[amy83]

my five year old son has been on meds for adhd since about 2 years ago. In the past two months i have had to have his med changed he was on strattera and doing okay. He is now on dexedrine and has starting getting aggresive at school and very rude and mouthy at home. The school suggested he gets counseling but i still dont know what to do about the medication. Any one know anything about the different medications?? Any ideas?

[Eagle3]

Who prescribes the medication for your son? I would suggest talking to him/her about your son's behavior and ask if it could be related to the medication. How come you switched from the Strattera if it was working okay? Also sometimes the combination of counseling and medication is most effective.

I copied this from the dexedrine prescribing info:
Aggression: Aggressive behavior or hostility is often observed in children and adolescents with ADHD, and has been reported in clinical trials and the postmarketing experience of some medications indicated for the treatment of ADHD. Although there is no systematic evidence that stimulants cause aggressive behavior or hostility, patients beginning treatment for ADHD should be monitored for the appearance of, or worsening of, aggressive behavior or hostility.

The prescribing info also says dexedrine is not recommended for children under age 6. You can read more at http://www.rxlist.com/dexedrine-drug.htm#

[amy83]

Thank you eagle3. I took my son to his dr again yesterday he upped the dose on the same med and said he thinks someof the problem may be uncontrolled symptoms. I had to switch from the strattera because my ex husband was fired and lost his insurance and my boys had to go on state insurance and it wont pay for the Strattera. They say until he turns six.
The doctor said the dexedrine used to be approved for under six and now its not.He doesn't know why. We start the counseling next week. Hoping it helps. School out for the summer so we have a couple months to figure this out.

[amy83]

Eagle 3 Thank you for your information. I hope this reply shows i'm not sure if i am doing this right.
My son just went back to the Dr who did say for some reason the dexedrine isn't coming up approved for under 6, but it used to be, Strattera also isn't approved either. my ex husband was fired last spring and i had to get state insurance for my boys and it won't pay for strattera til age 6. The dr's office was giving him samples but ran out...
He will be starting counseling next week. I'm hoping it helps.
The Dr also upped his meds thinking some of the problems are uncontrolled symptoms.
It just kinda scares me having him on stimulant meds.