my understanding. that being said i also think how was a bad choice of words obviously they understand that a mood altering chemical is released in the brain which has the desired effect. but that statement was meant more to adress the uncertainy of why these chemicals effect mood in the way that they do.

on the last point i think the fda does do a good job with the resources it has but they also rely to heavily on a companies own research in coming to their decisions. there are plenty of instances where drugs were released on the market where the research produced by the drug companies should have at least raised red flags but they were ignored. a few off the top of my head would include viox, phen phen and oxycottin, just in the news last week, the pharmaceutical producer basically lied about its potential addictive qualities, i'll see if i can find the link of course at this stage its just accusations but certainly justifies qeustioning. I saw something on the news the other day about ritalin but i did not watch it so i can not commit. but i basically bring this up to ask logical qeustions about saftey not to provide definitive answers which is why i wrote possible bias.

i tried to make it clear that i am not against meds but i just think that it should be approached with caution

Hey Dervish

I do not think that amphetamines alter mood - if you are talking about mood stablizers (like Lithium, etc), then they are totally different chemicals. I deal with meds (all types) on a professional basis. There are side effects to every med - all meds affect people differently - some work for some, not others. We have been using substances to "fix" things since practically the beginning of time (herbs and roots have been used for centuries). I do think that research and studies are important. I also think that sometimes we have to step back and look at the big picture - if a medicine is taken by more than 5 million people, and is helpful to them, yet it causes say 100 people to have a problem (could be a seizure, whatever - just a serious problem), then the FDA may still take it off the market. What about the 4,999,900 other people who were taking that med because they needed it? There are a lot of politics involved in the drug industry, what I think people should be more aware of are the potential side effects that MUST be reported to their doctor. Being educated about your meds is a great thing, and empowers you to make decisions. I think learning all you can about a med before taking it is very admirable, but just jumping on rumors, and suppositions about a med, without really researching/learning about it yourself is not so smart.

Sounds like you do like to stay informed - great. I wish you continued success in your daughters education process.

At Heart

i actually meant to mention in my last last post that i may be getting confused with mood stablizers but then i left it out. I am in the middle of doing house chores and checking post so i do not have the time for fact checking and once again i am not speaking in terms of absolutes but merely voicing concerns and raising qeustions. as i said before i have no problem with meds however i think that the decision to use meds is not one to be taken lightly. also i am not jumping on rumors and suppositions, i specifically mentioned that oxycottin controversy was at this stage only accusations and refuse to commit on the ritalin thing because i know that i am ignorant of whatever the facts may be. my main point was that these drug controversies bring up certain issues about drug saftey that should be of concern to anyone taking drugs. and by concern i mean concerned enough to research before making an informed decision. this is by no means a judgement on whatever decision a person makes.

Hi again Dervish,

Here is a link to the Oxycontin controversy. I do think that drug companies are out to make a buck, and yes, will probably try to hide things from the general public.

http://www.csdp.org/news/news/ap_oxy_051107.htm


Of course this is not really news to anyone who abuses drugs. For a long time, people have been crushing oxycontin and snorting it or injecting it to get a heroin like high. This law suit just shows that the drug company making it was aware of it's potential for abuse (for instance, you could related it to the FDA taking Sudafed off the over the counter shelves and putting it in the pharmacy again, in order to prevent Meth dealers from using it to make Meth). As for the addictive nature of a drug like that - any doctor who didn't get his degree out of a cracker jack box knows that ALL narcotics are addictive. If you are on any pain med or benzodiazepene long enough, they become addictive. I think what they were doing to try to encourage doctors to prescribe it was to hype up its long acting formula - meaning that a patient should only need to take it twice a day - versus 4 to 6 times a day for something like Vicodin.

Anyhow, before I totally lead this thread off topic, I just thought I would share that link with you because you mentioned it.

Happy Friday....

At Heart

Anyhow, before I totally lead this thread off topic, I just thought I would share that link with you because you mentioned it.Thank you for the reminder, I was just going to mention that we really need to stay on topic in order to help the OP, but a link in reply to another's request is acceptable ;).

