Hi.

My son has had horrible side effects to both Daytrana and Vyvanse so we are searching for non med options. I don't know if it is possible to go med free because so far we have not found anything that allows him to function well in his class without his meds. This makes me very sad because he has begun to open up to us about how much better he feels without his meds. Also, he can't go back on the stimulant based meds because of the tics that he was experiencing on both meds. I am really afraid to try a new medication as well because I just don't know what it will do to him.

thanks. Jojosmom

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Hi, Yes, I believe it may be possible for your daughter to be med free. I have quite a success story about my grandson who was diagnosed at 5 and is now 11 and off meds for about 6 months. Please email me at:

save123@ameritech.net If you would rather I call you just give me your phone number. I am looking forward to hearing from you. Thanks.

Grandma

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I hope someone has some insight here. I have the exact same problem with my 8 year old daughter. We let her go the whole summer without meds and she's had a great appetite, gained a little weight, and she's very happy! It almost seemed like she was growing out of some of her ADHD. BUT school starts and she's not doing very well. She's very smart but innattention and lack of focus is a big problem. Hopefully someone will respond with good ideas. In the meantime, if you want to email me we can at least vent together! :-) Dean7491@verizon.net Good luck!

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Hi all:

What a heart-wrenching decision it is to give your child ADHD medication. There is no right answer, of course. But there are choices...

In addition to ADHD medication, there are non-medical treatment options including fish oil, neurofeedback, behavior therapy, special diets and exercise plans that have helped some children control their ADHD symptoms (in addition to or instead of meds).

ADDitude has a great, free booklet all about alternative ADHD treatments that I would highly recommend.

I would also recommend reading some of our articles about taking an ADHD drug holiday.

I hope this helps!

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There is no right or wrong answer when it comes to deciding how to treat your child for ADD/ADHD. I have a 8 year old who was recently diagnosed. He has always shown signs even before school, but I thought he would grow out of it. He has tried two different kinds of meds(Adderall/Straterra} and has had horrible side effects. He went from the happy kid to the sad, depressed kid who had terrible stomach pains every morning before school. I am looking into the alternative methods such as behavior therapy, diets and unconditional love and support for my child. I also believe in strong parental support for your child at school. Talk to your school principal, write the school board, find out if the educators are trained/required to learn about ADD/ADHD. Ask about support groups within the school system to not only help the child but the parents as well. Learn all you can about ADD/ADHD and no matter what keep on trying. It will not be easy and it will not go away all at once; but you have to try. Keep constant communication with your child's teacher. Stay involved!! STOP ALLOWING THE SCHOOL SYSTEM TO MAKE THE CHOICE FOR YOUR CHILD!!! There are Federal laws to protect those diagnosed with ADD/ADHD within the school system.

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My husband and I swore we'd never put our son on medication when we realized he had ADHD. 1 year and 1 month ago I decided while my husband was out of town to change my then 5 yr old to an all gluten free, dye free, preservative free diet. I had heard about it from our pediatrician when she was talking about her own son. I went to the health food store and dropped $150 on gluten free bread, mac and cheese, cereal, you name it. Within 1 week we saw a pretty drastic difference, his preschool teachers did too. He had this sort of calmness come ovier him, hard to explain but definitely a big difference. We then went to the Dr. and told him about it and he said that is what he would have recommended, first take out gluten, then refined sugars, then milk then corn if just the gluten didnt work. We thought we were good with just the gluten/dye/preservative free diet. It was hard at first but well worth it, it's kind of become my hobby to find him good foods and make new things for him. After he started kindergarten this past summer we thought he needed more help so we learned about the fish oil, that helped even more, we were soo happy. then we needed a little more help so I took him to the chiropractor hearing that it worked for some kids. It didnt' work for him but i'm glad we at least tried it. We had a few good weeks in there and then he went downhill in school, i was getting a lot of calls from the teacher who is wonderful and working with me so well, we are very lucky. So after weeks of crying about it and talking about it with my husband, we went back to the dr. and put him on Metadate 10 mgs. His body is very sensitive to gluten/dyes/high fructose corn syrup etc so we keep him on a very strict diet but the meds take the edge off for sure. I would never go back to the old preservative ridden gluten diet that is for sure, I believe that it has helped him with his treatment drastically. I don't believe you can control their adhd symptoms with just meds, I truly believe through our yr long journey that diet is VERY key in their treatment. We didn't have any issues or side effects after the first 3 days when he first started on his meds 2 months ago and i really think it has to do with keeping him on a very healthy diet. We also try to keep his diet very high protein as well so he doesn't have those dips in the day from too many carbs.

