Concerta experiment

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melmoel
iVillage Member
Registered: 04-15-2003
Concerta experiment
3
 Tue, 04-29-2003 - 11:13am
Well, we finally tried a stim, 18 mg Concerta/day. Ds Niels (5yo, 48lb) is diagnosed ADHD/ODD/Mood disorder NOS (possible early onset bipolar disorder; not sure, but there's family history). He had been mood stable for quite a while, on 1200 mg/day Trileptal (mood stabilizer) + 0.025 mg Clonidine. But the Trileptal didn't do much for the ADHD type stuff.

So, we added some Concerta. The results were mixed, I think. It helped A LOT with the hyperactivity, which I loved, and with the focus. But, he seemed a little moodier, was a little more aggressive (not physically, but teasing his brother more), and Sunday he actually seemed kind of depressed. Does anyone else see this in just ADHD kids? Can stims actually make them depressed? Because of the mood disorder, I'm erring on the side of caution, and took him off the Concerta. I'd rather see him hyperactive and happy than calm and moody. We're going to try Strattera, tho my hopes are not very high for it; the results seem to be more negative than positive in the bipolar kids community. I'm not sure what path to take if that doesn't work. Maybe a second MS, tho I don't have high hopes for that, I don't believe the residual symptoms are mania.

Anyone have any ideas??? Has anyone had depressive/moody type behavior on one stim but not on another?

Thanks!

Melissa

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willowrich
iVillage Member
Registered: 04-20-2003
In reply to: melmoel
Concerta experiment
 Wed, 04-30-2003 - 12:05am
Hi, my son has been on concerta and adderall. we have had bad side effects from both. concerta he was depressed, moody and cried alot. on adderall he became violent (7yo) to the point that i did not sleep for 3 days, he also lifted the lever on the drivers seat and pushed me into the stearing wheel going down the freeway. I took him off all meds for a year until strattera came out this year and he is doing alot better. The anger stopped soon after stopping the meds.
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kathy_in_ga
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-26-2003
In reply to: melmoel
Concerta experiment
 Wed, 04-30-2003 - 2:29pm
One thing I have heard is that ritalin & it's other forms (Concerta) can be bad for kids who are aggressive or have a mood disorder. Now not all kids fall under this catagory, and each kid reacts differently. Have you tried Adderall or Strattera? They may have lesser of a side effect that the concerta.
beu2fl
iVillage Member
Registered: 04-09-2003
In reply to: melmoel
Concerta experiment
 Thu, 05-01-2003 - 12:39am
Hi ! My son is taking 18 mg. of Concerta, and nothing else. There has been no side effects. He is not moody or aggresive. His concentration has improved and says that things: school work, even at his drum lessons click together now.

B
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