Hi! I am newish to this forum. We live in Australia. Our 8 year old has been diagonised with add 3 weeks ago. We started on Ritalin 10 (which he has full tablet at breakfast, 1/2 at lunch, 1/2 after school). The first week was amazing. I thought things were going to be great. But then his appetite has gone to zero (ok at home but not at school), lots of trouble sleeping (now giving him a homopathic sleeping rememedy, it seems to be helping), he is very easily angered, frustrated, obessive thoughts, he cries more now but I am not sure if it is depression or just sheer frustration. The other day when he had an anger outburst and broke things in his room he just burst into tears and said"why won't my anger stop?" I was going to give his paedtrician a call tomorrow. I am just not sure what to think anymore. If anyone could give me some thoughts that would be great! Thanks in advance!
Kerry:confused:

Meds are started low and increased until the most effective dose with the least side effects is found. Then you have to further work with the scheduling for your son's needs. Sometimes the meds can increase anxiety and emotional lability. This can be a direct effect of the med or it can be from the ups and downs of a med when it leaves the body before the next dose takes effect. It may be that the dose needs to change, or change to a different delivery system like concerta or ritalin LA (not sure what is available in Australia). Because you saw positive results, it is worth trying to adjust the meds to find the right dose and schedule for your son.

The appetite and sleep isssues might get better after he has adjusted to the med. If not there are other options like focalin. My daughter had problems keeping weight on with concerta but gains weight fine with focalin. It is only the more centrally active isomer of methylphenidate so does not have some of the side effects.

It is very individual and take work to get the meds set up for your son's individual needs.

Good luck with this difficult journey. You will find help and support here as you go.

hi my son was started on ritalin on small doses which we adjusted over a period of about 2-3 month intervals until his behaviour changed. His pyschiatrist said that it was a common side effect for weight to not go up and as my son was already on the rather slim side we had him monitored every week. The psychiatrist said that it can take about 9 months before the medicine can even out even on different doses. My son had at least 8 different doses but his weight gain improved after 10 months. It's hard to find the right dose straight away and there will be ups and downs but at least now you know why he's been the way he is, which can usually help. My son also suffers from sleep problems as he has to have a dose at tea time it makes him alert but then wears off too late so his brain is tired but his body is still awake so to speak. My son has outbursts and smashes his room or attacks me and then goes through an emotional breakdown phase where he's really sorry and he can't understand why he's done it. I sit and hold him until it passes. I was told that behaviour therapy would help my son to recognise the build up before an outburst but as yet we are waiting for the therapy to start. This is something you might want to look into and cognitive therapy may also be a good idea. You're doing the best you can, he's diagnosed which is a great way forward. You don't have to know all the answers and some days will be better than others for a while. Just love him like you're doing and keeping asking for as much help as you can get, making a noise to drs, etc all keeps the cogs turning even though it's a struggle.
ps when my son had to take his tablet at school he said it made him feel different from the other children and he didn't always go and get it. He said that his peers would say cruel things and make fun of him so he stopped having his dinner in the hall. Maybe you could ask school if they have noticed anything unusual around dinner time or it could be that he's not hungry when he takes his tablet. We worked around this and gave my son a packed lunch and he would go on his dinner on the 2nd sitting and not the first so it was later than normal and that seemed to help with his appetite. As long as his weight is monitored and he's healthy then it should pan out over time but I know how worried I was when it happened with my son so I appreciate how you feel.
I wish you all the best and good luck.:)

Hi there Kerry! My son is 7 and was diagnosed two months ago. He is also on Ritalin, 7.5 mg twice a day. The emotional reaction you describe is exactly what we saw with my son while his dosage was too high. We started with 5mg, his response was good but not good enough. Then we upped it to 10mg, and he went of the rails emotionally. We have now settled on 7.5 mg, which seems to work perfectly.

I hope you find the perfect dosage for your son!

I'd just like to comment on darkangel's excellent observation. Most of us have missed social cues due to our ADHD and control of anger may be one of the things he has not mastered yet.

My child had anger outbursts that were soon attributed to undiagnosed BPII, and yet she still has some after treatment. I have had to learn the difference between a bipolar agitation episode and a simple matter of "she missed this the first time round" moment...and give her redirection as to how we handle angry moments.

It can be a little hard to have to go back and reparent, but like darkangel said, it pays off handsomely :).

Stimulant meds can make some people angry, irritable or violent, yes.

(Just like Valium or Alcohol can make some people agitated or violent or aggressive, while it they calm others down or cause sleep.)

Every brain is different on a drug.

Talk to his Doctor.

Hi! Thanks for your feedback. It helps so much to have people who understand. I have talked to his doctor and he has suggested to put his lunch tablet up to a full one. We have done that, and so far not too bad. He and his sister are going to stay at my parents place for a few days for the school holidays. I am looking forward to the break. He is looking forward to being on the farm. My parents are great with him, and understand that he is fragile. The doctor wants me ring in 2 weeks to see how he is going. He is still looking at possible bi-polar. His father is bi-polar and adult add. So we will see. Thank you again, and I will let you know how everything is going.
Kerry

Hi everyone. Well so much has happened since I last posted. JB is now on strattera 40mg once a day. It has made such a difference to him and us. He was not happy on the ritalin. The kids had such a good holiday. They went back to school, JB's medication changed and at the same time he got a chest infection. He was so sick for a couple of weeks but is good now. He is loving school, he even joined the school band. A bit different to a few months ago when we couldn't get him to school. He feels much about everything. Things are so much better. He can now calm himself when things are getting on top of him.His school are very happy with the improvement. thanks everyone for all your help when things seemed we wouldn't get there.

Kerry:D :D :) :)

me76, thank you for sharing the good news.

As I read this thread I was thinking that the Ritilan sounded like the problem! Some people that are sensitive to it just can't handle the up and down of the med and can get very angry.

I'm really glad your son is doing better and has found a medication that works well. You sound like an awesome mum, he's very lucky that you played such a big part in choosing the right med.

peace :)