Jaycee1

The 13 year old child I am working with is on Ritalin. He is has a 10mg tablet before school and a top up at noon of 15mg.
I have researched the side effects and can't find anything on this; but what i need to know is would be a contributor to bedwetting - exhausted and deep sleep?
There is more to it but can only say so much on the forum.
Would be grateful for any advice - can also PM
J x

shirlw

Nothing written in the side effects of the leaflet I have but you could try googling "mimms" which is a medicine directory with description and side effect tool for doctors etc.

My son is 13 and has been on Ritalin for 5 years and has never had those side effects nor have I heard of others with this however anything is possible.ADD kids tend to be worriers so maybe something more psychological there.Also the 10mgs would be a short acting and the 15 mgs long acting (my son takes 30mgs morning only)!

Sally Simpson

Bedwetting in a 13yr old is not too uncommon but should be checked in case it is more than deep sleep. A full assessment & proper plan of action is required.
Doubt very much if it has anything to do with the ritalin.
I would suggest however, that the child may be better on a slow release form which would give better control for either 8 or 12 hours depending on the particular drug. This obviously would need to be reviewed by the paediatrician.

Jaycee1

Thankyou both for your suggestions.
There is a much bigger picture; mum forgets to give him the tablet 2 days out of the 5 and he just cannot focus its so sad There have been many missed appointments with specialists too.
I asked about bedwetting as he has an odour; you may have gathered his home life is not too stable and I just want to help him as much as i can.
J x

Sally Simpson

Well, I can relate to the forgetting to give the meds in the mornings. It is really not easy to get ADD kids organised & out the door on a deadline, especially if you have other children too. Very easy to overlook the tablets at times. I sometimes remember half way to the bus stop but it's too late to go back by then.
Have you asked the mum about the bedwetting? Or perhaps you could have a gentle chat with him about personal hygiene?

squeezzii

Is it not possible to get him a script for the 'one a day' tablet? I know that after the initial script for the 2 a day dose that they are often keen to issue a 1 a day tablet for the reasons you give- ie to avaoid the afternoon slump, the problem of forgotten doses and also to reduce the stigma of the dose being given at school. Is this something you can enquire about?- sounds like the poor kid has it real tough at home and the bedwetting is poss related to that rather than the ritalin, have an infection been ruled out? best of luck with this jaycee nice to know someone is looking out for him.

shirlw

What you have to remember is that kids that need Ritalin generally feel like failures (especially a teenager) and you need to boost that self esteem back up.My 13 year old is very good these days (5 years on Ritalin) and is organised enough to take his pill himself.We keep them by the kettle so every morning when we all have tea it's automatic.

Routine is also terribly important and they need to know what's happening where,when how ? If his family life is less than perfect then I can imagine the poor guy is feeling very bewildered.Try and boost his confidence by telling him that ADD kids are generally very clever but just have not had the tools until now to channel the all important info through the brain waves.Focus on his successes rather than his failures.......my son is very artistically creative in his drawings,some are musically gifted for instance.Find out what he thinks he is good at.Also a point to remember is that teenagers are going thru hormonal changes and body odour is common,I have to remind my own boys about BO from time to time.Make a joke about "smelling good for the chicks".

Hope the poor mite feels better about himself soon,It's a horrid age lol.

chrisg72

To really understands the true dangers of psychotropic drugs you need to go to an organisation that can give the truth not PR sales (what they want you to think) bullshit. Most peoples opinions about these drugs are just that or at best they are echoing some psychiatrists viewpoint (whom is paid by the big pharmaceutical companies) and these guys admit themselves that they don’t really know let alone understand the mind. Its all conjecture to them. it’s a pseudo science and nothing more. You can test in a lab for cancer, aids and a whole gamut of other diseases but you cant test in lab for ADHD, ADD or any other made up term they want to produce drugs for.

Ritalin is kidi cocaine effectively but rather than me spout my opinion its better to find out whats the truth on these type of drugs yourself. Visit www.cchr.org

Hope it helps