Hi, I’m looking for experiences from parents whose child has been prescribed propranolol longer term for severe school-based anxiety and school refusal.
My daughter is 12 and her anxiety is very specifically centred around school. It became severe enough that she eventually stopped being able to attend, although outside of the school environment she can generally function much better.
She has had a full assessment and autism has been ruled out. She does have some ADHD-type traits, but we’ve been told that ADHD can’t be properly assessed until her anxiety is better managed, because the anxiety is currently making it difficult to separate the two.
She has been prescribed propranolol daily, gradually increasing the dose, with the idea being that reducing the physical anxiety response might help her tolerate school and engage with the support being put in place.
She desperately wants to attend a mainstream school and wants to be able to cope there, so home education isn’t something she wants and isn’t an option we’re looking at. The goal is very much to help her get back into mainstream school successfully rather than avoid it.
I’d really like to hear from anyone whose child has used propranolol in a similar situation, particularly for months rather than just occasionally/PRN.
Did it actually make returning to school easier? Did it reduce panic, overwhelm or the physical “fight or flight” feeling? Did it help with school refusal itself, or did you find that psychological/environmental support was much more important?
I’d also be interested to know what dose your child took, roughly how long they stayed on it, whether the benefits continued over time, and whether you noticed any side effects such as tiredness, dizziness, sleep changes, low mood or reduced exercise tolerance.
I’m not looking for medical advice or opinions on whether we should use it — I’m just really interested in hearing genuine experiences from families who have been in a similar situation, particularly children around secondary-school age.
Thank you.