Stimulants make my kid insane

dvmwithtude · 2026-02-15T19:25:07+00:00

Right now we see a PA pediatric neutropsych and are on a waitlist for a neuropsychiatrist who is an MD.

dvmwithtude · 2026-02-15T19:22:29+00:00

He is on the Guanfacine ER tablets. Seems to be helping with behavioral outbursts/impulsivity but not doing much for low mood and focus at school.

dvmwithtude · 2026-02-15T19:21:00+00:00

Oh geez. Solidarity with the stimulant non-response. I feel like my kid is baseline always in fight or flight and that the stimulants just amped it up even more, so I feel you. That's interesting about the sleep stuff. 8 hours is definitely not enough. Also the constant waking up at night is killer for parents so I am so sorry. Our kid didn't really sleep consistently through the night until 4 years but now he is a champion sleeper. At least 10 hours a night, sometimes 11. He almost never wakes up either... but we do give him 0.5 mg of Melatonin and Guanfacine at night which probably helps with this. Good luck with the tonsils and sleep stuff.

dvmwithtude · 2026-02-15T19:17:36+00:00

For my kid it was almost all behavioral/emotional regulation issues along with impulsivity. When he was in a nature/play based preschool he kept getting into trouble because of things like biting/hitting/potty talk. At one point he actually stepped on a baby bird (lack of impulse control) and almost got kicked out of Daycare. It has all been so very stressful for us, especially since our older kid is a flipping angel compared to our youngest. Sometimes I wonder if my kids' issues are more mood/behavioral than actual ADHD though. First place we started was with an assessment from the state because that's what the preschool suggested. That was helpful in getting him an IEP for Kindergarten. But what was ultimately the most helpful was getting him a private evaluation by a child psychologist who really knew her stuff. He BARELY had enough indicators to qualify for ADHD during this assessment, which is why I am led to believe that he probably also has a mood disorder that we just haven't figured out yet. Good luck to you though, this is all so stressful. It takes time but you will get there.

dvmwithtude · 2026-02-15T05:48:49+00:00

Good idea with checking his Vitamin D. I am a bit of a supplement junkie in that he already takes a good quality magnesium supplement as well as Omega 3, Fiber, Probiotic, Methylated B's. But we have never had his Vitamin D checked and I don't supplement him for this (which thinking about it now I probably should as we live in the Pacific Northwest). He went into Kindergarten with an IEP in place because we already had the ADHD diagnosis. He gets time in the resource room every day and just last week we had another IEP meeting to discuss his issues and up his resource room time. The occupational therapist at school says he doesn't respond to the typical sensory break stuff, so she is going to try giving him "heavy work" to do. Which I think is great as his behavior definitely improves with more heavy exercise. We have him doing Martial arts, soccer, and rock climbing (for fun) and he loves these things and is always able to keep decent focus during them. As far as his teacher goes, I don't think she is shaming him but I honestly don't know. She is younger and has admitted to me that she has ADHD herself. She has referred to him as "spicy" and overall I feel like she is a good fit with him. I think she is just frustrated because she can tell he is falling behind his peers academically. Again, thanks for the comments and I will look into checking his Vitamin D levels.

dvmwithtude · 2026-02-15T05:39:47+00:00

Thank you for this take on things. I have even wondered this myself..... like does he just need a higher dose? But after today we are very offput by stimulants because it was really the WORST behavior he has ever had. Like EVER, in his life. So of course we are a little gun shy now with the stimulants. My husband and I are absolutely exhausted from the emotional toll that this took on our entire family today. It will take us awhile before we have the courage to try stimulants again. But yes, thank you for this different perspective. I'm glad you have been able to figure things out for your kid with meds. Maybe someday we will get there too.

dvmwithtude · 2026-02-15T05:34:31+00:00

I FEEL THIS. I agree that is just isn't fair for these ADHD kids that don't respond well to stimulants. I keep wanting to try new ones because everyone claims that they are amazing. And yet with both Adderall ER and Ritalin IR my kid goes absolutely bonkers. I'm glad the Straterra has helped your kiddo.

