in answer to your question , daughter first took ritilin when she was about 10 yrs this never really helped her a lot by the time she went to secondary school (between the ages of 11and 16) the med stopped working alltogeather and she was taken of it well before she hit 16 even though she was in a special class attached to a regular school she started taking carbamazepine which normally is used for epaletic fits but in our daughters case it was used to help stabalize her mood swings, she is still on carbamazepine but in the form of tegretol retard because this is a slow release form, also she stated on risperidone/risperdol to help take the edge of her moods, she went to collage for 3yrs just to help her learn to live a normal life but she wasnt able to go into the real world so she now at the age of 22 she attends a center for adults with learning dificulties and disabilites