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Post by Gina2005 on Mar 2, 2005 9:14:00 GMT -5
I had an apointment with my sons (Ivan) doctor today and after going through al the test results etc,she gave me the name of the treatment she wanted my son to go on,starting from tommorow. Well,Iv bought it and its an anfetamine (sp?) based drug!! Arent these adictive? Why does my 8 year old need them as part of his treatment? And most importantly,arent anfetamines what drug adicts need to come off of drugs??? The pills are called "concerta" (spanish,but maybe the name is simmilar in english) and he is supposed to take one a day. She said I would notice a change straight away,but I dont want to give him anfetamines at all..I dont want him to NEED these pills.Its taken me 5 years to get here and now this..Im so confused.Has anyone heard of these pills? and is it normal for a kids adhd treatment to contain anfetamines? please help!!  |
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Post by Linda on Mar 2, 2005 9:23:39 GMT -5
Concerta is a med for ADHD.....and it works. Your Doc. was right....you will probably see results right away.
I understand your fear...I was the same way.....but believe me there was not any addiction involved. Paul started taking concerta in middle school and he took it for school only....no week-ends...holidays...etc....but this was a personal choice...some kids need it every day to control their ADHD. Paul will be 17 saturday and he doesn't t take meds anymore.
I hope that answers your concerns about addiction.
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Post by finnmom on Mar 2, 2005 9:38:18 GMT -5
Gina, I´ll say the same as Linda.
Concerta is used to treat adhd-symptom´s, it´s methylphenidate wich I think is somehow prodused from the same origin as amphetamine, but it´s not a drug itself.
My ds has used concerta (18mg on schooldays only) for about 2 y now and it`s working great for him. You should see the result´s almost immediately, as well as any bad reaction´s. I do understand your fear too, I wouldn´t want to medicate my child eather, but now when I see how well it´s working, it give´s him the possibility to make the best he can in school.
What´s your son´s doce? Are you going to use it every day or at schoolday´s only?
You should go to the medication.section(on the mainboard, in treatment area) you´ll find lot´s of infe of concerta in there.
Good luck!!
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Post by Linda on Mar 2, 2005 9:42:56 GMT -5
Please try not to be scared Gina...we are here for you...talk all you want  |
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Post by Gina2005 on Mar 2, 2005 9:45:28 GMT -5
Thank you SO much! When I heard the word anfetamine I panicked  I was really worried.I feel alot better now  |
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Post by Linda on Mar 2, 2005 9:49:40 GMT -5
I am glad you feel better....let us know how things go....Linda
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Post by finnmom on Mar 2, 2005 9:55:23 GMT -5
Good to know we could help you feel better. ask away if you have any other concern´s with the med.
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mothercat
Member Emeritus
With a little luck and a lot of Gods help anything is possible!
Posts: 1,468
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Post by mothercat on Mar 2, 2005 10:04:51 GMT -5
Gina My 11 yr old is on Concerta. Believe me when I say they dont get what is called addicted like amfetimines you see in the news. Totally different kinda drug. My son has done really well on it and occasionally I admit we do take him off to see if there is any affect. As far as addiction ..none As far as behavior and adhd the drug does miracles for him. He has been on meds since 4th grade and believe me you will see a difference. It may take some time to get the dose right as all kids do react differently but you will notice a change for the good. Jared (my son) is usually sleepy the first day of a new med this is common so dont worry . I used wander why we couldn't just treat Jared without meds but let me tell you..sometimes it just isn't fair to the child. They stay frustrated and stressed because they want to behave but its out of their control. Same goes with learning ..sometimes they just need the med for school..(that is the only time Jared gets it) . I think it would be unfair to let Jared struggle and stay frustrated with learning when a simple med alliviates the problems. Its not like the kids can control the adhd on their own... Be patient , try to stop worrying, and listen to the doctor.. she is right. Listen to Linda , Finnmon , Amsmom, Kaiti, and Anne, Songwriter , Camismom, Hoodunit, and Tridlette and all the others who are always on here ..they are a wealth of info and will be a huge help to you when you are down, or worried , or scared .. stay in touch. |
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Post by kstquilter on Mar 2, 2005 10:38:25 GMT -5
the same as all the others. don't worry. dd was on concerta for a couple of years. didn't work as well as regular ritalin did for us. you should see an immediate improvement. according to our dr. concerta is ritalin just with a different delivery system.
these sort of drugs are in and out of a child's system well within the time it says. we used to ahve to give dd booster doses of regular ritalin to get her thru the days. she was on the highest dose of concerta.
none of us wants to drug our kids, but i agree that it isn't fair to our kids. they already ahve to work so hard at everything they do. if it's not school, then it's friends or organization or time management. so if this medicine can help them quiet their mind a little or filter out some of the distractions, i'm ok with it.
the bad rap some of these drugs get has to do with the people who take it who don't need it. since it's a stimulant, if you don't need it for adhd, it will rev you up. it has become quite popular with kids abusing it because they don't need to take it.
this is a great place to come for questions, help or just venting. all of you with young kids are so lucky to have someone right here to help you. so make good use of the accumulated wisdom and kindness here.
karen
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Post by finnmom on Mar 2, 2005 12:34:16 GMT -5
I agree with these argument´s of use when it clearly benefit´s the child. My ds9 has told me several time´s that this med make´s him to be more focus and it´s easier to him to concentrate to the test´s and schoolwork with it. Therefore: we use it as long as it help´s.
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Post by Gina2005 on Mar 2, 2005 13:06:50 GMT -5
Im feeling ALOT better about it now,I went to the official concerta site and Iv been doing some reading and I must say that Iv only read good things about it..so as long as it helps my son,Im fine with it.I DID panic at first,but I guess It was just because this is his very first treatment and I am a little worried about side effects etc. I will start him on them tommorow morning and just watch him closely to see what happens Thank you all for your quick responses,I was really nervous until I came in here this afternoon. |
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Post by AnneM on Mar 2, 2005 14:23:00 GMT -5
Gina !! I am so pleased that talking about it here has helped your fears !! ... Concerta - as you can see - is a medication that MANY of us are VERY familiar with (and me too!!) ... My 16 year old son has been on Concerta since he was 13 and basically it has helped turn his life around ... I promise you (just as the others have already said) that there is NO ADDICTION present AT ALL ... My own son is now on a fraction of the dosage he was on when he was younger ... and is at the point where we are wondering whether to continue or whether it is no longer of benefit ... but I promise you faithfully there is absolutely NO ADDICTION there ... The "amphetamine" addiction that you and we read about is an entirely different ball-game ... (as mothercat already pointed out) ... Your fears and worries are sooo very, very natural .... but I promise you faithfully that you WILL find they are ungrounded... GOOD GOOD LUCK!! Keep us posted!! |
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Post by Amsmom on Mar 2, 2005 21:23:10 GMT -5
Gina, i'm SOOOO glad that our wonderful members have reassured you and helped you to feel better. that is great news!! good luck, honey and keep us posted. |
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