ADD/ADHD folks: any perspective from lifelong medication users?

[rivan]

After much ado, we've started our 5-yo son on Focalin. The difference is night and day, even with the lowest possible dose.

Presumably there are some young adults here who grew up (or parents of those kids) who have had experience with the drug or drugs in it's class. I'm curious – how do you feel about it, many years in?

 

[soulcougher73]

I dont have kids and not a whole lot of knowledge on these drugs. I would never do it though it if were my kids, but that is just me. Im not a big fan of doping kids into zombies.

 

[blackdogdeek]

My nephew is on meds and is 16 years old now. He's been on meds since he was probably 11 or 12. It was also night and day when his meds were effective.

However, last year, probably due to hormonal changes due to puberty, his meds lost efficacy and he had extreme issues in school (failing grades, anger, etc.). His parents met with a school administrative group and they immediately figured it was probably his meds. That was when they brought him back to the therapist or psychiatrist (whichever prescribes meds) and had him determine that he needed either new meds or a higher dose of what he was already taking.

Again, his behavior difference was night and day and he's doing fine.

EDIT: His parents initially struggled for a long time with the decision of whether or not to medicate, taking all the usual steps to try to help with their son's issues. But after they started with meds they knew they had made the right decision.

 

[Mixolydian]

Been on meds off and on since 5th grade, but consistently for the past 7 years or so. The difference is night and day. As a young adult I can manage OK without them, but growing up and going through school was nearly impossible, even with them.

EVeryone is different, and every situation is different - so if you feel your son needs them and they work, then that's great. It's also important to consider the ramifications of NOT trying meds.

Like anything, you have to weigh the pro's and the con's. I probably would not be here today if I didn't have them.

 

[aaksheytalwar]

I have been diagnosed with aspergers, adhd and depression. Cant think living without drugs for my depression and adhd.

 

[actuarial]

I dont have kids and not a whole lot of knowledge on these drugs. I would never do it though it if were my kids, but that is just me. Im not a big fan of doping kids into zombies.

So to summarize: you don't have kids, have little knowledge about what the drugs do (other than quick one-liners you've heard), but you know exactly how you would handle the situation if you were a parent.

Oh, and actual parents who made a different decision than your hypothetical are slackers who are too lazy to parent.

Seems reasonable.

 

[Mixolydian]

This kind of attitude makes me angry. It doesn't get any more ignorant than that.

 

[DCal430]

IMHO far too many kids are being diagnosed with ADHD, too many doctors wanting to hand out pills. Too many people/kids with ADHD or ASD/Aspergers getting accommodation that are not needed or deserved. The worst offense being extra time on exams. No one deserves this.

Not saying these conditions aren't real, because I know they are, but just that too often they are used as an excuse for special treatment.

Also not saying that no kids need pills, just that doctors are too easily willing to hand it out.

 

[Lonbjerg]

My ex were on Ritalin, but then changed to Strattea...much better.

 

[ShawnD1]

My gf is taking ADHD drugs, and the effects are drastic. She's a lot more relaxed.

 

[Vdubchaos]

IMHO far too many kids are being diagnosed with ADHD, too many doctors wanting to hand out pills. Too many people/kids with ADHD or ASD/Aspergers getting accommodation that are not needed or deserved. The worst offense being extra time on exams. No one deserves this.

Not saying these conditions aren't real, because I know they are, but just that too often they are used as an excuse for special treatment.

Also not saying that no kids need pills, just that doctors are too easily willing to hand it out.

I agree with this 100%

My son has a friend that is on these pills. Kid will NOT touch ANYTHING but chicken nuggets and soda.

I really wish the doctor would've asked their parents to work on the kids diet LONG before they gave the pills to him.....but that's not exactly an incentive for them.

I also see a LOT of parents turning to drugs because their kid doesn't do well in school. Accept it people, some kids do well in school and some don't.....just part of nature. But no, little Johnny HAS to do well.

Really sad.

 

[ShawnD1]

I also see a LOT of parents turning to drugs because their kid doesn't do well in school. Accept it people, some kids do well in school and some don't.....just part of nature. But no, little Johnny HAS to do well.

Maybe this is the first generation where parents actually care about their children. Look at past generations - nobody knew shit about math, so people were constantly fucked by banks and insurance companies. Banking and insurance rely on math, so people who don't understand math are easily jerked around. If I didn't have a solid high school understanding of math, I wouldn't have been able to do any of the math that I did before buying property, and I might have screwed myself by signing up for something that I didn't understand. Just look at the fiasco caused by variable interest rate mortgages. People signed up for those because they didn't understand what a variable interest rate was or how much the interest rate affects the monthly payments. Families lost everything, and many of them don't even know why.

