I'm at a loss....

[SBC91]

Hi everyone! I've posted on the med. board but am new here. We've currently got so many issues I don't know where to start. Kyle is almost 9, weighs 56lbs and is in 3rd grade at a private school.

1) We switched to Strattera in the middle of Nov. I thought all was going great until school broke for Christmas. Since we've been back, his teachers have said his work is worse than what it was before the switch. Before the break he was on 25mg, during the break we upped it to 35mg (morning only). Last week after a meeting at school we split the dose. I talked to his Ped. Thursday, who said to drop back to the 25mg. Today, he had 40 minutes to copy his 20 spelling words: 1 in print, 1in cursive. He did 3 of them. Was given another 30min later in the day: did 5 of them.

2) Being a private school, they are not required to do any modifications. They are willing to give extra time where they can, but if "...it alters our curriculum, we will not do it for any child." We keep being told "Kyle is so bright! We want to help him reach his potential!" The guidance counselor says not to make a big deal over his grades, "He can't help the fact he can't finish his work". She keeps telling us to "fix his medication", we can't do anything until that is taken care of.

3) Homework is pure HELL (pardon if I offended anyone). Today it took him over an hour to finish his math homework (multiplication problems) He's been doing homework for 2 hours now. He usually takes 3 hrs at least, no matter what we try. There's lots of "huffing", kicking, tears, and yelling (not all from him either )

Anyway, we don't know where to turn now. We are looking at changing schools next year, if we get into the local magnet school. I'm so confused! What do I do? Has anyone else been there? How did you get out? Sorry this was long!

[cavs]

Hi,
I have a son in the 2nd grade. What was your son on before? Did it work - why did you switch. Personally, Strattera didn't work for my son - who has impulsivitity. Currently he is on Concerta and Strattera - and for the most part is working well. Hope this helps.

[Mayleng]

SBC91 said:

Hi everyone! I've posted on the med. board but am new here. We've currently got so many issues I don't know where to start. Kyle is almost 9, weighs 56lbs and is in 3rd grade at a private school.

1) We switched to Strattera in the middle of Nov. I thought all was going great until school broke for Christmas. Since we've been back, his teachers have said his work is worse than what it was before the switch. Before the break he was on 25mg, during the break we upped it to 35mg (morning only). Last week after a meeting at school we split the dose. I talked to his Ped. Thursday, who said to drop back to the 25mg. Today, he had 40 minutes to copy his 20 spelling words: 1 in print, 1in cursive. He did 3 of them. Was given another 30min later in the day: did 5 of them.

2) Being a private school, they are not required to do any modifications. They are willing to give extra time where they can, but if "...it alters our curriculum, we will not do it for any child." We keep being told "Kyle is so bright! We want to help him reach his potential!" The guidance counselor says not to make a big deal over his grades, "He can't help the fact he can't finish his work". She keeps telling us to "fix his medication", we can't do anything until that is taken care of.

3) Homework is pure HELL (pardon if I offended anyone). Today it took him over an hour to finish his math homework (multiplication problems) He's been doing homework for 2 hours now. He usually takes 3 hrs at least, no matter what we try. There's lots of "huffing", kicking, tears, and yelling (not all from him either )

Anyway, we don't know where to turn now. We are looking at changing schools next year, if we get into the local magnet school. I'm so confused! What do I do? Has anyone else been there? How did you get out? Sorry this was long!

For his weight his target zone should be minimum 30mgs and maximum 45mgs. With 25mgs he is way below his target, and it is possible it is not helping him. Why did the peds say to drop it back from 35mgs. Was the 35mgs not working? did he have any mood issues? He can go up to 40mgs. My son is 57lbs and on 40mgs. The strattera was helping him alot except he needed a little boost with his attention for schoolwork. So we have added 10mgs of short acting adderall which helps for schoolwork, and the strattera has helped with the rest of the day and also reduced the side effects of the adderall (appetite and sleep issues).

Another thing, does your son have any LDs besides ADHD? Can he learn when the medication is working?
If he can, I suggest you tweak his dosage to find his optimal dose. Like I said, he can go from 30mgs to 45mgs, 25mgs is really low for him and I am surprised you have not encountered any whiney mood issues. The "huffing, kicking, tears and yelling" could be because his Strattera is too low for his body weight.

