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focalin xr for add

summerjoy578summerjoy578 member
in Special Needs
My 7 year old dd was just prescribed this med.....nervous about giving it to her...any experience with this med at 5mg...she was just diagnosed
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Re: focalin xr for add

  • BrewtowngrlBrewtowngrl member
    imagebubba2b:

    We use Focalin XR at a higher dose and it has helped. We also have been to a psychologist for behavior modifications. The med has allowed us to work on these behaviors. I would like to go back but money....

    Side effects for DD. We monitored her weight. Had to use Carnation Instant Breakfast to keep up but we have been on. it for maybe 2 years...and her weight is great Also insomnia which we struggle with before the addition of medication.

    We started at 5mg and have gone up. Also have half dose at 4pm b/c of safety.

    Can you tell me more about the 1/2 dose at 4pm?  Why?  It wears off on DS at about 6pm making bedtime a nightmare now.  He can not settle.  

    DS started it 2 weeks ago.  We started at 5 and are now at 10.  We are going to stay at 10 for a bit and see how he adjusts. I know one major concern is not eating, but DS is finally eating because he has the focus to eat a meal.  Before he could not.  He has actually put on weight since starting and that is good. For the first time ever he is playing with toys for more then 5 min.  Coloring and games.  He was also very impulsive and hurting his brother and I all the time.  We are not having many issues anymore.  I think that might be the highlight for us.  

    Only neg for us is bedtime.  It has only been 2 weeks so I am hoping that we will all adjust.   

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  • BrewtowngrlBrewtowngrl member
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    imageBrewtowngrl:

    Can you tell me more about the 1/2 dose at 4pm?  Why?  It wears off on DS at about 6pm making bedtime a nightmare now.  He can not settle.  

    Insomnia is a well documented side effect of any of the stimulants. It could be that he's at a serum level at bedtime where the therapeutic benefit is gone but the side effects haven't faded yet.

    When we added a second after school dose of Dexedrine at 3pm to DS's tx plan, we found it interfered with his sleep even though it was supposed to clear his system within 4 hours. We pushed the dose of his extended release up a notch and got better coverage after school for homework and play without giving him a second wind that interfered with sleep. Another approach is to add a small dose of Tenex or Intuniv to the mix before bed to help him settle for sleep; doing this might make it possible to stay at a lower dose of stimulant.

    DS started it 2 weeks ago.  We started at 5 and are now at 10.  We are going to stay at 10 for a bit and see how he adjusts. I know one major concern is not eating, but DS is finally eating because he has the focus to eat a meal.  Before he could not.  He has actually put on weight since starting and that is good. For the first time ever he is playing with toys for more then 5 min.  Coloring and games.  He was also very impulsive and hurting his brother and I all the time.  We are not having many issues anymore.  I think that might be the highlight for us.

     

    Only neg for us is bedtime.  It has only been 2 weeks so I am hoping that we will all adjust.   

    DS always adjusted to his stimulant increases in a couple days, always within the week. I'd call his prescribing psychiatrist and see if you can't adjust his meds a bit. 



    Thank you.  Our doc went on maternity leave a week after starting.  I like the replacement, but I need to get on the ball and really talk to him more since he will be helping us for the next 3 months.  
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  • summerjoy578summerjoy578 member
    Thanks for info..started dd last week...I just hope her teacher can notice a difference before summer break
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