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As a doctor specialing in treating ADD/ADHD, and a mother of a son with ADHD, I have helped many children go drug free much to the relief of parents.

Check out http://www.add-treatment.com

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I've tried med free for almost a year, its not working. I want my son on meds but his father doesn't. Anyone have any suggestions?

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Are you trying other treatments? There are plenty of things that you can try like: talk therapy, behavioral therapy or training, changing your diet, increasing the amount of exercise you do and many more options.

Have you tried any other things to control your ADHD?

a skateboarder with ADHD that learned how to control his symptoms! http://www.adhdaction.com/ and http://www.skateboardhere.com/

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Here is a follow up with more information:

There are plenty of options for treating ADHD that don't involve medicines.

The first and easiest things you can do is look at his diet, exercise and sleeping. - Make sure He isn't eating refined sugars like candy, cookies and pop during the day at school. - Have him get some good exercise everyday. Some serious running around and heart pumping activity for at least a half hour. Get him right tuckered out. - Check to see if he is sleeping long enough, like 9 hours or more for teens and younger. See if he is sleeping through the nights. - There are amazing programs called Behavioural Therapy that zero in on problem behaviour and give both the child and the parents the tools needed to stop the bad behaviour. - Talk therapy can be helpful. - Plus there are many different herbal remedies.

Check out a detailed look at some of these options at: http://www.adhdaction.com/adhd-treatment.html

I have had ADHD for over 25 years and I use diet and exercise to stay on top of my symptoms. You can too!

Nathaniel

a skateboarder with ADHD that learned how to control his symptoms! http://www.adhdaction.com/ and http://www.skateboardhere.com/

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When I was first going through decided on whether or not to try my daughter for medication for her AD/HD, I really took the attitude that I'm not going to give in, and just give my kid a drug to make the school happy. She does take Concerta now, but we only tried medication after a good, detailed diagnosis, and after the school stepped up and actually started supporting her. One VERY smart doctor I took her to once told me that if he could just drug all the ADULTS that interact with these kids, most, if not all of them wouldn't NEED drugs. The truth is, I don't give her Concerta to "fix" what's "wrong" with HER. I give her Concerta so that all of those ADULTS she has to deal with everyday, who don't know how to handle her excess energy and unique point of view won't INUNDATE her with EXCESSIVE NEGATIVE FEEDBACK and CRITICISM!!! That helps protect HER self-esteem. That's it. That's the only reason. Weekends- we're cool, and she doesn't need them. Food for thought.

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Based on my research/experience, anyone with true ADHD will not be able to fix the underlying problem with other treatments.

However, if one's ADHD is not too severe, it is possible to reduce or taper off when coping strategies and support systems are well developed.

However, this is something that I usually only push for adults with ADHD, and I would not necessarily look at for children... as they're are still developing their ability and coping strategies, there is that nasty little thing that adolescence does to self-esteem, and demands are rising... just because a kid can cope in the current grade does not mean that they are ready for the demands of the next.

However, this is only an extremely generic generalization... treatment response and other issues are so very individualized.

http://askdreric-schoolpsychologist.blogspot.com/

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I did an entire blog post on this one particular topic. If there is a way to not have two identities.. on meds and off. I have not yet found it. Here is my story about having two personae due to meds. http://askdreric-schoolpsychologist.blogspot.com/2010/03/my-adhd-story-part-6-current-day.html

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I apologize if this interferes with the previous post. This is my first time posting and I didn't know how to add a new one. I was just reading the ADDITUDE article on all-natural ADHD supplements and Picamilon was recommended. I take Concerta and Prozac. I can not find any information regarding whether or not there would be a negative interaction with Picamilon. I would appreciate any info on this topic. Thanks. DH

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My 8yo daughter was diagnosed at 6. We tried 20mg of Ritalin for one school year, and HATED how it made her feel. It dowsed the light of her personality, and made her emotionally fragile. Once she went off of the meds for the summer, she ate well, and was immensely happier. We recently went to a new neurologist who advised that, although meds could help, her symptoms are such that she would actually not advise them at this time. She shared a wealth of practical ideas that we can implement in her everyday routine to help organization and focus. We also keep her active in sports, eating a balanced diet with lots of protein, and maintain a strict bedtime. Of course, her IEP at school is just coming together, so only time will tell if it helps her grades improve. We are hopeful this plan will produce positive results!

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