Focalin XR for ADHD User Reviews (Page 2)

• Colle...
• February 26, 2020

"I am 19 year old female in college, and an athlete with extreme ADHD. I usually take Adderall Xr 20-30mg and it has helped me so much in college, I used to drink 6 cups of coffee a day just so I could focus enough to remember where I left my keys and sit down to take a test, but now adderall does that for me. FOCALIN however, was possibly the worst experience of my life. Focalin took every bit of anxiety and sadness and threw me into several panic attacks. I am a very happy and energetic person, I have never experienced depression or anxiety like this. I didn’t sleep all night and I spent most of the night sobbing uncontrollably. My heart was beating out of my chest and I couldn’t think about anything but how sad and stressful everything was. I suggest to NEVER take this medication, the side effects FAR outweighed the purpose of the medication. I never felt focused or honed in."

• Bobbi...
• February 19, 2013

"I am loving all these comments about this medication, and I thought I was the only one in the world who had these same issues. My 1lb 13 oz daughter had to have a tracheotomy in for 4 yrs got it removed and immediately began acting out, led to ODD and ADHD, went through all the medicines, I am a Nurse by the way. I found this and I am sticking to it, it does have appetite suppression effect, and only last 6 hours peak time. After 3pm after school it wears off and let me tell you its on until I give her clonidine 0.1mg tab at night(helps to sleep). I don't know where to go from here. Luck and God bless you all."

• Mac...
• August 19, 2015

"My son was diagnosed with ADHD about 6 months ago,he is 7 years old, this medicine Works great. He's not zombified. Helps him to really focus and helps with school. Only side effect I noticed is he doesn't have a appetite and it wears off about 4pm and he eats like crazy then. No mood swings. Very satisfied with this medication."

• Blast...
• Taken for 10 years or more
• August 6, 2015

"I was diagnosed with ADHD when i was about 5 and my experience over all has been amazing ive been on it for 12 years now i take 40mg once in the morning and in the afternoon and by like 6pm it wears off(btw im 6 feet tall and weigh 225 lb thanks to this medication). The only bad parts or symptoms im having are that Caffeine has no effect on me anymore( probably built up a tolerance thanks to the focalin) , I dont always sleep to well, and ever since i tuned like 14 my appetite went from non-existent to out of control (dont know why...) im 17 now and am an A- Student where as i was an F student before, I definitely recommend this but i should warn you all its not for everyone there are alternatives."

• AQano
• August 15, 2019

"Focalin does the trick in getting you less scatter-brained and it helps with focus, but be sure you are only ADHD and aren't also autistic and/or have motor tics/nervous tics because it is an amphetamine stimulant drug. There it might make you more fidgety if you fidget or have nervous tics out of anxiety and over-stimulation. I'm on the spectrum and this drug makes my repetitive motor movements worse."

• 25wit...
• May 3, 2008

"I had a lot of success with Focalin. I felt like my brain got turned off, which was a good thing! I could sit through my classes and actually get stuff done. I stopped losing things and I got things done faster and with ease. I lost weight, which was pretty cool. I didn't have too many side effects that I can recall, except for the lack of appetite."

• Anonymous
• June 25, 2011

"Our 11 year old son is diagnosed with ADHD inattentive type and has been on this medicine for 14 months now. It made a big difference for him. He is on 15mg Focalin RX. If he doesn't take it for a day, the teacher can really tell the difference. He can focus now and became a part of the class, contributes to the conversation and also has an easier time with his social life. He doesn't hate school anymore. We don't see any behavioral issues at home when it wears off. He has appetite loss, so he eats a big breakfast before he takes the medication. He also got used to eat a sandwiches at school even if he is not hungry. It became a part of his routine."

