Recommended US guidelines to assess ADHD for Ritalin as young as 4

[newfashionedmum]

I read this and was

My DD doesn't have ADHD but am really shocked by this idea and wondered whether anyone thought it was worrying?
www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.telegraph.co.uk%2Fhealth%2Fhealthnews%2F8827986%2FGive-Ritalin-to-four-year-olds-with-ADHD-say-experts.html&h=aAQHOeUq-AQEWSkV0oMNT_LWuxE5TZmTMOqOmw_YXBbAq1w

I think unless you have a child with ADHD you really can't understand how bad it can get. DS1 was referred to paed at 3 for ADHD and he is severe, he is on the highest licenced dose that can be given. We had to wait until he was 7.5 before we could try medication, that wait caused both us and him a lot of distress, also he is still looked at by a few of the children he went to primary school with as being that child who could be wound up and explode, in fact these kids used to do just that and even though they know he is medicated they still try. I think if the need is there then it is needed, you wouldn't stop a child with diabetes having insulin just because of their age.

I think the doctor quoted at the end of the article is right - there is great reluctance to use medication for children in the UK and it is usually quite difficult to get even a trial of ADHD medication for much older children in the Uk - so it's not likely that there will be changes in approach for young children. I think views on medication will always vary but I've never understood why people think ADHD meds are freely available.

Ironically, our DS2 is 5yo and WE are the ones reluctant to use meds for him. The paed (and the school, but that is another story entirely as we've told them it's not their business to involve themselves in that decision) is pushing the meds. But everything we've read says not to give it prior to 6yrs old, and personally we'd like to hold off for awhile and see how he develops over the next year. He IS all over the place, but at the same time, we have seen some small progress. I wouldn't want to make assumptions or judgements about others giving their child medication, however, I would expect the same courtesy returned about our decision to wait. It's a huge decision IMO.

Triggles I totally understand your reluctance to give your ds meds. I must admit we have a very understanding paed, who listens to our thoughts and needs and will always recommend a trial period, usually about 4-6 weeks.
Willow I agree, I also do not understand why people think these meds are easy to get hold of, even if you do gat a prescription, it has to be ordered via the paed, then ordered by the chemist which takes 2 days then it has to be signed for, so not easy at all.
The mads have been the making of ds, he now chooses to take them, and got quite upset when the paed suggested he may need a break as he wasn't putting enough weight on. As far as ds and we are concerned, he is unable to function on an everyday basis without his meds.

I sympathise with your situation Triggles and I think it is completely unacceptable for the school to try to push you down this route particularly as it's unlikely that anyone other than the parents will know enough about how the child actually copes in a variety of situations. Medication has made a massive difference to our lives in that ds1 is now able to concentrate for long enough to look at books and to play on his I pod - activiites that used to be completely beyond his him due to his extremely short attention span and compulsive hyperactivity (and more importantly he is much more relaxed and happy). However we are still trying to get the medication supplied from the GP rather than the specialist unit at the hospital but with no success yet due to their lack of familiarity with ADHD medication. I don't think ADHD medication rates are as high as people sometimes think they are although I am sure he cannot be the only child in the city who takes it which does make me wonder why it is so hard to organise a prescription locally.

Our youngest at 5 is going through the assessment process for this and ASD is also being assessed. He is exhausting but I don't know what we do if we were offered medication as he is more the size of a 3-4 year old. On the otherhand I wouldn't find a parenting course useful either as I know to pick my battles with him and I know being calm and patient is the best way to be with him. Probably some respite would be useful on occassion so his siblings ( 2 of whom also have ASD) could have a break from him but I don't see that happening so have to plod on. Look forward to hearing what peoples views are.

We were told almost immediately that DS2 most likely had ADHD, although they are still assessing other things (ASD, sensory problems, speech and language delays, etc). Still it was over 9 months before the paed was comfortable mentioning the meds (perhaps because we were fairly clear from the outset that we would like to avoid them if possible). Honestly, I think as he gets older, it's probably going to be something we will need to look at, as while he can get by at the moment, when he gets into higher levels at school, he just could not function at this level and still acquire an education. For now, I would rather be more on high alert and work harder than risk his health due to his young age. When he is older, his system will be more capable (hopefully) of handling the meds, and hopefully then he will be able to tell us if something feels wrong about the meds such as side effects. Whereas now, there is no way he would be able to.

It's so frustrating, leonie. We feel so pressured, almost as if we are being neglectful if we don't medicate him. But honestly, I don't WANT to medicate him. Not now, and possibly not in the future either. I told DH I was worried that he would be denied the FT 1:1 on his statement during future reviews if we are not medicating him, although I wouldn't think legally they could do that. We're holding firm on it though.

I will admit that the more they pressure me, the more I tend to plant my feet. If they were all reasonable about it, I might actually waver. But I don't respond well to unreasonable pressure, I will admit.

I get quite angry at comments that imply that we are not doing what's best for him by refusing medication. And we were told at one point, when I mentioned that I had read reports that there was a higher risk of heart problems when meds were given under 6yrs, that I needed to weigh the risks vs the benefits!! I told them "That's quite easy to say when it's not your child..."

thanks