Strattera is not a stimulant, it is more in the antianxiety class.
Mike was in the initial med study before it was FDA approved when he was in 1st grade (we were that desperate for something). Honest, his regular psychiatrist found nothing that worked for him and had given up. She recomended us to the study because MAYBE the new med would help. So he was on only that at the time, it was regulated with weekly visits to a psychiatrist and therapist with blood draws, weekly assessments, meetings, etc etc etc. I travelled 45 minutes each way once a week for 9 months in the study. They did computerized tests. They adjusted his dosage weekly.
I can honestly say that I completely know that straterra did ABSOLUTELY nothing for Mike. He had one good week the entire 9 months and that was a week he was off school (and that was with a good teacher).
It was the psychiatrist from the med study who finally had the guts to say to me "this is a kid with autism, not ADHD". Prior to that every time it was brought up I balked and the doctors backed down (starting at age 3).
So the one REALLY good thing about strattera is that it finally got us to the point of a real dx for Mike.
9yo AS ds takes Straterra to balance out his Adderall (he gets REALLY moody when coming off his Adderall; the Straterra keeps his moods more balanced, tho' he still has his typical level of moodiness).
Initially the doc put ds on Concerta. Ds started ticcing badly and got horrible insomnia that even large doses of melatonin couldn't overcome, but we have not had that problem with Straterra. I'm sure it's different for everyone, but we've been okay with the Strattera.
Overall I can tell that the Straterra works for keeping ds from getting too moody when coming off the Adderall, but I can't tell whether either med is working for him for the attention issues. The only thing I like the Adderall for is that it keeps ds from feeling hungry 24/7. Before ds was on meds, he NEVER felt full, obsessed about food, and was gaining weight rapidly. Since starting the Adderall, he doesn't obsess about food anymore, he eats at meal times and a couple of snacks (when I can compel him to eat); he's lost a lot of weight while on meds. He's almost back to an appropriate weight. I'm hoping he doesn't go lower than that.
Our oldest son (now 16) took Strattera for 2 years. He didn't do well at all w/ a stimulant type med so we tried this one. It helped him w/ the ability to focus on things he didn't like or avoided (language arts/writing, doing chores when not his own idea, etc). It totally changed his eating habits though. He was already thin but became MUCH thinner on it. He wasn't hungry after he'd taken it and for at least 8 hours afterward. He would wake up ravenous and eat a HUGE breakfast, then couldn't make himself eat lunch or a snack after school. He'd eat a normal sized supper and then be starving at 9pm at night. He complained of stomach cramps, nausea, dry heaving, light headedness, at various times. These symptoms would come and go. Finally we decided that the side affects from the med were having as many negative affects as they ADD and took him off of it. He' much happier now, tho certainly less focused and less able to make himself do things he finds unpleasant or difficult.
Hey girl, call me tomorrow ok? (between 11am and 1pm est)
do you still have the number? If not you can email m though me IV account. Any pdoc who uses adhd meds to rule out bp is not to be listened to.
Dee
Hi Deb,
I have read that if you give a BP child a stimulant type med for ADHD it could cause them to go into mania.
Hey ladies, thanks for the feedback.
Dee I work til 2pm tomorrow your time, I can only call after that.
My bad-just checked my schedule; any time AFTER 2pm is fine too,
Dee
Strattera is not a stimulant, it is more in the antianxiety class.
Mike was in the initial med study before it was FDA approved when he was in 1st grade (we were that desperate for something). Honest, his regular psychiatrist found nothing that worked for him and had given up. She recomended us to the study because MAYBE the new med would help. So he was on only that at the time, it was regulated with weekly visits to a psychiatrist and therapist with blood draws, weekly assessments, meetings, etc etc etc. I travelled 45 minutes each way once a week for 9 months in the study. They did computerized tests. They adjusted his dosage weekly.
I can honestly say that I completely know that straterra did ABSOLUTELY nothing for Mike. He had one good week the entire 9 months and that was a week he was off school (and that was with a good teacher).
It was the psychiatrist from the med study who finally had the guts to say to me "this is a kid with autism, not ADHD". Prior to that every time it was brought up I balked and the doctors backed down (starting at age 3).
So the one REALLY good thing about strattera is that it finally got us to the point of a real dx for Mike.
My sister takes it for her ADHD and loves it.
9yo AS ds takes Straterra to balance out his Adderall (he gets REALLY moody when coming off his Adderall; the Straterra keeps his moods more balanced, tho' he still has his typical level of moodiness).
Initially the doc put ds on Concerta. Ds started ticcing badly and got horrible insomnia that even large doses of melatonin couldn't overcome, but we have not had that problem with Straterra. I'm sure it's different for everyone, but we've been okay with the Strattera.
Overall I can tell that the Straterra works for keeping ds from getting too moody when coming off the Adderall, but I can't tell whether either med is working for him for the attention issues. The only thing I like the Adderall for is that it keeps ds from feeling hungry 24/7. Before ds was on meds, he NEVER felt full, obsessed about food, and was gaining weight rapidly. Since starting the Adderall, he doesn't obsess about food anymore, he eats at meal times and a couple of snacks (when I can compel him to eat); he's lost a lot of weight while on meds. He's almost back to an appropriate weight. I'm hoping he doesn't go lower than that.
Our oldest son (now 16) took Strattera for 2 years. He didn't do well at all w/ a stimulant type med so we tried this one. It helped him w/ the ability to focus on things he didn't like or avoided (language arts/writing, doing chores when not his own idea, etc). It totally changed his eating habits though. He was already thin but became MUCH thinner on it. He wasn't hungry after he'd taken it and for at least 8 hours afterward. He would wake up ravenous and eat a HUGE breakfast, then couldn't make himself eat lunch or a snack after school. He'd eat a normal sized supper and then be starving at 9pm at night. He complained of stomach cramps, nausea, dry heaving, light headedness, at various times. These symptoms would come and go. Finally we decided that the side affects from the med were having as many negative affects as they ADD and took him off of it. He' much happier now, tho certainly less focused and less able to make himself do things he finds unpleasant or difficult.
Betsy