ADHD, medicine...would you give it to your child?
I am going to share with you what I shared with another regarding the diagnostic of children with ADHD. Decide for yourself if your son displays any of the characteristics below, I hope this helps. Also, if you are serious about getting your child tested, then take him to an accredited University and get him tested through the Human Development department. There are people who make it their jobs to Assess children and their needs, Doctors are a good first step, but when it comes to medicating your child, for life (as ADHD does not fade with age) then perhaps you will agree, a professional is best. The criteria for ADHD are listed in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders 4th Edition (DSM-IV) as a set of descriptions for children and adolescents who have significant difficulties with inattention, hyperactive behaviors and impulse control problems in two or more settings (American Psychiatric Association, 1994). There are four types of ADHD: inattentive, hyperactive/impulsive, combined and not otherwise specified (NOS). (Criteria for each is listed below) For a diagnosis of ADHD to be made, the symptoms must: 1)Be present for the past 6 months 2)be present before the age of 7 3)cause an impairment in two or more settings 4)be an impairment of academic, social or occupational function. Criteria for ADHD - Inattentive (must have 6 of 9) Fails to give close attention to details Difficulty sustaining attention Does not seem to listen Fails to finish or to follow through Has difficulty organizing Dislikes tasks requiring sustained attention Often loses things necessary for task Easily distracted Is often forgetful Criteria for ADHD - Hyperactive/Impulsive (must have 6 of 9) Often fidgets with hands, feet, or squirms Often leaves seat when not supposed to Often runs about or climbs Difficulty playing quietly Is often “on the go” or seems as if “driven by a motor” Often talks excessively Often blurts out answers Has difficulty waiting turns Interrupts/intrudes on others Criteria for ADHD - Combined A combination of 12 of the 18 symptoms from Criteria for ADHD - Not Otherwise Specified (NOS) Shows significant behaviors but does not meet all characteristics
Will I ever find an ADHD medication that helps and doesn't give bad side effects?
I think the thing that helps you the most is finding tricks to compensate for your ADHD. You yield only long term benefits from it and there are no negative side effects. Just so you are able to get by without medication. It’s hard to live if you completely rely on medication to live your life. Keep that in mind. ADHD does not prevent you from doing things, it just makes it harder.Vyvanse is the one that is most recommended. All medication have side effects and affect people differently, so you will have to ask your doctor and try different ones. But, from what I hear Vyvanse is the best in terms of side effect. What you could need is a combination of antidepressant and stimulants, just to deal with the emotional side effect.But again, what is truly best for you is to learn to not depend on medication, and to just use stimulants when you particularly need it and not on a daily basis. It will also help you not build a tolerance for stimulants which (a) leads to constantly needing more (b) addiction.
I think I have ADHD, does it sound like it? (read info)?
Im 13 and going to be 14 in a week. I think im ADHD but even if i was my dad doesnt believe me he doesnt think i have it, but i've seen ADHD kids my age and they act just like me does this sound like ADHD: I'm very figity and i cant sit still for more then 10 seconds (at most) I'll sit in class and try to read or listen to the teacher but my thoughts trail off and class is over before i even know it. I ask questions about things my teacher has said 5 minutes ago, and then i get yelled at for not listening but i cant help it because i cant focus. In most of my classes im very humorous and make jokes and stuff but half the stuff i say i never think about. I say what i think and im very distracted easily, my thoughts jump from topic to topic and i cant talk about one thing for a long time. I usually regret half of what i say once ive said it. A good example of the focusing thing was i had a language arts benchmark the other day and i was reading and in the middle i started thinking about a song and then i started to think about my guitar and it trailed on and on and i ended up being the last one done because i had to keep re-reading the passage over and over because i kept getting of task. im very talkative and very loud. idk if that relates but i need to know if i do have ADHD or something else? help? and if i take ADHD meds what are the effects? advantages? disadvantages? THANKS(:
How did you end up being diagnosed with ADHD?
