My son with ADHD/mild Autism
pinitbaby
member
Hi there, I wanted to post because my 7 yr old son has been diagnosed with adhd as well as mild autism. At first I didn't want to put him on the meds because there's alot of speculation that adhd isn't "real" and can be 'fixed' by other means. Well after spending 2 hours with his pediatrician who has been practising since I was practically born, we came to putting him on Adderall to see if it helps him to focus more.
Its been 4 days and I do see a difference. Hes on 10mg and boy do I see when it wears off lol He has a hard time going to bed but at least he will stay in bed...he is still defiant and will argue but he's just much calmer and can put forth the effort to do the things he likes for a longer period of time. He and his sister have ymca memberships so they take swimming lessons weekly and enjoy the groups for kids throughout the week to keep him busy. I really hope that he will be able to do better at school this coming year as he had suuuch a hard time with the work and keeping friends 
Has anyone else dealt with this? Any suggestions for me to help him please?
Re: My son with ADHD/mild Autism
ADHD absolutely is "real". People who say otherwise make me so upset. Yes, a lot of children are identified as having ADHD when they don't, and a lot of parents and teachers are quick to medicate something that could be treated with therapy, structure and routine, etc, but children who genuinly suffer from ADHD aren't misbehaving because they want to. They want so badly to "be good" but they have ferrari brains with bicycle brakes. Their brain simply does not function the way other peoples do.
My son is 6 and was finally diagnosed with ADHD in Januaryafter me having suspicions since he was a toddler. He was on Concerta 18mg but I decided to take him off for the summer, because I am a SAHM and am able to work with him and keep a close eye on his behaviour. He tends towards aggressiveness and impulsivity which can be tricky when around other children. Another reason I took him off for the summer is because the pills seemed to not be helping him in school anymore, and since the doctor who prescribed DS the meds decided to close his case without so much as a follow up, I now have to go through the process of getting a referall to another doctor to either bump him up to a higher dosage, or something different come September.
I really liked the Concerta while it worked. He didn't lose his energy level or his enthusiasm, but was able to concentrate on his school work, think before he acted, and express his feelings in a positive way instead of immediately resorting to violence and anger. His teachers noticed he was starting to slip into his old behaviours again sometime in May I would say. My son was fortunate enough to have a wonderful EA, but the school overall had nothing to offer him, so for a year or two now he will be attending a school that has a special program for kids with behavioural/learning disorders. There is a learning strategies/social skills class for the indentified children, and over the course of the year they will slowly be integrated into a regular classroom.
Does your son have an IEP in place? Does the school have any special programs/classes/EA's that are able to work with him constantly? Those are things I found extremely important. You need to have good communication between home and school to ensure everyone is working together at whats best for your son.
ADHD is absolutely real! My son (who is 8 and going into 3rd grade) was officially diagnosed at the beginning of last school year. He had such a hard time with his behavior during kindergarten and first grade, and I literally tried EVERYTHING else I could think of before talking to his doctor about medication. He was on Adderall for a few weeks, and it helped a lot with his impulsivity, but it made him VERY emotional, like overly and inappropriately emotional. We switched him to Concerta and it seems to help a great deal! I plan on developing strong communication with his principal and teachers this year (as I have done every year) so that they can help me monitor him and we can all be a part of the decision to adjust his medication as needed.
My son also had a really hard time keeping friends in the past because he acted out in class and other kids didn't want to be associated with that kind of behavior, which just broke my heart. Talking to him about his behavior and working as a team with his teachers really helps though. Good luck!