Response to meds question for a.d.d.

[Guest guest]

I'm sorry your son is having difficulty with Straterra. My sister

has been on it with a combination of an Adderall booster in the

afternoon. At the moment, she's in college and struggling as well.

The meds do help her concentrate enough to get through a full day of

classes.

As far as a.d.d. meds in general:

Not every med works the same way on every person.

I am a member of a support group for adults with AD/HD, with about

35-40 people in attendence on a weekly basis. Every 5th tuesday of

the month is dedicated to what we refer to as " medication tuesday " .

And after the first medication tuesday experience, you would swear

we were all doctors the way we know meds inside and out. There are a

few members I know currently taking Stattera, but they complain they

hate the side effects and are ready to switch. We all tend to have

the characteristic of " instant gratification " . If the med doesn't

work for us overnight, then we tend to think it just doesn't work at

all. The rest of us got scared b/c Stattera was the first med to

get the black box warning.

My sister has been on a.d.d. meds for about two years. She has been

able to find the meds that worked best for her right from the

start. My mom has been on a.d.d. meds for about 6 months, she and I

were taking Adderall at the same time. Her body couldn't handle the

10mg XR form while I was up to 40mg XR dose a day, and I still

wasn't satisfied. I was on Concerta for three weeks and felt

nothing. My mom and I switched to Dexadrine for the past few

months, and we're ready to make the switch to Ritalin LA. Yeah, we

see the same doctor too.

I tried a newer drug on the market: Focalin. It made my tongue

swell up. Focalin did control my symptoms, but I couldn't handle

this allergic reaction I had a few weeks ago.

As far as appetite goes, I have lost 40+ lbs. since my dx last

March. I have been on stimulants along with Wellbutrin (another

drug used to treat a.d.d.) and Lunesta. The stimulants help me get

through the work day, but without sleep meds, I can stay awake for

48 hours with no naps or sleep. The appetite is really what you

make of it. Sometimes we add'ers have a tendency to " hyperfocus "

or " overfocus " on what were doing. I will forget to eat a meal,

even if I am starving, because I am so intensely focused on a task

or deeply involved with my work. I'm not saying this is the

explanation for your son's lack of appetite, although it may be

something to look into. What helps me remember to eat that works

well for me: I have a " body double " (or another term is clutter

buddy). My online friends, with whom we check in with to stay on

task with a household chore most of the time, will bring up dinner

around the appropriate time. We stay on instant message while

cleaning the house, and after tackling a room in the house; one of

us reminds the rest of us to take a break, grab a snack, or think

about what to make for dinner that night.

There is a lot more I could tell you , but I feel I may not be

giving you the answer you are looking for. Sometimes switching meds

works. Sometimes a person's body builds up to a tolerence and it's

time to try something new. Some people have a lack of appetite and

it's a temporary side effect that lasts for the first few months.

And for some people, a combination of behavioral therapy to

compliment the medication therapy is the best choice.

A couple things you may consider: check into a local support group.

We have 6 or more in the chicago area. The CHADD support groups are

geared more towards parents of children with ADD. Or look into the

website Rxlist.com to get more clinical type information on

stimulant and non-stimulant medications.

Good Luck to you!