My son is now 9 years old, and this has been a topic weighing HEAVILY on my mind for some time now. Up until he was 5 years old, he was 95th percentile for both height and weight - he was diagnosed at 5 with adhd and we settled on Adderall XR. He was on that for several years, and his height slowed considerably. By 6 years old, he was at the 75th percentile, and by 7 he was at the 50th percentile. We got in touch with a GI who put him on an appetite booster, and while he IS STILL making progress (moving upward) he has STILL dropped down near the 25th percentile over the last two years. His weight had also slowed considerably, and we've tried other meds. We tried the patch, but it didn't help him concentrate as well. We are now on Vyvanse, and we've managed to keep his weight up by the 75th percentile, but his height continues to be an issue - he's still keeping pace at the 25th percentile. When mom is 5'10 and dad is 6'2, this is unusual to say the least. Up until this past summer, I had always kept him on his adhd meds on the weekends and vacations - now, I am taking him off any day he is off from school, to try to counterbalance the effects of the meds.

It's AGONIZING - it feels like a different version of Sophie's choice - I'm having to choose between my child's MENTAL development and PHYSICAL development - its AWFUL, and keeps me up nights, and brings tears to my eyes as I'm typing this.

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Dr S Banerji said: Temporary effects on growth with the active substance of Focalin are specifically mentioned by Novartis in the full prescribing information for the medicine. Most prescription medicines have side-effects, about which a doctor should tell patients in advance. I presume that your child's doctor must have done this in your case. I hope that your child will recover in time from any set backs to development, and can suggest some Yoga postures to help with height. Let me know if you are interested.

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My son has been on risperidone, citalopram, and 2 different doses of methylphenidate simutaniously for about three years, and he is growing at a rather alarming rate (which I do believe has nothing to do with the meds). He's 10 years old and 5'1". His doctor charts his growth at the equivalancy of a thirteen and a half year-old.

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My son who's almost 9 has been very small for his age too, but since he's growing some, his perdicatrian is not alarmed. He's in the 50% height/weight for his age, and was 1 of the 2 shortest boys on his basketball team. I give him an Ensure every night - switched to the Chocolate Plus since it has 350 calories. He started out with Focalin, and then Concerta, Adderall, now Vyvanse with a Focalin booster... We usually try to take a medicine break on the weekends so he can eat more, but we have to be very patient! He's usually starving at 9-10pm and I feed him even though he should be in bed. It's a constant stuggle but it could be worse.

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Hi, My Son is 8 1/2 years old. He just started Focalin for ADD yesterday. After reading about the possibility of weight and height outcome, I'm interested in hearing more about Yoga poses that he could benefit from. Thank You.

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colorado said:

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Dr S Banerji said: Temporary effects on growth with the active substance of Focalin are specifically mentioned by Novartis in the full prescribing information for the medicine. Most prescription medicines have side-effects, about which a doctor should tell patients in advance. I presume that your child's doctor must have done this in your case. I hope that your child will recover in time from any set backs to development, and can suggest some Yoga postures to help with height. Let me know if you are interested.

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