You can get a feel for how big of a problem this is by listening to people who have money problems. Based on what I have heard, at least 90% of problems are caused by having a poor understanding of math or the system as a whole. People don't understand why having a bad credit score affects interest rates even though that was clearly explained in school.

 

[Baked]

Smoke weed everyday. Much cheaper, less side effects.

 

[Lonbjerg]

Smoke weed everyday. Much cheaper, less side effects.

Dosn't do the job as good as Strattea...trust me...it's been tried....a LOT.

 

[ShawnD1]

Smoke weed everyday. Much cheaper, less side effects.

And it doesn't work. I listen to Joe Rogan's podcast every day, and the people on that show seem just as confused as unmedicated people with ADHD. Even though Rogan does have a high school diploma and he did attend college, his stoned self doesn't seem to understand math or economics. Many of his guests express having the same problems of not understanding math and getting jerked around, and they're pretty much always high on that show.

Amphetamine is used for ADHD because it actually works. People high on amphetamine have a much deeper understanding of math and logic. Amphetamine makes people dismantle radios and figure out what all of the parts do. All I have ever seen marijuana do is make people tired all day then sleep at 9pm on Saturdays.

 

[sactwnguy]

Straterra is a terrible drug. I didn't want to use a stimulant so I asked to try it first, it made me violently ill. At first I thought it was just a rare side effect but just about anyone I know who has tried it had similar results. Giving it to kids is even worse since it has shown signs of causing depression similar to other antidepressants.

 

[brandonb]

After much ado, we've started our 5-yo son on Focalin. The difference is night and day, even with the lowest possible dose.

Presumably there are some young adults here who grew up (or parents of those kids) who have had experience with the drug or drugs in it's class. I'm curious – how do you feel about it, many years in?

My nephew has been diagnosed with many things, ADHD, Bipolar, Aspergers, etc. They'd pop him full of pills. Let me just say right now... I wish they never did give him drugs. They gave him side effects that were worse than the symptoms. He attacked my sister (his mom) with a bike chain with lock on the end swinging it around. Just because his body couldn't regulate or normalize the doses and such. Every session at the doctors they changed something with the pills, dosage, etc. The medications made him bipolar. Then they'd give him drugs for that.

By age 18 his body was a pharmacy and was in a group home for kids with special needs. When I was dating sometime. I ran into a gal that had similar problems as him, and while we didn't get into a relationship, but being in her 30's, she told me her secret to normalizing her problems. It was to drink alot of caffeine. Like a pot of coffee a day. Caffeine apparently (according to her) has the opposite effect for those with ADHD, etc.

I suggested it to my sister as "it couldn't hurt to try". So she told that to his group home, and they they started pumping him full of caffeine. Low and behold. He was out of there in 6 months and back to liviing a normal life. With no medication. Just lots of caffeine. He isn't perfect but having a life full of meds while growing will likely screw up everybody, but he's doing alot better.

All in all. I'd say be very careful. You might be making the problem worse long term.

 

[Vdubchaos]

And it doesn't work. I listen to Joe Rogan's podcast every day, and the people on that show seem just as confused as unmedicated people with ADHD. Even though Rogan does have a high school diploma and he did attend college, his stoned self doesn't seem to understand math or economics. Many of his guests express having the same problems of not understanding math and getting jerked around, and they're pretty much always high on that show.

Amphetamine is used for ADHD because it actually works. People high on amphetamine have a much deeper understanding of math and logic. Amphetamine makes people dismantle radios and figure out what all of the parts do. All I have ever seen marijuana do is make people tired all day then sleep at 9pm on Saturdays.

You are very wrong on that.

Me without weed = lazy/don't want to do anything

me + weed = running around doing things/getting things done like a chicken with it's head cut off.

PS. I wake up at 630-7am each and every day (even if I can sleep longer).



Mind you, I don't smoke crap/mexican weed and I only do it occasionally........but still

 

[Lonbjerg]

Straterra is a terrible drug. I didn't want to use a stimulant so I asked to try it first, it made me violently ill. At first I thought it was just a rare side effect but just about anyone I know who has tried it had similar results. Giving it to kids is even worse since it has shown signs of causing depression similar to other antidepressants.

^
So because YOU suffer from side effects...it's a bad drug for everyone?

