S.,
First of all let me start off by saying I am a mother of 4 boys, my oldest son has ADHD. I wrote a post last week to discuss this topic in detail. It is safe to say that I am fairly opinionated on this topic.
I emplore you as a parent to stop feeling guilty about medicating your child! Your child has a medical condition that requires treatment. If your child had asthma and required medication on a daily basis would you feel guilty about providing medical treatment? If your child had diabetes that was not controlled by diet alone and needed medication would you feel guilty about treating that as well? Of course you are saying no. So why should you feel guilty now? I know why: I have felt the judgement and the scrutiny of people who have not had to walk in our shoes, imply that our child doesn't need medication, but a better parent, or more discipline. This is an anatomical problem in her brain that is managed by medication, and a doctor feels it is in her best interest to treat it. Surely if you made the pain staking decision to medicate her MEDICAL condition than, you have learned as much about the condition that you can. Those of us with these children have all been down this road.
My son currently is on Concerta too. He has tried Adderall too, our experience is that it made him very aggressive and agitated. It seemed as though he was ready to explode. We switched back to concerta and have not had any problems. Please be very cautious of the newer medications. I think this patch has only been around a short while, and I would be cautious as this drug has not been around long enough to see the long term effects. Have you tried stratera? I have heard parents with girls tend to find that this medication works well. Also do you have all of the support in place for her success? Does she have any special education modifications? Is she seeing a licensed therapist on a regular basis? Have you objectively looked at whether she is going through any developmental things right now for example hormonal changes? as these things can affect her general mood, anxiety, which can cause some of the symptoms you have discussed.
I read the other post on the bipolar issue as well. Please do research on her condition do have her evaluated if you feel her diagnosis may be wrong. But please seek second and third opinions if you get a diagnosis with a mood disorder like bi-polarism. This is a very difficult diagnosis to prove in children and even more difficult to treat. The common anti-depressants have been proven to lead to homicidal/sucidal behavior in a child that didn't have those symptoms prior to the administration of medication. Remember it is important to rule out EVERY medical condition that can mimic these symptoms. Low/High blood sugar, Autism, Auto-Immune disorders, food allergies, there are so many more that mimic the symptoms of ADD. If you open this door to a new diagnosis, seek 2nd and 3rd opinions before committing to ANY treatment plan.
I wish you the best of luck, I know that we have a difficult road, but we can all do this together. I applaud your dedication to your daughter, it seems as though you are doing what must be done! Don't feel guilty for it. Be thankful that you have her insight. Some famous people with ADD...Ansel Adams, Beethoven, Alexander Graham Bell, Jim Carrey, Terry Bradshaw, Bill Cosby! Check out this link ADHDrelief.com
K.
