Intuniv Er And Sleepy (Page 4) (Top voted first)

Hello there,
My son has been on Intuniv ER 1mg for four days. The Dr says give it time, but how much time he didnt say. My son takes it at 8am, and at 2pm each day he is tired. after a nap, still tired for the rest of the day. Anyone know how long this might last?
Thanks

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Thank you so much for writing this. You phrased it much better than I would have. Yes, there is a huge difference between an active child and one with ADHD. Here's an example. One day my son went on a field trip with his class, When they came back everyone had so much energy that they ran around the playground. When they were finished, all the kids except my son were exhausted. My son was even more spastic then before.

He's a very sweet and sensitive boy but, he had no impulse control before Intuniv. He would accidentally hurt his his sister or me. Once he was so excited to see me he ran up to me and yanked my arm so hard he pulled my elbow and shoulder out of their sockets. I was injured enough that I could no longer have my massage practice. He's get so upset that he hurt us, he'd cry for hours. It was after that incident that we went to a psychiatrist. We tried other stimulant medication but nothing worked as well as Intuniv ER. Yes, it took a little over a week for him to stop napping but, it was so worth it. He was much happier on the medication, He said he could focus better and he was no longer accidentally hurting others. Also, the stimulant medicine slowed his growth to a crawl. After Intuniv, he grew 2 1/2 inches in the year he's taken it. He went from being in the 3 percentile to 8th. I'm so happy and more importantly, he happy. I'm always careful to check in with him and how he feels - it's his body. I'm not going to force anything on him. Even if he's "only" 7

Now we're facing a new problem; he's grown so much he needs a higher dosage. We're dealing with the somnolence again. He was taking 1mg it's now upped to 2mg. We don't know if we should go back to taking everything at night, or one in the morning and one at night. The problem is each child is different so you need figure out the best way - together as a family.

We had him evaluated 2 months ago. He's on the Autistic spectrum. That explains both the ADHD and the anxiety. We're starting behavioral therapy very soon, I can't wait. I want more tips on how to help my child better control himself.

By the way, in my humble opinion, labels are great for getting the support your child needs. Hospitals, therapists, and school need labels to know how to proceed. For me, my son is the same boy he was before labels. I just want him to be the him he can, whatever that turns out to be.

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Thank you for this update. We are having a hard time watching our 8 year-old daughter suffer such drowsiness (for a few weeks now) on 2 mg Intuniv. The reason we're hanging on is that it's been remarkably effective for her inattentive-type ADD! At 1mg we did not see the positive effects; with p.m. dosage she had sleep disruption. We'll try having her take it in the after afternoon. I hope this will help as it did your daughter!

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Wow! I love your positive Christian outlook. You have reassured me because I believe what you say to be true but there are days when doubt creeps in and I begin to doubt. Thank you for posting

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Both my kids have been diagnosed with ADHD and PTSD, and so yesterday we began 1mg of Intuniv AM for focusing for them. Both developed what seems to be a stomach bug concurrent with the medication. My younger one did terribly yesterday, then today, her teacher phoned me to say that she was near tears thinking of how much calmer and self-possessed she seemed. Around 7pm the dose wore off; she was visibly rewired. My older one was great yesterday then hit the headache and constipation wall today-- both have been home part of the day, and he's been a mess even after the dosage ebbed. So I wonder how you are all handling the shifts in the evening, plus I wonder if over time the medication would be more readily present in their neurochemistry so that they won't be hitting a wall every evening. Thanks for sharing!

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I am so happy that you have found a way to improve your daughter's quality of life. I am praying that my daughter has the same result on this medication. She deserves a normal, happy life. Reading your post gives me hope.

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Keep trying momma. You're doing the best thing to keep on trying. It takes time and sometimes many diff meds to find the right one for him. my son is 13 and it took years to find the combo that works for him. Trust me he's grateful to know he has you on his team to help combat this.

