So it has been roughly two months since RP started a pharmaceutical intervention for his ADHD. We have changed from the original prescription to one that is about $50 less. Seriously, can not believe how much this medicine is. Of course it doesn't help that I have a high deductible insurance plan......but seriously.....$145 for a 30 day supply?! Hence the switch.
This second medicine is about the same as the first. I haven't noticed any difference really, prescription wise. He hasn't had any of the side effects that I was worried about. He is eating the normal RP amount...aka a lot. He hasn't had any headaches or stomach aches. He has been taking melatonin on the days that he takes his medicine. He requested, about a week ago, that he not take the melatonin one night.....that was not a fun bed time. There were no fits or tantrum or crazy fears, but it took him about an hour and a half to fall asleep. Which is a long time. He was quiet the whole time-just not sleeping. It used to be (pre-medicine) that he would keep him self up by singing or talking or whatever but as soon as he would be quiet he would fall asleep. This time was not like pre-medicine so I believe that it was the "crash" I was warned about and what made bedtime so difficult when he first started the meds.
I had a conference with his teacher not too long ago. I was nervous about meeting with her and the reading specialist about how he had progressed or not progressed since starting the medication. The last conference we had was in December before break. It was that meeting that was my final push to medicate him. The meeting was wonderful. They are impressed with his behavioral change in class. He is learning to separate himself from his buddies when it is time for group work. In fact, while he was with the reading specialist one day, his good friend asked to work with RP, and RP said, no thank you-I would rather do it on my own. Good job! This is reflective of him completing homework more often on his own than with my help at home too. They are both very confident that once the 504 is in place for the accommodations, there is no reason why RP won't pass the OAAs in May. That was very good to hear. I am the type that prepares mentally for the worse, and when I can let go of that a little, there is a huge mental sigh of relief.
One of the biggest changes that I have noticed over the past two months is his confidence. Each day, the students get a check minus, a check, or a check plus for classroom behavior. RP was in the slump of getting mostly check minuses and checks for most of the school year until January. Since he started taking this medicine, he has come home with mostly check pluses during the week! He is so very proud of himself. A few weeks ago, he got a check plus everyday during the week for the first time since last year. He was so nonchalant while telling me, I asked him, "are you happy and proud of yourself?" His response was hilarious, he says, "Well yea! Can't you see my face!" Of course I couldn't because I was driving but in true RP fashion, he re-enacted the entire thing once we were home.
RP has been so noticeably happy recently. We still have our moments, mostly in the morning before school or on some weekend afternoons, but his overall demeanor is positive and happy. He has always been a happy boy, but there was so much that pulled him down since the end of last school year, it is a relief to see that glow in his face again. As a parent's happiness and overall attitude of life reflects upon their child, I think that our children's happiness and attitude reflects upon us as well. I love this change in him and for him. It is like a peace and evenness has returned to his life. He is trying hard in school, Scouts, soccer, and at home-his sticker chart has a big meaning for him again. I am glad that I made the decision to start the medication. Part of me wishes I would have started him sooner on it, but I think what I was trying was worth a shot. Can't regret past decisions but move forward from there.
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