• HLS
• March 19, 2012

"Overall this medication has been absolutely wonderful. Our 12 year old son was diagnosed at age 7 with ADHD. We did try another medicine, but it stopped working after about 2 years. We have been on the Focalin XR since. Our son takes 25 mg, 2 times daily about 6 hours apart. It has helped a ton. He does have the appetite issue, but we are sustaining it, and when it wears off at nite, he eats great. The mornings are the worst part before the medicine kicks in. Our son has improved so much in school and in his extra curricular activities. He is a total joy when the medication is working. We do try and give him "drug vacations" on the weekends and during the summer which helps maintain his weight."

• Jonat...
• January 18, 2013

"I got diagnosed with ADHD and this is my first medicine. It helps me focus but the side effects make me miserable. I'm starving right now but I don't want to eat and my throat is dry. I can't sleep and this side effect makes it worse because I have asthma and severe allergies so I can't sleep and I have twitches bad. I twitch my left shoulder blade a lot now and sometimes it wont stop."

• Johns...
• Taken for 5 to 10 years
• August 12, 2016

"My son has been on this for 8 years and it is a huge help. Takes 1st thing in morning and lasts all day. No problem eating dinner and has kept a healthy weight. With the coupon we pay zero out of pocket...."

• Anonymous
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• September 8, 2015

"I was diagnosed with ADHD Inattentive Type at age 20, in my junior year of college (about 2.5 years ago). I started on Focalin XR 10mg, and while it took me a to get used to how to work around the meds (I had to change from doing schoolwork late at night to early in the morning), but it has done nothing but help me. The only thing I found was that when I interned and now that I've been working for a year, it doesn't help me (I'm on the phone a lot and it makes me have some issues bouncing around a conversation - too focused on one thing). Cons: absolutely no appetite from about half an hour after taking it-, 6/7 hrs later, really stiff neck, crazy distracted/hungry/drained when it wears off"

• Real...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• September 8, 2018

"My wife and I adopted. At the the time of birth doctors told us he was born addicted to crack cocaine also might not learn or express himself in a standard way. Our son is now 8yrs old in third grade omega prodigy program. He started taking Focalin and guanfacine at 6yrs old helped tremendously. 2 months to start working over summer. It's not a miracle drug it just helps keep him focused. I have not seen any side affects and no we are not rich or private school boot camp people. We just have him read 45min a day and let him be a kid. Good luck"

• MomOf...
• September 24, 2017

"Ok I have been reading up on the side affects and reviews of this medication my 6 year old had tried 2 or 3 other ADHD medications from a clinic he stayed in for about a month he is on XR 20mg and it to me has honestly done wonders my son is able to focus, learn, sit still and get his school work done. He is so much happier that he is learning and can focus on one subject at a time rather than racing through his brain. I like it and only concerns is he can hold better conversations but his answers to question are very short "How was your day?" "Good...".You have to ask him more questions to get more answers. Then you have to repeat or either give him one instruction at a time for him to complete. I'm concerned about the long term side affects"

• AJano
• August 2, 2020

"My 7 year old was on 5 mg of focalin xr for 2 months. A lot of his quirky behavior went away but not all. He was up until 10 or 11pm every night and told us he had too much energy. Per the advice of the doctor we took a 4 day break and he went to bed at 9:30 all nights. We are day one of 10mg hoping that more of his quirky behavior goes away. It’s now 11:30pm and he’s wide awake. My son is perky and his same silly self - I can’t identify with other reviews that said it makes kids zombie-like. I did not have that experience at all. Hoping things get better soon though. Also, it has not affected appetite either. He eats well thank God."

• Anonymous
• September 18, 2010

"My son has been on Focalin XR for 3 years now. We have had nothing but success. He will not go to school without it. He went from a failing student that stayed in trouble to a GT student that LOVES school and a very successful competative swimmer. Yes we do have behavor problems in the evening but its nothing that we can't handle.."

• mother...
• May 14, 2011

"My 6 yr old son started showing signs of ADHD a year ago. He is in kindergarten and he has 3 types of days green- good, yellow-not the best, red-bad day. Every week he was coming home with 2 yellow days a week for calling out and being disruptive for the last 7 months. He started taking Focalin XR 10mg and has a green day everyday since he started the medication. His teachers say how much better he has been at school and he doesn't run a muck through the house anymore. I'm so happy we found Focalin."

