Focus formula for ADHD

Millie, I had hoped someone else would respond to this, but since they haven't, here's my .02. Yes, we tried it a few years ago along with Native Remedies' "MindSoothe Jr." for my supposedly ADHD-non-hyper, anxiety-ridden (hypervigilant), and moody as heck then 9-yr-old for nearly a month (just one dose in her OJ every morning). The result was a lot of whining about the horrible taste (it really is awful), no improvement in distractibility in the classroom, and a continued "I hate my parents, teacher, my life, and anyone who looks at me!" attitude. So, we dropped the Focus and MindSoothe and tried Adderall to try to help her focus and complete classwork. Not only didn't it work, but it made her even grumpier (if that was possible). Eventually we dropped the ADHD meds (had tried a few over the course of 6 months or so), and instituted the Nancy Thomas therapeutic parenting approach (meaning our child has to take responsibility for her actions/inactions. If she refuses to complete classwork, she misses recess. If she refuses to do homework (and I stopped helping her), she misses recess the next day because it wasn't turned in. If she can't handle playing with her sibs (looking for a fight), she needs time to "rest" in her room until she's ready. (Or I'll send her off to a corner to read.) We had a wonderful teacher this year who not only made her "miss" her recess, but would make her walk laps around the playground while the other kids played! (This was actually a class policy for not bringing in signed planners and completed homework. Loved that teacher!) So long story short, my kid still can't focus worth a darn if it's something she isn't interested in, but she also has major motor control and planning issues, so we're going to try her on the Interactive Metronome, too, to see if it improves her ADHD-like symptoms and hopefully the attitude as well. (She's not as bad as before. Now we see the trigger and can challenge her to stop and think before launching into an attack, whereas before she'd do a 180 with no apparent trigger. It was exhausting!) ;) Extra note: She's also currently on a B vitamin complex (known to be calming for kids) and the Calcium/Magnesium/Zinc supplement (magnesium is also calming, but you need calcium to balance it, or too much magnesium can be toxic and vice versa). EtA: The kiddo we tried it on doesn't truly have ADHD--I think it's more anxiety and/or boredom...plus she may have a math disability which makes her dread anything math-oriented (which looked like she was just distracted and "couldn't" complete a sheet full of problems. I'm thinking now that she intentionally didn't do them because they were too hard for her.) We did try the Focus formula (Native Remedies brand) on our true ADHD-er, but it didn't do anything for her, either. (Didn't harm, but also didn't help.) What I have found to help is the Interactive Metronome for her!!! She's now off meds for the summer, and I doubt we'll put her back on them. Her psych is really impressed, but wants to run another trial at start of school. First 2 weeks off meds, then 2 weeks on to see if it's the IM that helped, or just the break from school. ;-)

Good timing for this question, I just found a bottle of this in the back of a closet I was cleaning out. In my family it wasn't used for a child, but when I was married my husband (diagnosed ADHD in his 30s) tried it. It didn't help, nor did any other over-the-counter attention aid. It was like he wasn't taking anything at all. He eventually tried Adderall, which worked but had undesirable side effects. Then he switched to Concerta, which worked marvelously.

L, now 12, has dx ADHD. I think there's some MERLD in there but that wasn't properly diagnosed. I've watched his eyes and they don't move from word to word so I think the ADHD is correct. I was also diagnosed as an adult with it. He's on Strattera which helped in the begining but not as much now. Where does your kiddo get Interactive Metronome done?