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I so needed to read your comment. I am so worried about my son's future. He is a wonderful 15 year old, however he is struggling in school. He was diagnosed with ADHD-inattentive at age 6 and we started him on mes at age 8. He has always been an average student until HS. Because he doesn't have the best grades I am so worried about college and what his future will look. I love hearing about success stories especially when what I usually hear is all negative. Thank you!

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Hi - my Dr told me to give my son the Intuniv 1mg at 7pm - before bed to help him sleep. It does. He wakes in the morning and is alive. The 1mg per day does make him a zombie though in my opinion. He is so calm compared to before it is concerning.

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My son is tired first couple of days but improving .Anyone worried about BP being to low .Sometimea gets dizzy and taking a lot of deep breaths .Any advice he is much better behavior wise

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Hi Kim I know this is an old post but do you remember how long it took your son for the fatigue with intuniv to wear off?

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I know this post is old but dealing with this right now with my 7 year old son. Did intuniv end up working? How long before the fatigue wore off?

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My son's Drs advise to take it before bedtime to ensure a good nights sleep. He is still a little sleepy during the day (it's been 9 months now).

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Mom of 3 boys does it help his concentration in school enough to be worth the fatigue? Thanks! We haven't see any benefit yet (actually worse because dr pulled him off strattera to try the intuniv) but he's only on 1 mg now at night. Praying it will start to help. Almost at the 2 week mark

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My son took intuniv at 8 pm last night and we made a mistake and took intuniv again this morning at 7 am he was supposed to take the concerts at 7 am . Should I worry , because I am .

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Well now we have changed meds! Now it is guanfacine not er. He takes 0.5mg at night to help him sleep (focus enough on sleep to sleep!) and 0.5mg in the morning to help him get through school. It's been a long journey to reach this place. We discovered he was over medicated on 2mg and 1.5mg dosing. His parlour was white and he just wasn't a happy kid he was so sedated. This much reduced med sees color in his cheeks and you can see he's all there. Much happier since changing down the dosage. Not a tantrum or meltdown either since doing this and telling the school no homework. That's a huge difference no homework.

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has this ever happened to anyone... I am worried, just want to know if he will be okay, or should I tell his doctor.

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Re: marisa (# 12)

My daughter is on intuniv 1 mg takes in morning. She is doing great up until about 1:30 2ish pm and then she gets tired and goes to sleep in class when teachers try to wake her she becomes very irritable. Is similar to what your son experienced?

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Re: Verwon (# 1)

I started at 1mg for 7 days was sleepy and it went away. Last night was my night to up the dose to 2mg, I had to see my primary doctor because I'm sick so they took my blood pressure and it was 91/63. I called my. Doctor and he said to stop taking, but acted like he didn't know why. Obviously it's a blood pressure medicine. This is my 4 medicine for adhd. I don't so well with stimulants.

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I apologize if I offended anybody. I read most of your posts and am shocked at how many children under 6 years old are on medication.... These meds aren't even recommended for children under 6 per the patient insert. Intuniv was first marketed as a blood pressure medication called Tenex. The package insert stated that it shouldn't be used for pediatric patients because hyperactivity could occur....hmmmmm Now, it's renamed and used for hyperactivity. I agree some children need external help, however I do not believe that medicine should be pushed so hard from the pediatricians.

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Hello my son has been taking intuniver 2 he started with the 1 for 7 days then went to the 2 and has been on the 2 mg for 2 1/2 weeks he seems very depressed and sleeps all the time he did not do this the first week of being on the 2 ml but the 2nd week and 1/2 he seems to be worse . Should I stop the meds for now ? He will not even play with his friends he comes home from school and goes to sleep. I have to wake him up to do his homework. We put him on these meds due to he has probems in school staying on tack and focusing and can not sit still to long with out moving around in his chair. He is not what I call hyper like some kids I have seen but has issues being still and paying attention in school. He is a very good and kind kid. I just want to make sure these meds do not depress him.He is over weight and has a hard time at school. He eats just to be eating due to he is a stress eater not that he is really wants to eat and he is a carb eater.

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