My son is 5 years old and was just diagnosed with ADHD at his school what kind of medications will can he take

Answer 1

the school diagnosed him??? As far as I know it has to be a doctor to diagnose him and they could prescibe a number of medications, one is even a patch. Sometimes it takes a while before the right medication is found for your son.

Answer 2

I have 3 boys with ADHD they were all diagnosed by their doctor at age 5 some say that is too early for a diagnoses, most wait until they are at least 6, to start any type of medication my oldest son who is now 13 was diagnosed at 5 and 1/2 but no meds until he was 6, i can completely feel for you and understand what you may be going through, if you need help try talking to your child's doctor there are programs out there to help best wishes to you

Answer 3

well I have ADHD and add and I'm only 12 turning 13 soon I started taking medication when i was about 6th grade and i dont think it should be the school that diagnosed him ...if they suggested it well go see a docter and what my dad did was sit in my classroom to see why i was in so much trouble and all my dad didn't take it seriously until 6grade and that's when i got my medication because the teachers where saying that i wasn't paying attention listening to anything and behaving badly so my dad took me to the doctors to get some blood drawn and all and i ended up having ADD and ADHD so the doctors suggested to take "concerta" but this may only be for my ADD to concentrate ....also over the summer of 6th and 7th grade I matured that also might have been that since he is 5 years old that is (to me) to young to be saying right off the bat your son has ADHD since most 5year olds really dont pay attention/listen to directions.

I hope this helped you out ...good luck

Answer 4

The only people who can diagnose someone with anything is a doctor. Maybe someone at the school suggested this is what your child has. There are alternatives to just jumping into giving medication. I am having the same problem with my five year old (having symptoms of ADHD?ODD). My husband and I have been taking him to behavioral modification therapy for about a year now. We are just about to the point of actually finding a diagnosis. I found this info:

In 2001, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), in their Clinical Practice Guideline, suggested that when treating target ADHD symptoms, "clinicians should recommend stimulant medication and/or behavior therapy, as appropriate." Several forms of behavioral intervention have been found to show little or no effectiveness in treating ADHD patients. These included individual or play therapy, long-term psychotherapy, psychoanalysis, sensory-integration training, and cognitive behavioral therapy. But one form of a non-medication approach, behavioral therapy, has been demonstrated to be effective with ADHD children. The therapy sessions are conducted by a mental-health professional (for example, a psychologist or social worker) and consist of parent and teacher training in child behavior management. The parents and teachers are taught to consider their child's behavior as a function of the disorder, rather than "bad behavior" or the result of failed parenting/teaching skills. The sessions then go on to teach the adults to pay attention to appropriate behavior, ignore minor inappropriate behavior, to give clear and concise directions, and to establish effective incentive programs, such as token or point reward systems. The adults manage misbehavior by applying immediate, specific, and consistent consequences (removal of privileges). Basically, the three principles of behavior therapy are:

1. Set specific goals
2. Provide rewards and consequences
3. Keep using the rewards and consequences for a long time
Many feel that behavior therapy can be an appropriate first-level treatment in several scenarios:

1. The milder ADHD patient
2. For the preschool-aged child with ADHD-suspicious symptoms
3. When the family prefers this approach vs. medication

This is a very informative website. You should check out the whole site and possibly research more on the disorder personally.

Answer 5

Why do you assume he has to be on medication right away, have you researched any other alternatives yet??? I went away on a camp for ADHD kids for 1 week. There were 10 kids, 8 of whom were on medication at the time. We took all the kids OFF their medication and put them on strict NO SUGAR diets, within 2 days, each child was a gem....the key is to keep activities at hand so you always have something to do if the child becomes a bit restless or "antsy" The reasoning for this intervention was that the research that was conducted was that "most "of this behavior resulted from food allergies or sensitivities....I know what I saw and it was amazing. You need to be diligent though if you want this to work....Things like ketchup even have sugar and milk too.....we used Rice Dream for the kids....takes a bit to get used to but whole foods are best, lots of fruit and vegetables, eggs, etc......Good luck, but I would try something else first before you put your child onto Ritalin....Do your research first...use the internet, it's a great resource or talk to your doctor....BUT do not allow your doctor to sway your decision if you do NOT want to use meds.....sometimes they do not provide us with other answers until we tell them what we already know.

Answer 6

I agree with anyone who says to seek other alternatives. It seems today as if every child who isn't "perfect" for the teacher becomes diagnosed with ADHD. Don't listen to the school, they just want to medicate kids to sedate them into good behavior instead of actually dealing with them. Aside from food allergies and sensitivities mentioned by someone else, consider the possibility of a sleep disorder. I had a doc (a psychologist) wanting to send me to a medical doc to get me on meds for ADD at age 25 because of my inability to pay attention. I was having problems at work because of my forgetfulness and problems managing day-to-day tasks like getting my daughter to the babysitter and grocery shopping. Sometimes I would even make the 30 mile commute to work and have no idea how I got there. One day, I even almost went back to work at night because I was sitting at the kitchen table with my daughter in my work clothes for dinner. I thought it was breakfast; I had completely forgotten that I had even gone to work that day. It was like the day hadn't even happened. I went to a medical doctor who wanted to try other things. All hormonal tests turned out OK, so he sent me to a sleep study. I found out I had sleep apnea, which was a shocker since I'm actually somewhat below normal size for my age. My point is the schools today tend to tell everyone their kids have ADHD when they are really just being kids or have some other issue. Think about hormonal issues, diet issues (sugar and caffeine), and sleep issues before drugging him.