We did Concerta for at least 2 years, but had gone up to 54 mg, which is pretty high for a 70 lb kid! I didn't like how it dulled her personality (she paid attention and was very dull/quiet---so when off Concerta, she was wild and loud!) So switched her to Focalin XR 20 mg--helped her to stay fairly focused at school, but the comedown was awful around 4pm (homework time). So then started Interactive Metronome in early June (we take her to a local provider that her therapist recommended--you can find a list of providers on the IM Web site). And by the 6th or 7th session (1 hour sessions), we were able to take a break from the Focalin and found that she really doesn't need it anymore! She's not as loud (though she does have her moments), she's less aggressive/in-your-face (senses personal space more, I think). HOWEVER, she's still impulsive with her schoolwork (we've been doing math this summer and she'll just guess or jump into a problem without reading the directions first). But they're working on that in addition to the IM, so when I stop her and remind her to ask herself the questions ("Have I seen this before? What is it similar to?" etc.), she can slow herself down and work through the problems. What DOES still frustrate me re: IM, though, is that her grammar is still horrible: "Those dogs playS with the toy." or "I rIde my bike yesterday." But the tutor/therapist said that her brain is restructuring/growing with the IM just as a child's body does---first they shoot up and seem a bit thin (as in improving in some areas like attention while other areas like grammar and math facts look glaringly awful), then they fill out around the midsection (meaning the grammar and comprehension will fill in as everything else in the brain takes shape). Not sure I'm sold on that idea, but we'll continue going...just because I've been so impressed with the ADHD results. (Then again, it has been argued that a disorganized brain often LOOKS like ADHD because the kid can't pull the info needed quickly enough for teachers, so they get panicky and hyper. And once the brain is reorganized and they can come up with answers faster, they'll relax more. Hmm...maybe. We'll see.)

I'm bumping this back up hoping Millie will visit again. If you do, Millie, I've got a few questions for you: You said your son has MERLD--I'm wondering what language issue is going on with my same-age daughter, and beginnning to suspect it could be this. Did your guy have these, too: 1. Mine will "echo" a question that has just been asked by a sib, even if I've already answered it. (She seems lost in thought or is busy talking to 3rd sib and will catch only a trigger word and then repeat the 2nd sib's question or even something I've just told the kids.) Ex: Mom (as we're driving, and they sit right behind me in car): "Wow! Look at those clouds. Looks like a storm is coming." Echo girl: "Hey, look at the clouds. I wonder if a storm is coming?" (And she'll present it as if it's her own unique thought, not parroted. Then either I or her sisters will say "Mom just said that!" and she'll act embarrassed.) Ex 2: 2nd sib: "Mom, can we go to the zoo today?" Mom: "No, the zoo closes in 20 minutes." Echoer: "Hey, why don't we go to the zoo? We haven't been there in a while." ("Zoo" triggered the thought, but it's as if she didn't just hear me say "no....But I follow with...) Mom: "K, did you hear what I just told L when she asked me that?"....pause... Echoer: "Oh. Yeah, you said it was closing in 20 minutes." (So very delayed processing that she has to be made aware of to even process it correctly.) ??? What is this? Her therapist suggested it could be "delayed echolalia" since there's always a 2-3 second delay before she repeats, but I don't think it's that. (It's always in-context with the conversation (unlike autistic delayed echolalia), just a repeat of what somebody else said, but then presenting it as her own novel thought.) NOTE: Had her tested in spring for Auditory Processing Disorder, but she doesn't have it. There were some tests she was lower than normal on, but no significant ear advantage, so no diagnosis of APD. (Darn it! That would have explained so much!) Item #2: Very stilted speech (pausing between words) to parents and teachers, as if she's really struggling to get each word out. I've noticed this with her reading, too, when it's more difficult. (She's very fluent with easy readers, but Reading Level 4 and above is harder, so she stammers a bit.) NOTE: I don't hear this when she's playing with her sisters, so maybe it's a comfort thing? I'll have to "spy" and see if I can record both examples for our ped and see what she thinks. It's something we've always noticed, but just figured it was due to poor vocabulary (lack of vocab, grammar difficulties, etc.). ??? Did you see either of these with your kiddo, Millie? I'm also finding more info on Fragile X that has me worried as she has many of the symptoms (but not the facial features or loose wrists thing.) I also learned that inattention, hyperactivity, disorganization, and not being able to generalize (apply something they've learned to a new situations) are symptoms of "intellectual disability" (mild to moderate MR), and we already know she has that (functional IQ of 65, but tested so well on the achievement part, doc said she's more likely 73 (borderline). And once on Concerta last year, she had climbed to 86! (Not that we're buying that number. They wanted to mainstream her due to funding issues!). Or it may just come down to the lack of oxygen at birth! (5 days in NICU due to "respiratory distress," probably cord around the neck. No oxygen to brain=development delay)... Too many varied symptoms and academic issues and no docs can give us any answers! Grr. P.S. re: the original ADHD question: Back on Concerta at psych's suggestion, but not happy with it. She's a bear on it (bratty, thinks everything is "babyish," won't play with peers or sisters without picking fights, not focusing particularly well anyway with it), so we're taking her off. She took a break from Concerta last week (psych had switched her from Focalin because the personality was gone with Focalin, much worse than when on Concerta and we've tried all the others) and put her on Attend (plus Memorin and Extress--you can get a 3-pack of minis on Amazon) and she did great! Not hyper all week, not bratty or in-your-face, back to her old, mental age self (around 8 or 9). I'd rather have that than a no-personality 12-yr-old who still can't comprehend what she reads or do anything past 3rd grade math. At least without the stimulants, she's a regular kid (for her mental age). And the stimulants didn't help her with executive function (planning and organizing, problem solving), so what's the use? She can't tell me what benefit they are to her (she says she doesn't "feel" any differently when on or off them), so I wouldn't be harming her to stop them. (Tho I still worry she may grow up to be one of those self-medicators who didn't have their adhd treated in childhood and now uses alcohol to slow them down. Yikes!) P.S. We're still using the Interactive Metronome, but at home to save $$. All 3 of my kiddos use it now and continue to make progress. My middle child hasn't fallen/tripped/stumbled into a room in I don't know how long?! And she's way more calm and easy going than ever before (tho that may be due to homeschooling and removing the peer anxieties she was dealing with.) She likes the IM (because she has passed my original IMer, the 12-yr-old, in scores). ;) My oldest hates it, but her scores continue to improve, so it must be doing something. And as I said before, I can now live with the adhd-like behaviors, whereas before we started IM, taking her off her stimulant med would have meant certain disaster--both for her peer relations and for my sanity! ;)

