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Post by susanthemom on Mar 11, 2004 0:40:39 GMT -5
Thinking of inquiring about Focalin with ds's doctor, but I don't know much about the med. Thought I'd ask here first; any opinions or experience to share? My understanding is that it's yet another form of methiphenidate, but I'm curious to know what benefits are being lauded. My son is 7 yrs old and currently taking 30 mg Ritalin LA, but I don't think it's having the lasting effect that it should. Doc said 8hrs. of effectiveness, but I'm only seeing about 4 or 5 hrs, which is not helping for afternoon socialization at all. And I don't want to increase dosage because he seems to be a little depressed when it is working. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.  P.S. Anybody know of a 30 mg dosage of Metadate CD? |
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Post by Allanque on Mar 11, 2004 4:18:07 GMT -5
If Ritalin LA isn't lasting long enough, I doubt Focalin would. I was taking it at 8, 2, and 6.
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Post by JulieinSC on Mar 11, 2004 7:11:18 GMT -5
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Post by camismom on Mar 11, 2004 8:57:46 GMT -5
Focalin is a lot like Ritalin, but side effects are supposed to be less. It is short acting though, and has to be taken every four to five hours. My dd takes it sometimes in the afternoons (as needed) to help with the homework crunch. She takes Ritalin LA in the morning to get through the school day.
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Post by StrugglingAgain on Mar 11, 2004 17:04:56 GMT -5
My son is 8 and 57 lbs. He takes 40 mg Ritalin LA at 6:30 AM, and also at 11:30 AM. The LA is supposed to last about 8 hours, but we're lucky if it lasts four. For some reason his metabolism is such that it eats it! He takes Focalin at 4:30 in the afternoon so he can do homework and not fidget through dinner. He's also on Risperdal and Clonidine. Medication scares everyone to death, including me, but when I think of how his life is without it, I quickly come to the conclusion that meds are a MUST for him and this will probably be a life long thing. There's no doubt that he would do poorly in school, have few friends, and even home life would be hell, because who wants a mom or dad who is always nagging to sit down, be quiet, do your homework, etc.? I'm just glad we've found what works, for now. It took a very, very long time to find the right combination!
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Post by Denise110 on Mar 11, 2004 18:52:18 GMT -5
My ds and dd take 5mg. Focalin at 3;30 to get them thru the afternoon because thier longlasting med doesn't last that long.
I haven't noticed any side effects.
You might want to ask ur doc for an afternoon dose.
You don't have to give it to him everyday just win u think he needs the xtra help. Thats what i do.
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Post by susanthemom on Mar 11, 2004 21:05:11 GMT -5
Thanks, everybody! :DWell, we went the office today and the nurse practitioner prescribed 30 mg of Metadate(YAYYY!!- my son was taking 40 mg Metadate previous to the Ritalin LA, but I wasn't aware of this new doasge option) and gave us an as-needed prescription for Focalin to take in the afternoons. Turns out that the nurse is ADHD and just loves to talk. Not only do I now know everyting there is to know about Focalin, but I know how much her own kids and she,herself, takes. It was a very interesting afternoon. I should mention that we had to switch doctors recently and this was only our second visit there. I wasn't sure that they'd accept much input from me or be to willing to answer med. questions with any detail. But I feel pretty confident that it's going to be ok now. The staff's personal experience with ADHD is a huge positive for me; it's what I loved about his old doc. And I can't thank ya'll enough for responding with your own experiences and advice. |
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