In my ex'es case on Ritalin she had Highs and Lows...depending on how long ago she took it.
Samme effect as eg. normal people doing amfetamine.
On Strattea..."flatline"...no high or low...just stable.

 

[Miramonti]

I've taken meds most of my adult life for ADD, but nothing has helped more than dropping beef and most dairy and wheat from my diet, and drinking lots of raw green shakes (packed with fruits and vegetables and other healthy cr@p). Since I've started that over a year ago, I haven't needed any meds for ADD and my focus is much better than ever.

I believe beef, dairy, and wheat set me back so much partially due to allergies to them and partially due to inorganic ingredients in them. Preparing to eat these foods is like preparing to watch the fog roll in, and it takes a couple days without them before I can concentrate well and think clearly again.

 

[grohl]

I'm not going to take the time to read ignorant posts for those who don't have kids.

My oldest daughter is on the autism spectrum, but quite normal and does not even have aspergers. Just a tremendously hard time concentrating.

Our pedi suggested full eval with neuropsych. It was a full day of testing, cost us $1300 out of pocket, and in the end a 16 page report was generated. It was extremely thorough. It gave the rationale for a trial of ritalin LA, and at the lowest dose, her grades went from Cs to As with much less frustration in the classroom.

Every child has a different story. Ours started at 10, I am sorry I wouldn't consider the option any sooner. Good luck.

 

[vi edit]

As a parent of a 5 year old that I have some concerns about...

For the other parents a question for you - when you started down this path, was there any discussion on ways to help via behavior alteration? Or did your family doc just more or less go "Yup, it's the ADD, here's your script".

Have you guys tried any sort of check lists, daily goals, different styles of parenting? Ect. Any of that have any marginal impact?

I'm not knocking drugs, or adverse to them, just wondering if there is any other help provided before/in addition to meds.

 

[soulcougher73]

This kind of attitude makes me angry. It doesn't get any more ignorant than that.

And your kind of attitude of giving drugs to children makes me angry. Why not learn about other ways to combat these issues that dont require drugs? You know like changing diets and foods? We even have someone in this very thread who said that is what worked for him.

I believe what we commonly eat is what is causing these issues and i also think Dr.s just prescribe drugs because they get paid to and its an easy scape goat diagnosis.

Im old enough to have seen the rise of ADD/ADHD etc. We didnt have that growing up but now it seems every kid has it. Something has changed in my 40 years on earth. I can think of only one kid in all my school years that may had severe behavioral issues where these types of drugs may have helped him.

 

[abj13]

IMHO far too many kids are being diagnosed with ADHD, too many doctors wanting to hand out pills. Too many people/kids with ADHD or ASD/Aspergers getting accommodation that are not needed or deserved. The worst offense being extra time on exams. No one deserves this.

Not saying these conditions aren't real, because I know they are, but just that too often they are used as an excuse for special treatment.

Also not saying that no kids need pills, just that doctors are too easily willing to hand it out.

Good thing you don't know how ADHD is diagnosed children these days. Many children now are diagnosed through the American Academy of Pediatrics recommendations, where not only is the diagnosis apart of physician history, but the children have rating scales (aka Vanderbilt scores) completed by the parents and the teachers. Its by their self-reporting in addition to a physician's assessment that a child is primarily diagnosed with ADHD

 

[yhelothar]

When is it appropriate to go down the medication path? It seems most reasonable to do so if someone was born with a condition rather than it to be caused by external environmental factors. If it was caused by environmental factors, the logical thing to do is to rectify those factors.

With ADHD, there are two well researched etiologies involved. It could be either genetic or environmental. In terms of genetic, a specific polymorphism of the dopamine receptor, DRD4, as well as a polymorphism of the dopamine transporter, DAT, is highly correlated with ADHD behavior as well as novelty seeking behavior.

Environmental wise, today's high stimulation entertainment is a breeding ground for ADHD. Children are playing highly stimulating video games for hours on end. The internet feeds us an incredible amount of information and entertainment that requires very little attention span. These are also very addictive.

Studies show that repeated engagement of addictive behavior makes our prefrontal cortex less active, so we're less capable of directing our willpower to accomplish less exciting tasks that takes sustained attention. It also makes it more difficult to fruitfully carry out our plans and goals. These symptoms are the hallmark of ADHD.

So is the answer to use less internet/gaming? Perhaps, but it seems that we can work out our willpower as well. Meditation is often touted as a method of working out our brain's prefrontal cortex. Or you can just engage in just about any other task that requires willpower.