Need help on Son's Meds

October 23, 2008

My Aspy son (Asperger's with OCD & ADHD tendencies, Anxiety disorder,

and Sleep Terror Disorder), who will be seven in March, was diagnosed

in May 2007. We finally had him evaluated after he started having

really bad, constant meltdowns and was starting to do more dangerous

things. Basically, my husband and I were afraid to take both eyes off

of him because were afraid that if we did he would really hurt himself.

Well here is my dilemma. When first diagnosed we started him on 5 mg

of Focalin XR. Within two weeks we realized that he needed to be on

10 mg twice a day, because of his very fast metabolism. Then this

last spring (2008), while in a special kindergarten had a growth spurt

and we had to raise his Focalin to 20 mg twice a day. (He is also on

50 mg of Zoloft to help with his anxiety order and because the ADHD

raises anxiety) In August he started first grade at the same public

school that his older sister (9 y/o) goes to. He has been doing

really well. He has gotten 100%'s on most of his assignments and

everyone seems to really love him. I have heard that he even goes to

see the office ladies (when it's time to get his afternoon meds) amd

sings to them. When he is on his meds or relaxed he is my snuggle

bug. He is very considerate, well mannered, and very sweet. He will

even defend his sister against my husband and I. Which we are working

on because that actually causes problems as sweet as it is. But when

his meds where off in the evening, watch out. He becomes very

destructive. He will tear up the things he values the most. He will

have melt downs at the drop of a hat and his melt downs can be very

physical (biting, pinching, pulling hair, kicking and being very

hateful).

Well basically he is rapidly increasing in meltdowns lately and the

teacher sent home a note yesterday that said " She is becoming very

frustrated because Jordan is constantly interrupting her, his writing

and coloring are becoming much messier, and he constantly has broken

crayon and pencil pieces on the floor around his desk each day.

This morning I went ahead and gave him 25 mg and sent the teacher a

note asking her to let me know how it goes. But to be honest, I hate

raising his meds. Matter of fact I hate the fact that I even give him

meds to begin with. Plus I have to listen to my moms constant

lectures about how we just need to change his diet and raise him on a

farm where he can where off all of his energy. Then my husband is the

complete opposite, when Jordan starts acting up, even a little, he is

pretty much ready to raise his meds.

Can anyone offer any suggestions to what I should do in this mess? I

think we all just want whats best for our children.

Thanks for listening and I am sorry that this was so long. I hope

everyone has a wonderful day!

Sossity

October 23, 2008

Hi Sossity,I can really relate to what you are going through at home.

My son has asperger and when ever he has social problems he will act

out at home. He saves it until hes at home. Is your son having social

pressures or teasing,bully problems at school?. I would ask your son

about those kind of things. Most kids meltdown because of anxiety

they dont know how to cope with. Sometimes its sensory overload that

sets them off. I would have some talks with your son about how he is

feeling,physically and socially.

Focalin can aggravate symptoms of aggression and tension,anxiety. It

is also addictive and you have to wean off it,never just stop. It can

loose affectiveness over long term use. Any changes in behavior while

your son is taking Zoloft should always be reported to your Dr. My

son took Zoloft as a kid and he says,looking back felt it helped him

have less anger. It did give him icky stomache,diarrhea that made him

grumpy off and on. I would call your Dr. and get a med evaluation and

have your sons blood levels checked. Medicines can loose there

effectiveness and our reactions to meds can change. I would also

discuss the behavior changes you noted with his Dr. All the changes

your experiencing in your son at home and school. Its all important

and you've done a wonderful job of explaining the changes. I really

understand how stressful meltdowns and behavior challenges can be.

Our parents have solutions that are good but can be overwhelming.

Unless you can move to a farm easily,lol. That would be good for any

kid. You could look into diet. Lots of parents on this group have

experience in diet. For some kids simple changes in diet really help.

I hope you get some good help anwers from your Dr. and some good

insights from your son.

Best wishes,

Tishanne

>

> My Aspy son (Asperger's with OCD & ADHD tendencies, Anxiety

disorder,

> and Sleep Terror Disorder), who will be seven in March, was

diagnosed

> in May 2007. We finally had him evaluated after he started having

> really bad, constant meltdowns and was starting to do more dangerous

> things. Basically, my husband and I were afraid to take both eyes

off

> of him because were afraid that if we did he would really hurt

himself.

>

> Well here is my dilemma. When first diagnosed we started him on 5

mg

> of Focalin XR. Within two weeks we realized that he needed to be on

> 10 mg twice a day, because of his very fast metabolism. Then this

> last spring (2008), while in a special kindergarten had a growth

spurt

> and we had to raise his Focalin to 20 mg twice a day. (He is also

on

> 50 mg of Zoloft to help with his anxiety order and because the ADHD

> raises anxiety) In August he started first grade at the same public

> school that his older sister (9 y/o) goes to. He has been doing

> really well. He has gotten 100%'s on most of his assignments and

> everyone seems to really love him. I have heard that he even goes

to

> see the office ladies (when it's time to get his afternoon meds) amd

> sings to them. When he is on his meds or relaxed he is my snuggle

> bug. He is very considerate, well mannered, and very sweet. He

will

> even defend his sister against my husband and I. Which we are

working

> on because that actually causes problems as sweet as it is. But

when

> his meds where off in the evening, watch out. He becomes very

> destructive. He will tear up the things he values the most. He

will

> have melt downs at the drop of a hat and his melt downs can be very

> physical (biting, pinching, pulling hair, kicking and being very

> hateful).

>

> Well basically he is rapidly increasing in meltdowns lately and the

> teacher sent home a note yesterday that said " She is becoming very

> frustrated because Jordan is constantly interrupting her, his

writing

> and coloring are becoming much messier, and he constantly has broken

> crayon and pencil pieces on the floor around his desk each day.

>

> This morning I went ahead and gave him 25 mg and sent the teacher a

> note asking her to let me know how it goes. But to be honest, I

hate

> raising his meds. Matter of fact I hate the fact that I even give

him

> meds to begin with. Plus I have to listen to my moms constant

> lectures about how we just need to change his diet and raise him on

a

> farm where he can where off all of his energy. Then my husband is

the

> complete opposite, when Jordan starts acting up, even a little, he

is

> pretty much ready to raise his meds.

>

> Can anyone offer any suggestions to what I should do in this mess?

I

> think we all just want whats best for our children.

>

> Thanks for listening and I am sorry that this was so long. I hope

> everyone has a wonderful day!

>

> Sossity

>

October 25, 2008

Well the simple answer to this is consult with the physician who prescribed

the drugs. There could be so many reasons why this is happening, both

related to the meds and not: his Focalin XR stopping to work, being too low

or too high, his Zoloft being too high or too low, some change in ro utine

that's set him off, etc. etc. You really need to get yoru son evaluated by

his doctor to see if ht emeds need changing and if so, which way. Maybe you

did ask his doctor when you raised the Focalin XR, but you didn't say so.

With a child with so many differet disorders and several different

medications, it's hard to determine which disorder is causing the problems:

is it aspieness, ADHD, anxiety, etc. All these could have different

implications for medication, so it needs to be properly evaluated. Also, doe

syour son get any behavioral therapy? If not, can you ask to be referred to

a psychologist or behavioral consultant, who should be able to do a

functional behavioral assessment to determine if the meltdowns have any

function and if so, how this can be addressed. Medication for ADHD should

actually not be used on its own without behavioral counseling.

Astrid

astrid@...

http://www.astridvanwoerkom.com/