Hi there,

I used to be a member, but haven't been on in quite awhile so I've had to re-register.

My 6 year old was diagnosed with ADHD about a year and a half ago. After a not-so-good run on ritalin, he was put on Concerta about a year ago and we've had fairly smooth sailing since. His dosage was increased from 18mg to 27mg in July due to an increase in the hypersactivity/body weight etc..

In the last month he has gone steadily down hill. The last two weeks he's pretty much been self destructing at school. It's gotten bad enough that he hasn't been able to stay in his regular classroom (supposed to be there 75% of the day) - and even is out of control in the special ed classrooms. He's been destructive, violent etc. Not a day has gone by in the last week and a half that I haven't been called to pick him up.

I've resisted the meds conversation because he's been fairly consistent at home. He had these behaviors before he was put on Concerta, but they've been few and far between ever since. I felt like if it was a medication issue, he would be exhibiting these behaviors at home, too.

However, the school is basically begging for help or change - they're looking to us for answers, and I'm looking at them and the doctor for answers - and it's all one big guessing game.

In response, the pschiatrist put him on an anti-psychotic drug yesterday. I can't come up with the name right now, so forgive me for that... I think it's Risperdol... Anyways, she prescribed .25mg of that to help with the "oppositional behaviors"...

In reading articles on the internet, it makes me hesitant... although I know that meds for kids with ADD/ADHD are highly scrutinized and criticized.

What are others experiences with the anti-psychotic to help behavioral issues such as the anger/destruction/violence?

The Risperdol does help. I have a client with a 4 year old that is autistic and he was given Risperdol .25mg BID. Really calmed him down. Only thing is weight gain is a side effect of Risperdol for some. Makes you hungry a lot and you eat a lot.

Risperdal is a good med that works well for most people. You want to watch for side effects and report them to the doctor right away.

The biggest riisk with risperdal is tardic dyskinesia, which can become permanent if you keep taking the medication for a long time after the symptoms appear, so you do need to watch for side effects. At the small dose your child is on it is unlikely that this will happen. You usually see tardic dyskenasia in people taking large doses (@ 4.0 mg /day) for things like schizophrenia and psycosis. For autism, cobativeness or ocd/anxiety/adhd a small dose is typical (< 0.5 mg/day) .

I have been taking risperdal for nearly 2 years now and it does help me tolerate sensory overload a lot and it does reduce anxiety. I'm having no side effects, but I did have a lot of weight gain when I started taking it (which has stabilized). The weight gain has been the biggest drawback of taking risperdal.
I'm told that when you stop taking it that there is a tendency to lose a lot of weight.

An added plus is that it is a good med to be on for ADHD as it does help attention a bit. In fact risperdal is a third line medication for ADHD.


Me :D