My son has been on meds since he was 5 for ADHD. He was a handful back then. Could not sit still, blurted out, interrupted, was basically like the Energizer bunny on crack. He's 9 and finishing up 3rd grade now. He has come a long way. We are taking him to a psychologist to deal with some anxiety issues we believe are a result of his taking the meds (Adderall XR) and he told us not to give it to him on the weekends so we could see if the anxious behaviors (chewing his nails down to the quick, picking at his toenails, being afraid to go upstairs without every light on, etc) were better or not as pronounced without the medicine. He's not been that bad. He still has moments of copping an attitude but I've noticed his friends are going through the same thing. He's done really well in school (only missed A honor roll by 1 point last 9 weeks) and excels at basketball, baseball, and soccer. All the things I read he shouldn't be doing well at, he is. We are planning to keep him off his medicine this summer and see how he does. I'm worried he won't be able to make in school without the medicine but maybe we are just dependent on it. I've read lots of stuff on ADHD and I know there are studies now showing some kids do in fact grow out of it as their brains grow. Is it really possible that he's getting better and may be ok without his meds? I've read quite a bit on these forums and he's not anywhere near as bad as some of the stories I've read. He can still be impulsive (not scared to try much) and blurt out but not really more than any other boys his age. I would love to take him off permanently as I really worry about his growth and long term effects but I also want him to do the best he can. There is so much to consider and it's hard to know the right thing to do.

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