I am writing about a student who has been taking Riralin for the past 12 months. Both the student, parents and recent teacher believe that her in class and at home focus, organisational and achievement levels ahve improved since taking the mediaction. At all times the taking of medication was handled discretely by staff and parents and nobody else knew the student was taking the medication. This is an issue that I do not wish to pursue because the family investigated and made the decision that suited them.
However, the issue now is that because of comments made by media,other parents about students in general, teachers, students about other students( often mirroring what they have heard their parents say )and people in general about medication that the girl involved does now want to continue with the medication.
Her decision is based on fear of others believing that there is something wrong with her, that others will say her parents have made a bad decision and being seen as different. This is despite her knowing that all areas have improved in the last 12 months- academic results, ability to focus more at dance and sport, being more self organised, not missing parts of coversations because she has drifted off. All of this has seen her self esteem and happiness blossom. She knows that things may regress if she stops taking the medication.
Has anyone else come across this. How can I help her and her parents find a solution to this problem?
Ellie
Re: secrecy of taking medication
How old is this student? Almost regardless of the answer, if after counselling with her, she still insists on not taking the medication, I’d say her wishes need to be respected.
The reasons she’s giving may not in fact be her only reasons. In any case, it would be inappropriate to medicate against a person’a will.
My own son was off his medication for many years as he did not wish to take it and recently asked to go back on his medication even years later. It can be that the struggle to accomplish tasks without the support of medication finally gets too much. The same thing may happen for your student.
Good luck.
is it taking meds or taking meds at school?
I agree with the above posts - if she refuses, she refuses. However, it may be she dislikes taking the meds at school-a typical adolescent thing. In that case, there are long-acting forms of Ritalin-eg.Concerta. There maybe side effects to the stimulannts that scare or embarrass her -from nervousness, edginess all the way to auditory hallucinations. Get some counseling help on what the meds really are -good and bad sides - and be sure she has the right meds.
Good luck
Re: is it taking meds or taking meds at school?
Thanks for the responses. The girl is 11 years old. I agree that she needs to have some voice in the decision. I like the idea of her keeping a journal and keeping track of her feelings and questions.
She takes the medication at school. The teachers have always given it to her when there is nobody else around. This decision was in response to the request of the family when she first started taking it. None of her peers are aware.
Thanks for the ideas.
Ellie
I would still check out the school link
I would give the school staff high marks for helping in a professional manner. I’m surprised that teachers are handing out meds-usually only the nurse can. But if you spend much time in a school-there aren’t many secrets. Her friends will have noticed she goes to the teacher at a cerain everyday, etc. She is at the age to “have to be just like everyone else”.
Have you asked her if she took it only at home -would she still feel the same way.
Good luck
Re: I would still check out the school link
Dear mmm,
In Australia we do not have school nurses on site. Each system( public, private or independent) has their own processes for handing out medication. In some schools the students hand in their medication to the office. Students line up at the required time and have it handed out by some designated person.
At my school we have purchased small locked boxes where each individual student’s medication is stored. These are labelled and kept away from the students. The student goes to the teacher-usually at the beginning or end of lunch to be given their medication. Arangements are made so that is not done in front of other students.
My student is willing to take her medication at home.
Thanks
ellie
Re: secrecy of taking medication
My son is only 7 and became pretty friendly with other medicated kids while waiting on line at the nurses office. Not just other ADDer’s but diabetics and epileptics etc… They formed an alliance against the kids who made fun of them. I’m proud to say my boy is the ring leader of that alliance, thanks to his Dads coaching. Now, in our school, if you make fun of one of ‘em, you’ve made fun of all of ‘em! We had a few calls from the school about Scotty being confrontational within these situations, I told them, “Too bad, if you were doing a better job keeping these kids from being victimized, my boy and his friends wouldn’t be in that position to begin with.” The calls have stopped.
Hope the others will step in here
Since she is willing to take the meds at home and is doing so well on them -I would very seriously consider running, not walking, back to the doctor.
This is where I hope the others with more experience will step in. As I understand it Concerta has the same active ingredient as Ritalin but is packaged in a special capsule. this capsule has a micro-hole in it that allows the meds to slowly drip out over hours. Therefore only a once-daily dose required.
Adderall is related to Ritalin but is a different stimulant. It is slower acting or slower uptake so it also a once a day thing. Adderall is suggested to have a smoother ‘curve’ that is, a less sharp up and down.
On this board are several threads relating to a very new med Strattera which is not a stimulant and is a once daily med.
There are definitely different meds for different situations and all individuals have individual reponses. Since you speak so well of the positive change meds have brought I would be looking at the options. Good luck.
Re: Hope the others will step in here
I’ll step in. Both my adhd boys take concerta with great affect. They are doing well in school, they do their hw at 5:00 regularly, their behavior is generally very good all night. They go to bed between 8:30 and 9:00pm. We haven’t experienced any side affects that I often hear from folks using methylphenidate.
I give it to them with their breakfast around 7:15, school starts about 8:20 so I figure that gives the medicine time to start working.
Gotta admit though, the youngest just got 5 day lunch time detention for taking a drink on the bus this morning and spilling it. Personally, since he had to clean it up too, I think that should have been enough. However, he says he won’t bring a drink on the bus again so I guess he can deal with it. He already knew the rule against food and drinks. There are worse things a person could get detention for.
Re: secrecy of taking medication
Ellie,
Maybe you could just show them these messages to let them know that they are definitely not alone in their battle and that ADD is a very common problem.
Re: secrecy of taking medication
That’s why I like Straterra so much. It’s a time release drug so I only have to give it to my daughter once a day which is usually in the morning before she goes to school. Nobody at school needs to know she’s taking it, except maybe the teacher so she can keep me posted on any side effects. I work full-time, so by the time I get off work and see my daughter, the medicine is about to wear off so I can’t tell a difference. Also my daughter has started getting canker sores around her mouth, has anybody experience this as a side effect with their children?
Re: secrecy of taking medication
That’s why I like Straterra so much. It’s a time release drug so I only have to give it to my daughter once a day which is usually in the morning before she goes to school. Nobody at school needs to know she’s taking it, except maybe the teacher so she can keep me posted on any side effects. I work full-time, so by the time I get off work and see my daughter, the medicine is about to wear off so I can’t tell a difference. Also my daughter has started getting canker sores around her mouth, has anybody experience this as a side effect with their children?
You don’t say how old the child is, but in general—Let the child try a few weeks or a month off medication. Have her keep a journal and record of her grades, feelings, comments from teachers, etc. Help her to research the FACTS about the medication rather than the rumors. Schedule a meeting with her doctor and have the child bring her list of questions and concerns to discuss. Talk about options such as Strattera which is not a stimulant medication. Let her meet with older students who are successfully managing ADHD/school/peer relationships. The goal would be to give her some control over the situation and help her come to the decision on her own, rather than by force.