Answer 7

The school can not diagnose him. I have 2 ADHD children. It must be done by a doctor. Usually Dr.'s won't diagnose that early either. They may wait another couple years. Take him to your family Dr. and tell him the situation and also make sure he sees a child phsychitrist. The one my kids' see quarterly sends questionaries to the teacher about his behavoir and can then say it is or is not ADHD and adjust meds accordingly.

Answer 8

I would take him to an actual doctor, such as his normal doctor, and ask them if they think the school was right. If it was a nurse, or a teacher that told you he had ADHD then you shouldn't believe just yet. A lot of times when a kid is called ADHD is just that the kid is like a lot of kinds, and doesn't wanna sit and listen to a teacher. As for medications, a doctor will be able to tell, and prescribe the best medicines for him to take if he does have it.

Answer 9

It would valuable to get additional information regarding this issue. Who "diagnosed" your son? Was ANY school personnel involved, or make any recommendation that your son should be "medicated"? (If you are based the in the US then this is illegal as per the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act (Prohibition on Mandatory Medication Amendment) passed in December 2004). [1]

The term "ADHD" is simply a label used to categorise a list of psychosocial traits that Psychiatry considers to be improper or abnormal in society. Psychiatry defines these traits as a "mental illness", and promotes it as a "disease" that requires "treatment".

It is not a "disease", despite claims or implications made by certain psychiatric or pharmaceutical organisations. There is NO credible scientific evidence that shows the existence of what constitutes "ADHD" as a biological/neurological disorder, brain abnormality or "chemical imbalance".

"For a disease to exist there must be a tangible, objective physical abnormality that can be determined by a test such as, but not limited to, blood or urine test, X-Ray, brain scan or biopsy. All reputable doctors would agree: No physical abnormality, no disease. In psychiatry, no test or brain scan exists to prove that a 'mental disorder' is a physical disease. Disingenuous comparisons between physical and mental illness and medicine are simply part of psychiatry's orchestrated but fraudulent public relations and marketing campaign." Fred Baughman, MD., Neurologist & Pediatric Neurologist.

"Chemical imbalance…it’s a shorthand term really, it’s probably drug industry derived… We don’t have tests because to do it, you’d probably have to take a chunk of brain out of someone - not a good idea." Dr. Mark Graff, Chair of the Committee of Public Affairs for the American Psychiatric Association. July, 2005.

Such behavioural characteristics that Psychiatry created this unscientific "disease" from are, and always have been, generally considered "normal". Now, it seems, inattention or "hyperactivity" (Hyperactivity means 'excessively active' [2] -- what is excessive? On whose authority?? It's ridiculous!!) is abnormal, a "mental illness".

For a rundown of the exact diagnostic criteria of "attention deficit disorder" visit: http://groups.msn.com/psychbusters/diagnosticcriteria.msnw

For information on the junkscience behind psychiatric "testing" for "ADHD" visit: http://adhdtesting.org/

For a list of what inattention COULD be attributed to (rather than some fraudulent "mental illness") visit: http://adhdparentssupportgroup.homestead.com/50conditionsmimicingADHD.html

For more information, see:

http://groups.msn.com/psychbusters/addadhd.msnw
http://groups.msn.com/psychbusters/adhdfacts.msnw
http://www.adhdfraud.org/
http://www.ritalindeath.com/
http://www.ablechild.org/

"We are not "overdrugging" or misdiagnosing" ADHD. ADHD is a total, 100 percent fraud. The many millions of schoolchildren around the world who are being drugged have no disease." Fred Baughman, Jr., M.D. Child Neurologist and a Fellow of the American Academy of Neurology.

"Parents are seldom told that Ritalin is ‘speed’—that it is pharmacologically classified with amphetamines, has the same effects, side effects, and risks. Yet this is well-known in the profession...." Dr. Peter R. Breggin & Ginger Ross Breggin, The War Against Children, P. 84.

"...But because ADD is so vaguely defined, even for a psychiatric disorder, it is tailor-made for bogus claims. There are, as the American Psychiatric Association’s latest diagnostic manual concedes, "no laboratory tests that have been established as diagnostic" for "Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder." Richard E. Vatz, Professor, Towson State University, "Attention Deficit Delirium," The Wall Street Journal, July 27, 1994

"The diagnosis of ADD (Attention Deficit Disorder) is entirely subjective… There is no test. It is just down to interpretation… The lines between an ADD sufferer and a healthy exuberant kid can be very blurred." Dr. Joe Kosterich. Chairman of the Australian Medical Association. Sydney Morning Herald.

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Decoding Psychiatric Propaganda
http://groups.msn.com/psychbusters

Answer 10

Schools can't properly diagnose children for ADHD, I suggest you take him to your doctor asap for a proper diagnoses. Your child is only in Kindergarten and just has to adjust and the teachers are to lazy to help