Posted by dde on October 23, 2002, at 12:58:09
In reply to Re: I am scared of this medicine, HELP ME! » dde, posted by Ritch on October 22, 2002, at 22:11:43
Yes, I do think he was misdiagnosed and was more than likely bi-polar. That being the case, Effexor XR would definitely not have been the correct medication as it doesn't address the mania, only depression. Most of his ADHD symptoms are similar to those of mania. The day we buried him there was an article in Newsweek (August 19) about bi-polar and a checklist. It said if the child met 20 of the 40 symptoms, he would be considered bi-polar. My son met 37 of the 40. As for previous medications, he had been on Adderall, which helped immensely for the ADHD "symptoms"....he was able to concentrate, was less agressive, etc. The problem with it was that he lost a lot of weight when his father failed to feed him before administering the meds. He was changed to Concerta LA because of the weight issue. He did miserably on it. So this summer I asked that he be put back on Adderall and that depression be addressed as well. I feel like such a fool, but how is a person to know? In any case, the Psych put him on Adderall XR and Effexor XR to begin with. Symptoms....he didn't sleep, literally, for 6 days, looked like a zombie, was unable to think, was agressive/latent at times, his sleep paterns changed incredibly, he complained of headaches, of his brain rolling around in his head, of being light headed, stomach aches, sore throat, trouble breathing. I finally took him off the Adderall XR and put him back on the normal Adderall. He slept better, but the other symptoms were still there. The nurse practitioner that he saw for followups said it was just his body trying to get used to the meds and bumped up the dosage! Sorry for the book. And thank you for inquiring. de
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