Special Needs Education
Daytrana Patch Chat
- chemig
- momadd10yrold
- momadd10yrold
- ShansMom
- grandma41
- grandma41
- mom0611
- weB6
- ShansMom
- momto1girl4boys
This archived discussion is "read only" due to the absence of an active Feature Writer/moderator for this topic.
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» chemig - sheila1970, re:sleep problems
In response to Slow Acting.... Sleeping posted by sheila1970:
We are having problems with the medication getting into his system in the morning. (Yesterday I had to apply the patch at 5:00 a.m. so that he could focus for the beginning of the school day). Thankfully, we have had no problems at night. We started him on the patch on a weekend, so we could experiment a bit with application and removal time. He has been on the patch less than a week, but we have not had a single problem with falling asleep, even 2 hours after patch removal. We are also not experiencing significant rebounding between patch removal and bedtime. We started out with Focalin XR (I'm curious as to how you get consistent dosing dividing the regular release and extended release granules evenly). We started my son last year on a low dose of Focalin XR then, after playing with dosing after a growth spurt, our developmental pediatrician added a booster dose this fall. When we were still not getting results for the expected time period, our regular pediatrician changed him to 2 doses of regular Focalin. But, he is such a quick metabolizer that the morning dosage was not getting him through to his lunchtime dose. He was becoming VERY overactive and unfocused in school, so we switched to Daytrana. So far the lag time before his symptoms lessen is the only drawback. I did notice this morning that it is starting to get into his system faster--after breakfast this morning he was able to sit and focus building with Magnetix while waiting for the bus (almost 2 hours after application). So, as you say, each child is going to be different. But, if you are having trouble adjusting him on Focalin XR, it could be because of the two different components in each capsule. If he isn't getting enough of the smaller ones in his first dose, you wouldn't see an effect on his behavior/attention right away, and if he is getting his boosters while the extended release components are being released, especially late in the day, the could interfere with sleep. From the way our pediatrician explained the pharmacology of Focalin XR to me, half of dose in each capsule is "quick acting" , designed to be released into the bloodstream right away, and the other have is designed to start entering the bloodstream gradually as the first wave is dissipating, so that you can get up to 12 hours of effect. So, if a child is switched from Focalin to Focalin XR, the dosage is doubled from their Focalin dosage, or if they switch from XR to regular, the does is 1/2. Good luck, though, I hope you find a solution that works for you. My son used to be inperpetual motion--I would get tired and dizzy just watching him!
-- posted by chemig
» momadd10yrold - Slow Acting.... Sleeping
In response to Slow Acting.... Sleeping posted by sheila1970:
My 10 yr old reacted negativly to everything- Adderall, focalin xr, concerta, .... the Daytrana patch is the only thing we have found that does what it suspose to do and not cause him to be mean, ugly, argumentative....Like you we started by cutting the patch in 1/3 pieces, then half, then 3/4th, now whole. No huge side affects. We put it on first thing he wakes up 6:30 by school it seems to be working. The teachers notice an improvement.We take the patch off by 3:30 because he was having sleep issues (normally asleep at 8:30, was not asleeep until 10-10:30).We added Melatonin (?spelling)now sleeping by 9:00. Good luck and don't give up.
-- posted by momadd10yrold
» momadd10yrold - daytrana doasge
In response to daytrana doasge posted by mom0611:
I would use 2 10's to equaly the 20mg. I'm sure your doctor will agree.
-- posted by momadd10yrold
» ShansMom - daytrana dosage
In response to daytrana dosage posted by mom0611:
Hang in there.... it sounds like a dosage problem. In our daughter's case, once the right dosage was given, it was as if a switch was turned off on the hyperactivity component. Since we already had had success with other drugs, we knew what to expect if the patch was working.
Though we haven't had any major adhesive issues, the patch does sometimes wrinkle over the course of the day.. with no negative impact on its performance. Also, we feared it wouldn't work in the water, but had very positive results last summer.
-- posted by ShansMom
» mom0611 - not sure if it's working
My son is now on 20 mg daytrana (2 10 mg patches) and we are still not seeing any change in him. He almost seems more irritable and depressed and continues to have some difficulty falling asleep. I will give it until the end of the week before I do anything, but I am just not getting results with this patch. My doctor didn't know whether two 10 mg patches were the equivalent of 1 20 mg patch but since I had so many 10's leftover, I decided to use 2 10's because the amount of medecine that is released is the same. Anyway, I may try focalin next if this doesn't work because I believe you can sprinkle the focalin on yogurt or something. My son does not want to have to swallow a pill. Does anyone know if focalin is extended release and if that can be sprinkled?? Thanks.
-- posted by mom0611
» weB6 - daytrana on weekends?
Currently, my daughter 13, just started the patch 10 days ago, just 10mg.I am not having her wear it on the weekends. It seems she always has a stomache ache on the days off. It's wierd, cuz'I thought the side effects would only be on the days she is wearing it. Any one else have these symptoms? Also,she says she see'snodifference at school. She spaces out the same as always. My Dr. said we could upit to20mg's. I hope it won'tbe too much. I hate it because I am not there at school with her and I can't helpher there, you know if she feels wierd or something....any advice?-- posted by weB6
» ShansMom - Before using the patch, we had good results with both Focalin an
Before using the patch, we had good results with both Focalin and Focalin XR (extended release). Focalin XR comes in a capsule which we opened and poured into a spoonful of yogurt. The granules are small white dots (like on the top of movie theater candy - nonparels?)and mixing them in yogurt had no negative impact on the effectiveness. We have also used a pill cutter to mix Focalin tablets with yougurt as well. Keep in mind that Focalin XR is supposed to work for 12 hours but for a child like ours who metabolizes meds quickly, we only had about 6 hours of effectiveness.
Hope this helps...
-- posted by ShansMom
» momto1girl4boys - daytrana on weekends?
In response to daytrana on weekends? posted by weB6:
hey there weB6. when i read your post, my first thought was, could her stomach ache be from nervousness/ anxiousness? if the patch has even the slightest calming effect(even if she doesn't notice it), she could just be more anxious without it. also, I highly recommend you keep a great line of communication with her teachers, and school nurse. we get very specific with my sons teacher. i tell her EXACTLY what to watch for (loss of appetite, "zombie" effects, etc.) and be sure she knows if she feels funny for any reason to tell her teacher or nurse right away. hope this helps...
-- posted by momto1girl4boys
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