From others experience..should I keep my son on the Adderall during the weekends and vacation breaks? During the discussion that I had with the doctor, he told me that the good thing about Adderall is that you can take them off during those times. I guess what I was wondering is that if children have a hard time adjusting to the meds after a weekend of being off them? He seems to be eating as good as he ever has but he stays up just a little bit later than normal. When he is off them..he seems worse than he was before he ever began taking meds. I dont want to put him on them just to make my job easier as a parent. I was just wondering about others experiences.

hi tonya
i have taken my son off his meds (concerta) for 'school holidays' and weekends....... i find him to be twice as scattered and distracted for the first couple of days. mind you that could just be MY lack of tolerance. my son has chosen to remain on meds for the summer this year as "i like not getting in so much trouble" to quote him. see what works for YOU and YOUR child..... everyone is different.
good luck!!

How old is your son? How long has he been taking Adderall? When you say he is worse than before, what behaviors are you now seeing in addition to or instead of what behavoirs from before? It could be a case of him measuring his "weekend performance" against his own "weekday performance" and feeling frustrated at not being able to replicate it.

We have permission (not orders) from my son's doctor to forego meds on the weekends & holidays. The doc said that after a year or so, they like to test the behavioral waters, so to speak. He does not have any trouble at all starting meds again on Monday after a weekend. As your doc, said there aren't any real harmful side effects to missing a few days of the medication. Maybe you could try just one day instead of an entire weekend or vacation.

My son is nine and we give him the option of taking his medicine or not on weekends and holidays. I am not sure how this summer will go. If he has something important going on like a school project, a birthday party or a big room clean up, we remind him of that so he has it to consider when making his decision.

If he has nothing on the agenda but Saturday morning cartoons, regular chores and playing outside, he picks no meds every time. He does struggle with staying on task somewhat with no meds, but we can definitely see improvement. He does not get as frustrated and he can calm down with much less effort. I believe that this is due to the strategies he has learned and practiced these years he has been on meds.

On the weekend days that he has something important to do, it seems like half the time he opts for and half the time he opts against taking his medicine. If he does not take his medicine and he has reading and a book report to do, we all feel the pain. :mad: :cry: :o If he goes to a party or sports game, he reports not having a good time. A big room clean up...OY :rolleyes: I think that is what the professionals are looking for, though, when they give "med holidays."

Our doc assures me that there will be a time when we can see improvement in these tougher areas as well. Fingers crossed. When he does take medicine, everything goes much more smoothly and he is much happier.

Something I just thought of, and I'm writing it so I'll remember to tell the doctor next time, regardeless of wether he takes his medicine on Sunday or not, my son always has a hard time in church. I can tell he is trying very hard to keep still and quiet, but I swear, he looks like he is ready to jump out of his skin. He gets tearful too. He told me it's because he knows it's God's house and he is trying to be on his very best behavior. He is very sensitive to the music, too. He puts his fingers in his ears. I told him he may not do that, no matter what. It is insulting to the choir and organist. Admittedly, they are not great, but they aren't terrible. He says it is too loud. I told him that I did not believe that because I have heard how loud he plays his walkman. Maybe it is a pitch thing or the accoustics. He does have permission to get up and walk to the men's room (where there are no speakers) and stroll around a bit, which helps.

Don't feel badly if you decide to keep him on medication for weekends. Think of it like this: having an easier time parenting is just a side benefit, the main benefit is having a happy, less frustrated child. If you need to, tell yourself that in exchange for you having an easier time on the weekend, you'll put in a little extra effort reenforcing his successes during the week. Hopefully this helps.

Flakey~~ My son is 9 and he has been on the meds for about three weeks.When he is not on the meds he is even more wired. Maybe thats because I have gotten used to the wonderful positive effects the meds have had on him. My son doesnt like feeling "out-of-sorts" when he isnt on the meds.However, just after they increased his dose (a week ago). He had the upset tummy for awhile and he has problems sleeping. Right now he doesnt complain about the tummy anymore. But he has expressed his feelings about not wanting to be on the meds during the weekends and is looking forward to not being on them in the summer. I think I will talk to him as you have your child and make him part of the decision.
My son is a very sensitive child and a very "church going" young man as well. My son would tell me about the music affecting him also as well as slow songs on the radio...he would get weepy. He reminds me of myself during those lovely PMS days (LOL-poor kid).At first he didnt want to tell me about it but finally he did.
Thank you very much for the feedback!!!!Its MUCH appreciated.

My son has been on meds since he was 5 and his father didn't want him on them at all so we compermised (spelling) He takes them durring the week but not on the weekends, but no my Dr. says that he needs to goahead and take the meds on the weekends. Dayton is 8 now. Do what works and if it dosen't try something else. It worked for us for a while now we are trying something else.

Is there a specific reason for his father's negative opinion of the medication - side effects or medical concerns or changes in behavior or negative press reports - or is he just bothered by the idea his son has to be medicated?
Not treating a child simply to placate the emotional feelings of a parent is a rather selfish reason - don't get me wrong, I'm sure his father cares deeply for his son, and wants what he feels is best, but decisions of this nature need to be based on fact and the Dr is likely your best source for that.
The medications used to treat ADHD are very safe, have been used for years, and don't require breaks, but lots of people take drug vacations for lots of reasons.
Other things to consider when thinking about a vacation: Does your son dislike the medication? How much difference does it make to his behaviour on the weekends? Does he get along better with his friends when he's on meds?
Good luck,
Greg

I have decided to keep my son on the meds over the weekends. He has gotten over all the physical side effects and I feel that taking him off then starting him again on Mondays may make him go through them again. He was also having a hard time sleeping besides the "emotional sensitivity" so the doctor cut his meds from 10mg in the morning and just 5mg at noon. It really helped and he is still performing very well at school.

That's great to hear Tonya.