I see this but it's more a difficulty in expressing hisself. The MERLD was dx'd by me, not a professional. When he came at 6 yo, he couldn't read and didn't talk much. I know when he was an infant, bio dad was on trial so while he was held and cuddled, I don't think anyone talked to him. He was dx'd ADHD; I see where he can't focus. His comprehension is off. He's on Strattera plus I give him fish oil (I read that helps). He seems a bit more organized... another problem is I'm not organized so it's hard for me to help him. Item #2: Very stilted speech (pausing between words) to parents and teachers, as if she's really struggling to get each word out. I've noticed this with her reading, too, when it's more difficult. (She's very fluent with easy readers, but Reading Level 4 and above is harder, so she stammers a bit.) NOTE: I don't hear this when she's playing with her sisters, so maybe it's a comfort thing? I'll have to "spy" and see if I can record both examples for our ped and see what she thinks.

Thanks for replying, Millie! That info helps a little. And I'm the queen of disorganization--probably have a bit of adhd myself. ;) I have to make lists and check them off, can't ever find anything, etc. :o I've had to become more "organized" due to my kids' issues. So now they each have an "Ed/Med/Psych" binder where I keep all test results and diagnoses/meds, teacher comments, and teaching ideas to deal with their struggles. By the way, just had an appt. with her psych today and when I said I was tired of the extremes (hyper, socially unaware/immature, trouble focusing when OFF the stimulants vs. sullen and impossible when ON them), all psych dr. did was suggest a lower dose. AAAAHHHH!!!! Isn't there a test or something that can rule out adhd or show that it's just a secondary symptom of another disorder or problem like temporal lobe damage or FAS? He said, "No, there's no test," but did suggest we re-do the IQ test, but this time ask for them to test her to determine her strengths and weaknesses so that we'll accept her limitations and reduce our expectations of her if it's warranted. (Like if she has FAS, I'll know that she can never learn past a certain level, will never comprehend abstractions, and I can quit stressing over trying to teach her these things. It would be a relief for all of us.)....But how do I get these answers? Thanks for letting me vent. :hissy:

Thank you!! I'm going to look into these tests!! I'll let you know what I find.