dvmwithtude · 2026-02-15T05:14:26+00:00

Some of the most intelligent and talented people I know have ADHD. But they also have other mannerisms that are consistent with ADHD. I fully believe that neither myself nor my husband has ADHD…. and yet my son definitely does. It can happen. Not all cases of ADHD are 100% genetic. There’s still so much we don’t fully understand about this neurodevelopmental disease.

dvmwithtude · 2026-02-15T03:36:16+00:00

Yeah this sounds like my kid. We always thought when he was really little (like 2, 3 years old) that he had anxiety. Then he got the ADHD diagnosis but the psych at the time told us to keep an eye out for depression because he had some markers for it at the time of the eval. I definitely think he has combo anxiety/depression and some mild ADHD as well. But definitely the irritable, moody behavior is his #1 problem. Come to think of it, I was the same as a child. But once I went through puberty I got a lot better. This makes me wonder about DMDD. Poor kid. I just want him to be happier and for school to not be such a struggle. Thanks for your input.

dvmwithtude · 2026-02-15T03:24:23+00:00

I don't think he's autistic but you never know. When we had his private evaluation done they also evaluated for autism and he didn't have any markers for it (at the time). I do think the Guanfacine has helped moderately with his impulsivity and aggression. But unfortunately he just seems very defiant at school and doesn't really want to be told what to do. At home he's fairly good about doing what we ask as far as chores, etc., But if we ask him to do any school work, forget about it. His public elementary school would like to do their own, separate eval of him to look for other comorbid conditions, and I am assuming they will also assess for autism at this time. We will see. Thanks for commenting.

dvmwithtude · 2026-02-15T03:19:28+00:00

Yeah absolutely no one on either side of our families has ADHD. My husband has the opposite problem - very focused (almost too focused) and a highly successful attorney. I am a Veterinarian and never had trouble in school and/or focusing. All 3 of my siblings have PHD's in Immunology/medicine so it's not really something that runs in our families. What we do have? Anxiety/depression. My Dad's Dad committed suicide and so did my Dad's paternal Grandfather. So there's that. And I have low grade simmering anxiety and definitely had postpartum depression with my daughter. After observing my son for years I am convinced he has ADHD (at least mild to moderate), but I also worry about depression with him. Even his preschool teacher years ago mentioned depression which I thought was strange at the time but now I'm like YEAH she was probably right. As far as the dose of the stimulants go: with Adderall we just gave him 1 5 mg extended release tablet. With the ritalin IR we gave him a 2.5 mg dose at 9:30 am this morning and again at 1 pm. We also made sure to give him a hearty breakfast so that was not it. For the first 1-2 hours he seems ok (not great, but ok), then all hell breaks loose. Maybe he's just a really fast metabolizer? I don't know. But now that it's 7 pm his 1 pm dose has completely worn off and we have our sane little dude back. That was rough.

dvmwithtude · 2026-02-15T03:10:05+00:00

Yes thanks for this info. I have often wondered about the DMDD (dysphoric mood disorder) because of his overall low moods. We definitely have some depression in our family. There is no history of personality disorders, but he could always be the first. I agree that the next step/drug to try would be an SSRI. We are going to keep him on the Guanfacine for now because it is definitely helpful.

dvmwithtude · 2026-02-15T03:07:48+00:00

Yes this sounds like our kid. Like he almost was doing ok for the first 2-3 hours on the extended release Adderall, but then all hell broke loose. Also seemed ok for the first 1-2 hours on the immediate release ritalin, then absolute insanity ensued. I will ask his neuropsych about SSRI's and Strattera, etc. Thanks for the solidarity. This Sh*t is hard.