The school administrators said I was stupid. The tests said otherwise.For the early part of my education, I struggled to even pass. There was more than one conference held about possibly holding me back or putting me in learning disabled classes. All they saw was a kid getting straight Ds.My mom knew they were full of it. Not only did she know me, and know that I was clever, she had IQ tests to prove I wasn’t stupid. The board wasn’t having it, though. They insisted that I was simply an unintelligent child and I would have to be put into LD classes.Luckily. Well, sorta luckily, I was seeing a psychiatrist for depression. My issues at school were certainly not helping my depression, so they came up a lot around that time. She suggested that I could have ADHD. Now, this was the early 90s. Back then, most people thought ADHD was just an excuse to act up. My mom didn’t even know it was a real thing.But what the hell, right? We might as well try this Ritalin stuff.BOOM.Overnight.I could remember things. I could focus on the task at hand. I could get through a homework assignment without getting too bored. It was a freaking miracle.I went from straight Ds in the learning disabled classes to straight As in advanced placement classes within a year.I wasn’t stupid after all. Just easily distracted and bored.That was about 25 years ago. Since then I’ve since found better medication and ways to control it, but it is definitely still a challenge.Sometimes I forget to take my meds because I need my meds to remember to take my meds.There are many tasks and times where not being medicated is actually a benefit. Unfortunately, those times are mixed in with the rest of the times and tasks where being medicated is better. It’s a constant balance and sometimes requires extra planning.You learn to live with it the best you can. I honestly think it’s harder for the people around me to deal with. I must seem so odd to them. The rest of the room is having one conversation, and my mind has already gone off in 5 other directions and suddenly I want to know everyone’s opinion on the Oxford Comma. They all look at me in the strangest way, wondering what the hell that has to do with mining salt under Lake Erie.Nothing. Well, mostly nothing. Well. Nevermind. It made sense in my head.
Do the medications like Ritalin and Adderall have a similar effect like the fictional drug NZT in the show Limitless for people who have ADHD?
“Brian Finch (McDorman), a 28-year-old burnout and struggling musician, is introduced to NZT-48, a miracle drug that gives him access to every neuron in his brain. For twelve hours after taking the pill, he becomes the smartest person in the world, able to perfectly recall every detail of his life and capable of prodigious leaps of intuition and reasoning.”Simply: no. The whole explanation for the wonderdrug in Limitless movie and series is the myth that we only use 10% of our brains - which is in wikipedia classified as urban legend (Ten percent of the brain myth). It is not a theory, and never has been.The best way that I have found to both describe ADHD and the difference that the medication makes is through tiredness.We all know the feeling of being tired, and being very tired. At that point, it becomes so much harder to motivate yourself to get up and do something. At that point you can forget things very easily, and it is harder to memorize things. At that point it is hard to concentrate on anything you find even slightly boring or slow - even if otherwise you would find it interesting. It is harder to resist the temptation to sleep, to eat something sugary or to stop yourself from saying things without thinking it through first. That is what it’s like to have add/adhd - your brain is understimulated and in more “tired”-state than others.So, what do the adhd-medications do? They wake you up. They make it easier to focus, to memorize, to pay attention and control yourself. They give you energy to focus on the task, to have the motivation to push yourself to do things, to be able to resist impulses and to be able to slow down if needed. A lot of the hyperactivity in adhd is simply a compensation strategy in order to give the brain more stimulation, and avoiding the “tired-brain-state” - which means that I, for instance, calm down considerably when taking stimulants.Adhd-medications make it easier for you to motivate yourself, easier to focus on things and easier to work with your mind. But they don’t make you smarter. When you are very tired, you might drink coffee and be able to perform better - but does it make you smarter? No.
I am diabetic can I take medication for my adhd?
There are concerns about medications for ADHD and it's effects on diabetes. Off hand, I don't remember any specific problems with Concerta, but some medications lead to higher blood sugar levels which can make it harder to control the diabetes (depending on what type you are). Others cause diabetes in nondiabetics while they are using the medication (some patients remain diabetic - I think that was respirdral ?)You psych doc should do blood work about four times a year (at a minimum) to keep an eye of those potential problems (liver function too). Your endocrinologist should be consulted, if he is aware of whether or not the specific med you will be on is going to be a problem and does not want you to use it, you should listen to his opinion (you can sign a form that will allow the two doctors to talk to each other about your blood work and medication chioces). Ultimately, you will have to decide which condition 'out ranks' the other. If the diabetes will not be adversely affected and can still be controlled, give the concerta a try.