Focalin is primarily used to treat kids and adolescents who have ADHD. My 7 year old son is one of those that uses Focalin to help curb his behavior and allow him to focus more during the day. Though the pill does indeed help him, it does not come without a cost due to some of the side effects. This article will help give you a better understanding about Focalin and its side effects.
Understanding Focalin Side Effects #1: What It Is & What It Does
As stated in the opening paragraph, Focalin is mostly used to treat kids and adolescents who have ADHD. Health Square says that Focalin is “a mild central nervous system stimulant used to treat Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) in children. The drug is a modified version of Ritalin (a common medication for attention disorders) and contains only the most active component of Ritalin. Because of this special formulation, the usual dose of Focalin is half the amount of the Ritalin dose.” It allows children with ADHD to have a more normal life at home and school. Focalin is usually given in one or two pill doses. If your child is on a one pill dose, they’ll take it in the morning. If they take a two dose, they’ll need to take one in the morning and one in the afternoon (probably after they get home from school).
Understanding Focalin Side Effects #2: Side Effects
Some of the more common side effects are insomnia and lack of appetite. Health Square says other possible side effects are “fever, nausea, nervousness, weight loss during long treatment and stomach pain.” Not everyone gets side effects from taking Focalin. If your child gets side effects from Focalin, you have to determine if the side effects are manageable or not and it is always a good idea to ask the advice of your doctor.
Understanding Focalin Side Effects #3: My Personal Story With Having a Son on Focalin and the Side Effects We’ve Encountered
As a parent, one of the hardest decisions I ever made was putting my son on medication. I hated the thought of giving him pills every day and still feel that way to this day. But sometimes you have to ask yourself, “Will this help my child have a more normal and productive life?” The answer to that question for my son was yes. Before getting on ADHD medication he had a hard time sitting still and paying attention when he was supposed to. This interfered with his school work and every day life. I discussed what to do with his teacher and she hooked me up with a facility in the town where I live that deals with children who have ADHD and other problems. Once my son was properly diagnosed with ADHD, he started taking Adderall. It worked but when he didn’t gain weight in 6 months, I got worried. He was growing taller and he was getting very bony. I expressed my concerns to the Physician’s Assistant he was seeing and she thought it would be best to try another medication. That was when he was prescribed Focalin. At first, I didn’t like the Focalin. It didn’t seem to help with his ADHD. He went in to the doctor again and his dose was upped to 15 milligrams. That dose seemed to work and he continues to take that amount. His dose comes in a little capsule. He is not able to swallow the pill so I pour it into a spoon with some juice so he can swallow it down. The Doctor said it was OK to give him his dose that way. With Focalin, if I give him his dose at 7:30 in the morning, it’s already worn off when I pick him up at 3 PM from school. That makes it hard at home because he’s bouncing off the walls and I still have to get my other two kids settled in addition to him. The side effects we’ve encountered with Focalin is lack of appetite and insomnia. When he is on his pill, he is calm but he doesn’t want to eat. He doesn’t get really hungry until his pill wears off in the afternoon. At night time, he does not generally fall asleep until really late. His sleeping got so bad that I asked his doctor what we could do and she suggested taking a nighttime pill to help him sleep. He is now taking Trazodone to help him at night. It is not an official sleeping pill but an anti depressant. Kids with ADHD are often prescribed trazodone as a sleeping aid because it helps relax them. It does help him sleep…most of the time. However, he is having side effects from the trazodone. As a parent, it’s very stressful to watch your child go through side effects because of the drugs he is taking. Even with the side effects, I feel that Focalin helps him be the best he can be during the day. My son is very smart and is one of the top students in his class. I believe that taking Focalin helps him to stay on track in school and life.
Understanding Focalin Side Effects #4: Prevention
There is no way to sugar coat this, you can’t prevent the side effects from Focalin. The only way you could prevent them is to not take the pill in the first place and then you have a whole other set of problems to deal with. You can help the process go a little easier though. If your child is having lack of appetite, make sure they have a good snack and dinner with stuff that they enjoy eating when their pill wears off. I would not try to force them to eat a lot of stuff they hate because they may not eat it and they can’t afford to lose the weight since they may not be eating during the day. When my son comes home from school, I have food waiting for him. He’ll also eat dinner and a nighttime snack. It’s gotten to the point where I am thrilled to see my son eating. Kids grow so much that they need to not lose weight or stay the same weight (if they are in the normal weight range) while growing up. Now that my son is on Focalin, he has actually gained a few pounds as opposed to staying the same weight when he was on his other ADHD medication. If your child is not sleeping well, you may want to try a nighttime routine and see if it helps. Run him a warm bath, sing him a song, read his favorite story (or two) and put him to bed. If that doesn’t help, you may want to consider asking the doctor for a sleeping aid. Sure it’s not ideal to give your child pills in the morning and at night but if it helps them live life fully, it may be worth it in the long run. If your child is having major side effects, you need to stop giving them Focalin and contact their doctor immediately.
Understanding Focalin Side Effects #5: What to Keep In Mind
It’s important to remember that Focalin may not be the drug for your child. The pill could work for a few months and then you may have to change it if it seems to be not as effective. Having a child with ADHD is all about finding the balance of pills. During their childhood, they may take several different pills before the right one is found. There is nothing to be ashamed of if your child has ADHD. That does not mean there is anything wrong with you or even your child. Your child simply needs a little more help through daily medication and your loving support. Our family case manager who is in charge of my son’s ADHD case, says that children with ADHD truly can’t help how they behave (without medication). It’s not that they are a bad child, they are simply a child who needs extra help. Having a child with ADHD can be very stressful not only for you and your child but for the other kids in your family as well. If you have other children, it’s important to take some time out for them. Having a child with ADHD can take up a lot of your time and from my own experience, the other kids can start to feel a little left out and unfortunately maybe even a little resentful of the ADHD child because they’re getting all of Mom or Dad’s attention. Going through the process of getting your ADHD child help and finding the right medication is definitely a learning experience. It’s something that you have to keep on track. It’s not fair to your child if you give them pills for a month, then stop for a while and then start it back up again. Consistency is very important to an ADHD child and helps them excel. As a parent, I’m sure you’ll agree that we all want the best for our children, whether they have ADHD or not.
