My adhd son has always had trouble socially. Part of it, we suspect, has been caused by the meds he was on. Over the summer we were able to experience no meds and the social difference was pretty amazing. He was much, much happier, he was more social, more active and most importantly, he smiled more.
The downside, of course, was that he was also sometimes a raving lunatic of activity. There were some days that it was a bit much, but for the most part we could handle it.
Towards the end of summer, we opted to put him back on his original medicine. Well, yesterday it gave him a massive headache and made him puke (Had to pull over quick to make sure we didn't have another truck puking incident) - a reaction that we duplicated with his short acting meds over the summer (minus the puke).
So, as my hubs and I ponder what to do with the Princess (short of duct taping her to a wall), we are also wondering what is best for our son.
On one hand, we don't want our son to have a hard time socially. It is already difficult for him since he younger than his classmates and he is gifted, so he already sees things differently than his peers.
On the flip side, we want him to continue to do well academically. I know that meds only facilitate his success, but I'll be honest - they make a biiiiig difference in a classroom situation. If we put him on a lower dose, it means we will all have to employ more behavioral strategies to make up for it and I'm not sure that it will work.
So, what to do? We are thinking about trying a lower dose med to help him during the day. Maybe then this won't impede the social aspect as much? I know grades are important (I mean, I am a teacher too) but he also needs to be social.
Any thoughts?
Comments