To calculate the dosage Elly Lily recommends:

weight divided by 2.2 multiply by 1.2 for minimum dose
and
weight divided by 2.2 multiply by 1.8 for maximum dose

If you suspect a Learning disability, then write a request the public school (he would other wise attend) to have him evaluated for a Learning Disability. They have to do it even though he does not attend the school.

[mom2two]

SBC91-
Sad to say that I've been there, done that...with my son..Glad to say that it can get better..I agree that he is probably not benefitting fully from the Strattera due to the dose being out of his range. My son is about 57 pounds. We did the 35 for about a month, and it seemed to have lost it's punch after that. We were hopeful, and stuck it out by trying an additional 5 mg., and it has worked well for us. Currently, he does 30 mg in the morning and 10 in the afternoon..This gets us through homework in a decent amount of time. I know he benefits most during the school time hours.

Another thing we have recently "discovered" is that he does better on the weekend with a 20/20 split, rather than a 30/10. The 30 in the morning made him want to veg out if we were at home..We didn't want him wasting the day away watching tv when we know how much he likes to be outdoors, playing, etc.. He just couldn't handle the 30 at home on the weekends. So, after 2 months of experimentation, this last month has been great.. But, oh, how I remember the homework nightmares...he was growling, I was growling, and the homework turned out awful..there's only so much of that life that is tolerable..I definitely recommend looking in to upping the dose a bit. 5 mgs. does make a difference! Good luck!

[MomX2]

I can't help with the medication issues but I would like to be able to offer advice that might be helpful.

Focusing on the problem of homework it sounds as though this is very frustrating and emotional for him. What kind of homework does he have? Do you know how long it takes the other kids in the class to finish their homework compared to your child?

Is there anything you can do to help him feel happy while doing his homework. I mean something as simple as starting out with a cookie and glass of milk and destressing before he starts the homework. Does he have problems with transitioning from play to homework? Does he need more of a warning before making the transition. Is one subject easier for him than another (English easier than math for instance?). You might want to be sure to start with the easiest subject and then tell him how great he did to give him a sense of accomplishment. Does he need to take a short break from the homework every 15 minutes (or would constant transitions only make it harder for him?). If he has 2 papers to do could he do one subject after school, have play time and then do the other later? Can you talk him through the homework? Help explain it? Read and or highlight or underline directions? Does he need a visual example?

If you could destress things more at home he might also do better at school. And I think a private school should be especially willing to work with you. They get paid to do so.

[LaurieL]

This sounds like our situation exactly! We go to a private school also and as far as modifications for your child you are pretty limited unless you happen to get a teacher who realizes that you do not teach the same way to all kids. Luckly for us this year we found someone that has been willing to help. I think you need to open up a dialogue with the teacher and see if she is willing to help you out a bit. I know how darn frustrating it is. My son now gets modified spelling and she tests him orally. It has made for a much better year with the exception of some parents that are complaining that he is treated different. But that is their problem not mine. You might also add back in a stim. My son could not have made it with out adding back in a small dose of Adderall. He is also on strattera. You have to remember that you are your childs best advocate and don't let the school walk over you! Good luck.

[dallasmom]

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[dallasmom]

Sounds like my house. I am so sorry you are both going through that frustration.

We had to increase my daughter's Adderall XR after the holidays because all of a sudden her meds weren't helping. That did the trick. She takes about 3 hours to complete 30 minutes of homework. I use a sticky note and have her list the things she needs to accomplish like spelling, math worksheet, etc. As she finishes each item she crosses it off and seeing her progress seems to help her from feeling as overwhelmed and frustrated.

Keep talking to your doctor until you find the right answer. Maybe the school you are in isn't the right thing for your daughter either. These children can benefit so much from some simple adjustments. Jess's teacher to only do odd or even problems on the math worksheet if there are more than 20 problems. This made a huge difference for her.

[Shandawn]

Boy do know what you are going through. Luckily, the private scool my daughter goes to has been extremely accommodating, though. I have one piece of advice that worked with my childs teacher. You know how all the ADD/ADHD sites have a section for teachers/educators? I go to that section & print out pages of suggestions & classroom strategys. I send the pages in to my childs teacher(although I usually add a note commending the teachers help thus far). Anyway, this has accomplished many things. Her teacher now sends home a smaller portion of homework(for the same grade as rest of class), she has adjusted the seating arrangement, & she generally understands my daughters problems a little better. Anyway, it cant hurt to try. Good luck!