Drone,
I understand your dilemma. My DH and I battled this very same decision this past year. I have read a least a dozen books on ADHD. My DH deals with ADHD every day of his life and he was the one that was very hesitant about putting our daughter on meds. He's main concern is that the meds were going to change her personality. He did not start taking meds until his late 20's. He felt that his personality had already been set, that the meds couldn't change that. He was afraid our little sensitive, carefree, creative little girl would be gone. I finally convinced him to read part of "Healing ADD" by Dr. Daniel Amen. I highly recommend the book.

After some drop down drag out fights about the topic, we sat down with the doctor. I am also a science person and so I needed the scientific studies showing the benefits of medication. The articles that I read (I'll have to find the citations) showed bevarioral modifications have some positive effect on ADD, medication has a much greater positive effect on ADD traits, and that the combination has the greatest effect on ADD traits. What caught my attention was the ADD traits. My husband and I decided to put our daughter on meds.

I was okay with my decision until the first day we put her on meds. She was a zombie. She cried, she had rebound. I broke down in tears for a week. How could I have done this to my daughter? We revisited the doctor after 4 days on the medicine because I absolutely did not want a zombie for my daugther. We changed meds and did the ramping up of dosage on the new meds. As soon as we hit the right dosage, everything just clicked for her. She came home from school and said "the teacher didn't yell at me today to put my butt in my seat" Her reading and writing changed leaps and bounds. She was finally able to focus for longer than 5 seconds and slow down and sound out the words.

Now that we have the meds right, we are signing up for classes for ADD parents at the local Children's Hospital. We are going to start the behavioral management program with the meds.

I understand your dilemma. After we put our daughter on meds, it seemed that all of those around us questioned and attacked our decision to put her on meds. It is not a decision that any parent takes lightly. She has been on meds for 3 months now and I still struggle with the decision to put her on meds. Am I doing the right thing for my daughter? My DH has dealt off and on with depression due to the ADHD. We take heart that we are helping her cope with the ADD traits so she can be the most successful girl she can be and hopefully not have the same comorbid conditions that my husband has to deal with.

#1 OKay drug comapnies and profit . . . .

yes drug companies want to profit how ever it is much more profitable to find out a new drug's potential to be harmful during the trial/testing period than it is to find out after it kills people. The mathematics are really quite simple . . .law suites are expensive. People tend to sue drug companies when their products cause harmful effects so it really is in drug companies profit interest to release drugs that are safe besides dead people make for poor cliental, safe satisfied customers who will swear by their medication are better profit generators than simply selling medications for the sake of selling drugs.

The reason many side effects are discovered after a drug has been on the market is also very simple. . . .there is more people taking them. In medication trials they use enough participants to find out what common side effects are for the general population. Once released and on the market then a more diverse group of people are exposed to them.

There will be people who take it with other OTC or prescription medications ones who have rare but unknown congenital abnormalities , It is in the early years of a drugs release that it is discovered this drug can't be taken with cheese or that one shouldn't be mixed citrus juice or ,the medication effects the liver in a small sub-set of the population. There are more reactions simply because there are more people taking the medications. . . . .this is one of the reasons the length of time a drug is on the market is very important to me .I don’t want to take some thing until there has been sufficient time for all these wonderful little discoveries have been made by other people.

Oxycontin is an opiod it acts like any other opiod, I don't remember it ever being classified any differently.


#2 Possible side effects

This is a copy of parts of a post I used in another thread but I believe it to be applicable here as well . . . . .

When thinking about medications and other possible treatment for any condition including but not limited to ADD remember this little FULL truth

ANY THING that has an effect on the body at all can have a BAD one!

***NOTE: This is NOT limited to prescription medications it includes foods, natural remedies, diets and herbal supplements

I can eat an all natural orange and it will cause me to break out in huge whelps, itch and have trouble breathing.

Oranges have an effect on the body as my “red rule” written above states they can also POSSIBLY have a BAD one.

Does this mean every one reading is going to break out in whelps, itch and have problems breathing every time they eat an orange?

After all it is POSSIBLE.

How ever it is NOT PROBABLE

:) For most people oranges are a great source of vitamin C

I just happen to be allergic to them :o


So when reviewing possible side effects note the probabily ratings, or how often a paticular side effects occurs.



#3 The medication and the ADD. . . . .treatment

Medications is a good start however they are only part of the treatment process. relying solely on medications decrease the chances of long term treatment success.