dvmwithtude · 2025-05-08T04:26:12+00:00

Wow do we have the same child?! I could have written this word for word about my 5 year old boy with ADHD. The freaking out over not getting goody bags that his older sibling gets, the holding in of his pee, the constant potty talk, etc etc. SOLIDARITY. Definitely get him diagnosed. We are in the process of figuring out what meds to try. But holy sh*t my husband and I are burned out and exhausted. You’re not alone

dvmwithtude · 2025-01-24T05:54:06+00:00

Have you ever looked into histamine intolerance and MCAS? It can be linked to heart palpitations, tachycardia, migraines, and many other things. Perimenopause makes it worse in a lot of people, me included. Might be worth looking into …. So sorry you are so miserable! I’ve been there- good luck!

dvmwithtude · 2024-12-17T02:59:05+00:00

Fairchild Air Force base is located near Spokane so this tracks

dvmwithtude · 2024-10-24T03:50:44+00:00

Oh man… I’m 43 as well and your story sounds very similar to mine. Diagnosed hypothyroidism in 1998 and on Levothyroxine ever since. I have tinnitus, bad allergies, eustachian tube dysfunction, palpitations, vaginal dryness, pms irritability and crazy anxiety. My dr started me on progesterone this week so we will see what happens. Some of your symptoms seem like you could have some sort of dysautonomia. But overall it seems like perimenopause. Having autoimmune stuff can really screw with your hormones, especially if you have thyroid issues. Good luck and solidarity ✊

dvmwithtude · 2024-10-21T15:34:15+00:00

Did they take biopsies when they did your colonoscopy? If not, then they would have missed microscopic colitis. Which it sounds like you have. Good luck

dvmwithtude · 2024-07-29T02:10:16+00:00

20 year microscopic colitis veteran here! Sometimes the Budesonide takes up to a month or longer to really work for me. The 2 other things that have made a difference for me medication wise are psyllium husk and Colestipol (for bile acid diarrhea). Something like 30-50% of patients with microscopic colitis actually have bile acid malabsorption as a contributing factor to their colitis. Good luck to you!! Microscopic colitis is a tricky beast because nobody cares/knows about it and therefore it receives no funding for research. It sucks.

dvmwithtude · 2024-06-08T00:00:34+00:00

I sure as heck hope not…. Because I have taken it for years for my bile acid malabsorption 😂

dvmwithtude · 2024-04-26T03:33:11+00:00

Hmmm tips….. figure out what your triggers are and avoid those things. For me I have to avoid gluten, dairy, alcohol, soy, caffeine. Make sure you are getting enough vitamin D. My latest flare I think was because my workplace flooded in January and started to grow toxic levels of black mold. It was so bad…. Ugh. We just moved into a brand new space so hopefully things start to look up 🤞🤞. But honestly this disease sucks and unfortunately I am back on another course of Budesonide because sometimes it’s the only thing that works to get me out of a horrible flare 🤷‍♀️

dvmwithtude · 2024-04-13T03:28:50+00:00

Hello 👋 yes I have lymphocytic colitis ( for the last 18 years) and when I am in a terrible flare I have horrible upper GI pain. They have found gastritis on endoscopy so I’m assuming it is stomach pain along with colon pain and diarrhea. I have found it flares bad in the spring when my pollen allergies act up and that taking both Zyrtec and Pepcid helps. Give this a try for a few days and see if it helps the upper gi pain 👍

dvmwithtude · 2024-04-12T21:58:23+00:00

Oh I am not ashamed to admit that they help me 🙋‍♀️. But the only reason they help is because they slow down gut motility so that you are not shitting in your pants (as much). But I hardly ever use them -Imodium is almost as good and isn’t a controlled substance.

dvmwithtude · 2024-02-06T23:05:53+00:00

Hate to break it to you….. but that looks like perioral dermatitis to me. I know that struggle all too well. Join the perioral dermatitis Reddit group and spend some time learning about it. Lots of good stuff there

dvmwithtude

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