ADD Help for 10y/o son?

Question

My son was diagnosed with ADD in the 2nd grade. He was on Adderall XR for the first year but the dose had to keep going up. We ended up having to pay for two perscriptions per month. We swithced to Concerta and he had really bad reactions to that. We switched back to Adderall and now we are on Vyvance 70mg. I know that we could up it to 90mg, but, I'm wondering when is a dose too high. I don't want to overdrug him. He is not behaving well in school because the meds aren't working. Homework is a nightmare! I know kids that only have to take 10mg of a medication so why does my son have to practicaly overdose on it for it to do anything? I need help here please. Whatever advise you can give I will take!

Answer 1

i know this sound wierd but it worked for my 10 year old ADD son.  try Zoloft.

Answer 2

You really shouldn't drug your children.  I'd honestly have your son evaluated by another doctor.  A second opinion is always worth while.

Answer 3

My mother had the same problem with me when I was young. Ritalin turned me into a zombie, so she took me off of it after about a week. What worked best was determining wich foods triggered hyperactivity in me. My sugar intake was extremely limited, I got NO caffiene, and had to avoid red food coloring at all costs. Also try removing processed white foods like white rice and white bread. Long grain or brown rice and wheat breads were fine, at least for me.

Answer 4

I have adhd and ive studied it alot so ill try my best to help

usually ADD is caused by defective neurotransmitters in the brain. Methylphenidate HCI(or ritalin, concerta, adderall, etc) fixes this problem by stimulating them. but ADD can also be caused by a structural difference in the forebrain. If this is why your son has ADD not all medications will work because the medications are treating the correct source of the problem. Also if this is the problem the Stimulants you give your child to fix this may be making him worse because there making him wired.

Also meds dont work for everyone and there are other choices of treatment such as the multimodal treatment which includes behavioral therapies, organization coaching, and impulse control, along with the help of medication.

Then there is your childs habits. Cutting down on sugary or high caffeine foods, limited time infront of visual media(TVs, video games, computer) can help calm your child down.

Psudo ADD is a posibility too. Psudo ADD is caused by "city life" and is not true ADD. It usually happens to people who live in the city and the whole rush of life gets to them and causes ADD like symptoms. Psudo ADD can also make real ADD worse.

I hope i was a help with this. Some of the alternative treatments will cost much more money but if they work they will help your child live easier and possibly medication free for life

PS. somtimes anti depressants work as treatement for an unknown reason

Answer 5

i had the same question on my mind with my son, he is in the second grade and been on 90 mg.of concerta for awhile, i hated it b/c i was worried something could go wrong like a heartattack b/c he is only around 60 lbs. and that just seemed to me like a lot for a little boy, so i talked to his dr. and we tried daytrana 10 mg. and it works just fine, he actually likes it better than swallowing two pills.  we also had to pay for two rx. b/c of the different dosages when we were on concerta.   mine is struggling this yr. with school, i think he needs to repeat it b/c he failed two nine wks. of reading and that is very important, but since we changed to daytrana his grades have gone up and he is happy, etc.

Answer 6

Try soda, any caffiene, even coffee. All of those medications used to treat true ADD/ADHD are stimulants.