Life changes are also necessary and using the mental clarity as motivation for beginning the process that will last a life time. I began with looking at the one thing that caused the most problems and looking for practical systems or solutions .

The idea here is learning to channel and control our own energies much of which comes from our emotions This energy is better spent being looking for abilities and not just disbalities

Again a partial from another thread with modifications made to the wording.

So it doesn't matter if you decide on medications or not behavior modifications will still be a necessity. . . . . every good professional in the field has always said medications are an option IF behavior / environmental changes do not resolve the problem. In other words behavior modification and environmental adjustments are tried FIRST. . . . .no one in their right mind would advocate giving out drugs to any one expecially a child without first trying other "non-medication" practical approaches.So wanting to see if behavior modification works before trying medication is a prudent move as long as any cost are reasonable and claims are not out ragious. If one employees a professional make sure they are "reasonable" and know thier limitations which I am extremely sure dradd will do.

Most parents have already tried these things be fore seeking help, they just didn't necessarily use the fansy wording. However even if the right medication regime is found other approaches and changes will be necessary for long term success. After all this is a problem your daughter will have to address for the rest of her life medications don't make the adjustments for her they simply make the necessary adjustments possible.

Sorry about the recycled post , but I in the recycling business and after a while it becomes habit. Think I will try this laying down and sleeping thing again.


Thank you for the reminder, I was just going to mention that we really need to stay on topic in order to help the OP,

I think I am sort of close to the topic but it may be in a very ADD way. . . . :p

thanks to all for the responses and despite my cautions, I think I would like to try meds with her as many behavior modifications and other things such as rewards/punishment/scheduling only work on a very short term basis and we've run out of options.

thanks to all for the responses and despite my cautions, I think I would like to try meds with her as many behavior modifications and other things such as rewards/punishment/scheduling only work on a very short term basis and we've run out of options.If it helps any to know this, my kid who is the member Spacemania was so impulsive as a small child that she took off on me several times, requiring police/firecompany intervention :eek:. It was hard to medicate her but now that I have? I wonder what in the world I had been waiting for.

Good luck to both of you.

Behavior modification and social skills coaching may work better for her after meds are on board.

We use both techniques with my youngest (combined type ADHD) and after meds, she gets more out of them. The things we do with her seem to "take" better now.

The oldest worked on many organizational issues without success for years. On meds, she has a more organized room and life, and does not lose her homework and everything else. She is actually getting straight As rather than dropping down to the usual Ds, Cs and a few Bs. This is because she has turned in everything (not lost it) for the first time in her life.

ok i am all to new to this and i am looking for information on what direction to go in and any help and questions i might have or should ask. i have a 8yr old step daughter. who was just diagnoised yesterday with ADHD. weve been wondering for awhile now about her behaviour since school started in september of '06, then her teacher called home and talked to us and said he cant tell us to get her tested but he feels we should get her tested, and so we did. we got her into see a paed who specializes in ADHD/ADD. weve talked to our daughter about it and told what has to happen and that we need to change schools and shes very upset by this, how do we deal with and talk to her about everything and make her understand its whats best for her??

Amey, why does your daughter have to change schools?

when talking to your daughter just be honest and patient. take time to answer whatever questions she has. depending on how long you have been together and your relationship with her it might be better to let her biological parent take the lead when dealing with difficult issues like this. children are often more intelligent then we give them credit for and even if she doesn't fully grasp everything she will likely understand more than you realize.

also why must you change schools?

I also have an 8 yo girl who was officially diagnosed with ADD this year. Although she doesn't have dysgraphia, reading and comprehension are difficult for her. We tried Adderall and have had great success. She has improved in all areas, include a tremendous improvement in self-confidence. And interestingly, she seems to be even more creative than before. I think the medications have given her the focus to write stories and draw much more than before.

The nice thing about ADD medications is that you can try them, and quickly assess whether or not they are helping. We saw a huge difference in reading and writing the first day on medications. And you can also stop the medications whenever you want. There is no build-up or tapering off period needed.

Good luck!
I wanted to comment on this post to say that I too have an 8 yo recently diagnosed with ADD. She was prescribed Adderall XR and it has worked wonders. Her creativity has not decreased.

IF you felt like you benefited its only right that you get your child help also.