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Post by blaynesmama on Nov 10, 2003 13:06:51 GMT -5
Hi I understand you are the strattera expert!  My son is 4.5 I talked with you a little last week about him and the dr started him on Adderall but said if we saw bad effects take him off and do not give it to him anymore. So today he is recommending Strattera for him. My son is 41 lbs and he is giving him and 18day trial pack so the dose is 1 pill of 18mg for 4 days then 1 pill of 25mg for 14days. I looked at your post on all about strattera but if you could give me any other pointers that would be great too. Also since he isn't able to swallow pills he said to open them and mix them in something. I saw that you put it can be dangerous what is your advice on teaching him to swallow pills without chocking or wasting them? He also said that even if we see some bad effects keep giving ot him as it builds up in the system. Thanks for your time! April ;D |
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Post by Mayleng on Nov 10, 2003 13:30:06 GMT -5
Good luck with the med. For some kids it's hard to get up and running on, but with some patience you might find it to be a very nice treatment.
Give him the meds at night when he goes to sleep. It makes for much less side effects. If, after the 4 days of 18mgs, he is still having side effects, ask the doc if you can keep him at 18 for another 2-4 days. The ramp up can be hard on little kids and a few extra days can make going to 25mgs a little easier. 25mgs is a good size dose. Don't get talked into changing the dose until you have been on the 25 for 4 weeks. You will see me recommend asking the doctor for small dose changes to bigger kids, but thats not easy considering your son's weight. Being he is only 41lbs, you don't have a lot of room to play around with his dose. His safe effective doses are 22mgs min up to 28mgs max. 25 might be just right.
Just use the simple proactive tips in the "Everything you always wanted to know about Strattera." post for minimizing the ramp up side effects. some kids don't get them at all, but don't wait to find out. Better safe than sorry. The reason most parents stop this med is because they weren't prepared for the temporary side effects, and they quit before even finding whether or not it is the right med.
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Post by blaynesmama on Nov 10, 2003 13:57:26 GMT -5
yes the dr daid that we should give it a while to notice if it will work or not. Do you know just how safe it is to give it too him out of the capsule? We just got back from the dr and he wanted him to have it today so we just got finished giving it to him in a scoop of ice cream he couldn't swallow it so i gave it to him out of the capsule in another scoop of ice cream. He said it made his throat burn a little but after a glass of milk he was fine. Any thoughts on that? Do some kids ever experience vomiting as a side effect? Thank you so much
April
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Post by blaynesmama on Nov 10, 2003 15:18:54 GMT -5
Miller mom, another question is that I am going to be staying at the hospital for a couple days in the next 2 weeks as I am 39 weeks preg....we aren't comfortable letting our neighbor who will be taking our son for 1 day give him his pill. Is it bad if he skips one day if my husband is unable to be there to give it to him? Also 2 hrs into it and no bad side effects he is about the same...better than when on the adderall  thanks again April |
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Post by Mayleng on Nov 10, 2003 15:37:36 GMT -5
Miller mom, another question is that I am going to be staying at the hospital for a couple days in the next 2 weeks as I am 39 weeks preg....we aren't comfortable letting our neighbor who will be taking our son for 1 day give him his pill. Is it bad if he skips one day if my husband is unable to be there to give it to him? Also 2 hrs into it and no bad side effects he is about the same...better than when on the adderall thanks again April April, you should continue to give it to him, do not stop the ramping up, find a way to give him his pill. If you were going to open the capsule, Be careful not to breathe it in. It is harmful to the lungs. Nausea could be part of the side effects. Good luck with the Strattera and also good luck with the birth. You could give it with ice cream, peanut butter, pudding etc. |
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Post by Mayleng on Nov 10, 2003 16:13:16 GMT -5
Besides being dangerous to inhale, the med wasn't studied this way, so whether it will cause other side effects and if it changes the meds effectiveness, is unknown. I have met several people giving it this way successfully, but it is not recommended by the manuf. I would put a dollop of choc syrup on a spoon, put the power on the syrup, then more syrup on top. that usually will cover the bad taste and keep particals of the powder from becoming airborne.
He's at a good age to learn pill swallowing. Have him practice with orange tictacs. If he likes them, tell him for everyone he swallows whole, he can slowly enjoy another one. Once he's comfortable doing that, the pill will be a breeze.
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Post by blaynesmama on Nov 10, 2003 19:05:20 GMT -5
that is a great idea for the tic tacs....thanks. Yes we will continue giving it to him whatever results we see as long as the dr says to. He is really tired and that is about all that we have seen. But thank you so much for the advice.
April
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Post by dfp on Nov 10, 2003 22:45:36 GMT -5
Our son couldn't swallow pills either, that's why we tried the Adderall, because we could sprinkle. But I learned on the ADHD.com site about practicing w/ tictacs and drinking through a straw and IT WORKED!!!
DS put the tictac on his tongue and took a swig of juice through a fat straw and the tictac went down. Because of the straw he didn't focus on the object on his tongue. He's taken his Tenex pills successfully now for 2 1/2 weeks.
I was so grateful for the advice. It has made life so much easier-- one less thing to worry about.
BTW, my son is 7. Good luck! And good luck with the new baby. Take care,
dfp
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Post by blaynesmama on Nov 10, 2003 23:12:19 GMT -5
thank you all so much for your advice I don't know where we wouldbe if we hadn't found this website. The straw makes sense he likes to drink through them and I can see him being able to do it with a straw. Good idea.
All the Best
April
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Post by vickilyn32 on Nov 11, 2003 10:57:12 GMT -5
For my DS-13 he has to take his meds with juice. If he tries to take it with water, the pills wont go down. Juice or milk work. I dont know why this is so, but I have seen him trying to take them with water, and he really cant swallow it.
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Post by Mayleng on Nov 11, 2003 11:13:36 GMT -5
For my DS-13 he has to take his meds with juice. If he tries to take it with water, the pills wont go down. Juice or milk work. I dont know why this is so, but I have seen him trying to take them with water, and he really cant swallow it. Make sure the juice is not Orange Juice - or Citrus of any kind. I understand some meds are not supposed to be taken with citrus fruits. |
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Post by vickilyn32 on Nov 11, 2003 12:00:48 GMT -5
Its usually apple or grape.
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Post by Mayleng on Nov 11, 2003 12:37:03 GMT -5
We recycled and old pet trick for pill swallowing. Coat the pill in a little Vasiline, its harmless and will even be good if your kids get hair balls ;D. Just try NOT swallowing something coated in that gook!
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Post by tomsmum on Nov 11, 2003 19:02:31 GMT -5
blanesmama,
we went through alot getting tom to swallow his Strattera - we started off by opening it and putting it in choc. pudding. That lasted until we got to the 40mg and the taste was too strong. We then put a whole capsule inside a piece of ravioli (tom's idea) and he had that for a few weeks, but eventually he got sick of the ravioli. So we practised with the tic tacs and sat one Sunday and worked our way through a whole box until he could do it!!
He now takes the tablet with just a sip of water and then has his breakfast or snack - we never thought we'd get there but we did!!
Good luck with the meds. and the baby!!
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Post by blaynesmama on Nov 11, 2003 20:33:49 GMT -5
thanks for the tips. we tried the tic tacs today but he kept gagging on them so i just thought i will stop until he gets used to taking them powder form them try it again when the fear of choking is out of his mind. I wish they were easier to take...they are pretty small he is just so used to chewing stuff that he can't catch on. hopefully he will get passed it soon.
April
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