• chrissy
• January 21, 2013

"My son just started this 2.5 weeks ago. He is 9 with ADHD and odd. The medication works fine for symptoms. Yet I'm concerned because he has developed a tic where he constantly taps his legs and sometimes hits them with his fists pretty hard and twitches his eyes. We are going back to the doctor for management. "

• Terri...
• April 21, 2016

"My son has been diagnosed by 2 psychiatrists with ADHD. His issue started when he was 4. I thought he would out grow it, but it hasn't happened. He's 7 now. I've tried everything and going to start Focalin XR next week. I'm terrified!! mostly of all the side effects. I'm also afraid it's not going to work..am I doing the right thing..."

• MamaZ...
• March 10, 2008

"My daughter has been taking this for 7 months with almost no side affects. Her reading level increased from 3.1 to 4.5 in 6 months and her grades overall increased to A's. Our only problem is that we are having behavior problems with her at home as the medication is wearing off, and prior to taking it in the morning. We are currently adding another drug to see if it helps with this issue. Her behavior at school has not changed."

• Down-...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• April 9, 2014

"I was properly diagnosed with ADHD after knowing all my life, I'm special. And different from the rest of my coworkers and people I meet and met. I recently lost my job due to a "rightful" blowup at the my Boss's deputy, which led to all the way to a final write up. Two month later, it was discovered that I wasn't doing the daily logs, that everyone can do, but I couldn't do it easily. This behavior led to a Doctor and conclusion, I have ADHD. At first I was on Vyvanse 20 then 40, this left me speedy and jittery, almost unable to cope in public. So I changed to Concerta XR 36. Mild and cool enough, but I don't see the difference with my ADHD. So I moved to Focalin XR 25. It's been an hour since my taking it at 3pm. I feel it."

• Mom
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• August 18, 2018

"I hate giving my child medicine. Absolutely hate it. My son was doing so poorly in school though without it. With it his grades are so much better. I tried stopping it for two months and had to give it to him again because grades and behavior took a nose dive."

• Brand...
• December 10, 2015

"I never had ADD or problems focusing and staying motivated before I had chemotherapy for Ewing's Sarcoma at 16-17 years old. I'm now 24 and started being treated for those symptoms with Focalin XR earlier this year. It was night and day difference for me. I had energy, yes the first week I was shakey but that stops, I lost weight gained from conituning to eat like a weight lifting football player but had very little movement at all. I felt great, I can get things done now. Motivation is now just lacking from my lack of trying but when I get on something I blaze through it. Negative effects I have experienced are occasional moodiness, especially if I am focused on something and then get interrupted. Caffeine is a no no."

• Anonymous
• Taken for 5 to 10 years
• August 29, 2019

"I've taken it on and off since I was in highschool (I'm 26 now). Generally 5-10mg has worked best for me. It helps me a lot when there are tasks I need extra focus on, and a lower dose can help in social situations. I found it to be helpful for school, and more recently at work. The worst side affect for me is a loss of appetite. I find that I have to totally guess how hungry I am and force it down so I don't get brain fog. It relieves anxiety in that I can finally do what I need to, but it raises anxiety in general. I try to take it as little as possible, and haven't experienced any issues taking it sporadically. Just keep the dose low."

• Anonymous
• July 28, 2015

"My daughter was 6 when she started it and her school work has improved dramatically. The only side effect is that she is not hungry, and we have to force her to eat. At 5:30pm when it wears off, she is hungry and distracted."

• Evano
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• October 16, 2019

"I’ve had ADHD for a very long time and didn’t start taking Focalin until (11th grade) I tried other stimulants in middle school but gave up because disliked the way they made me feel. Focalin does its job. It helps me focus and get work done, however, I do get shaky and anxious while on the drug. My appetite is also effected. You just have to decide if the side-effects are worth the outcome."