Focalin User Reviews & Ratings (Page 3)

• Trini
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• February 28, 2017

For ADHD "My son is now going on 9 we started out with adderall 5mg XR at age 5... as he got older we adjusted and went to 5mg twice a day, however!! There were massive side effects with the Adderall mainly moods anger frustration among many others that I noticed at the age of seven we then started Focalin , however when we started the Focalin my son was put on a 20 mg dose to start extended release capsule he took the medication went to school and every day after lunch when the second those kicked in he would constantly have massive rage massive hallucination massive amounts of itching breakouts among other things..... The 20 mg XR was way to strong for him. We downgraded to a 10mg XR with a 2.5mg immediate release for back. Best decision we've made"

• adams...
• January 31, 2010

For ADHD "My 9 year old son has been on various medicines for ADHD since he was 6. We just switched to Focalin 10 mg about 2 weeks ago. We are noticing that by about 1:00 in the afternoon it is completely out of his system and there is no focus. We are going to try a booster dose of 5 mg in the afternoon. I'm going to talk to our doctor about lowering his morning dose because he feels shaky and tired, which I thought would have subsided by now. His focus is terrific but I wonder if we can get the same results by knocking down the dose a bit and adding the booster. Other than that, his sleep and eating habits are the same. Whew!"

• Anonymous
• August 13, 2016

For ADHD ". I'm currently 15 yrs old and and this is the second add/adhd meds I've been on. In highschool I feel that it's very important to succeed. Due to me going untreated for my entire childhood, I dropped out. I'm back in school now and it's been 2 years. If it gets to the point where you want to drop out I suggest add medication. But if you have a 3-10 year old I highly don't suggest it. When my brother was 4-7/8 he was on it. He would always try to kill me and my mother. He would hurt animals and kids at school. He was quiet and had no emotion or expression. Tried to kill himself many times. To this day he is now 18 and 5'8 when he is supposed to be over 6ft because our genes. Highly do not recommend unless this is the last resort for a child"

• Anonymous
• October 4, 2011

For ADHD "I'm not impressed with this medication. My daughter was having some issues with Vyvanse, so her doctor put her on this. Unfortunately she's back to her old self, completely out of control, taking hours to do a 15 minute assignment, playing with her paper, staring off into space, not focusing, etc. First thing tomorrow I'm calling her doctor and putting her back on Vyvance. Last thing I want is for her grades to slip, she's already struggling enough as it is to keep them up. The nail biting from Vyvanse is just a minor side effect that we can deal with for now, otherwise she'll fail 3rd grade entirely."

• stokl...
• January 23, 2012

For ADHD "My 10 year old daughter had her doctors appointment on Friday. She started Focalin 5mg on Saturday. Last might, Sunday, she was complaining of stomach pains. And again before school this morning. I gave her some tums and cereal, and I'm hoping for the best. The doctor said that the stomach pains will subside in about a week. She's not really "zombied", but it seems as though there's a lot less talking. She's not ADHD, just ADD. I am worrying very much. I hope that the Focalin equals out in her system soon."

• MomRom
• June 7, 2016

For ADHD "My sixteen year old son began taking 15mg of the generic Focalin and had great results, unfortunately the side effects are beginning to bother him after one year of successfully taking the medicine. It seems the gastrointestinal issues are making him weary and he has asked to discontinue the medicine despite the stellar grades. Hoping a switch to a lower dose may work."

• A kid
• Taken for less than 1 month
• April 19, 2017

For ADHD "I just started taking it for two day and I hate it the first day I started twitching and shaking and my stomach felt so uncomfortable.the second day it felt worse I had a dry throat, uncomfortable stomach, less twitching , I felt so useless. The worst thing about it was a post to make me focus and it does not even help. I just hate how I have to lie about how I feel - I say I'm ok but I'm so for from being ok."

• Ricky...
• December 1, 2015

For ADHD "I love how it makes you more focused on one thing. But it has too many bad things to it. First you have loss of hunger for a longer period of time. Then you get this bad stomach feeling like barely fainting or puking. Your muscles start to twitch and you annoying and hostile. I also feel like crying at random points and is pretty emberassing."

• Anonymous
• January 11, 2011

For ADHD "My daughter (8 yrs old) started taking Focalin 5 weeks into this school year. Her teacher agrees that it is working wonderfully for her. She is focused and her grades are great. She was struggling to read, to make it through a regular school day, to do homework and to get along. We asked her how she feels on Focalin and she said " I feel so much better". She is on 15 mg once daily and it is SUPER."

• prett...
• January 19, 2018

For ADHD "The doctor started me off with 10 mg seemed to never "fully" kick in, I would feel some effects, mostly just I would stare out into space and daydream. I told my doctor this and he just said I needed to refocus my focus. (He's a hippy Y'all) Then when I finally convinced him up it to see if I would actually feel anything more, it just amps my anxiety and makes me extremely tired. You can forget about taking a second extended-release capsule after that one wears off, it just makes you more tired and amps your anxiety more, makes you jittery and really on edge, also makes your heart beat incredibly fast. Would not recommend."

• blakes...
• September 17, 2009

For ADHD "My 7 year old son has been taking Focalin for a few months now. At first all was great. Now there is a great deal of explosive behavior. We have made an appointment with a counselor to begin some 1 on 1 and family counseling."

• Helpl...
• July 20, 2011

For ADHD "My daughter is 9. She has been taking Focalin for 1 year now and she is alarmingly thin. The doctor suggests that we should just feed her more food when she wants to eat. My daughter has always been a thin girl but now she looks sick, but on the up side this medication works well with her ADHD. She can focus and she even has friends now that she is not hitting people. My daughter is actually pretty smart but you would have never knew this before Focalin."

• adhd
• Taken for less than 1 month
• July 2, 2019

For ADHD "I switched to Focalin after taking Adderall XR for about 5 years. Adderall XR worked but I thought that there must be something better, so my doctor put me on Focalin. Today has been my third day on the new medication and I feel awful. As someone who has acid reflux, Focalin worsened by heart burn and caused me to gag every 10 minutes for no reason. Folcalin barely helped me focus during my class and I couldn't drive because of how weak I was and how much I shook. This medicine has given me diarrhea and constant headaches. Needless to say I will be going back to Adderall XR."

• George...
• September 26, 2015

For ADHD "Im a 17 year old girl and focalin was the first medication I ever used to treat my ADHD. It was the worst! Like many others, I felt extremely anxious. I also constantly would feel unattached to the world. Even worse, it didn't even help me focus! I was too busy having overwhelming feelings of anxiety to be focused. However, I wouldn't say you shouldn't try this medication as it seems to work for others. I just know that if you feel any sense of anxiety, it's abnormal. I'm on vyvanse now and I have no problems with anxiety. Just a few minor symptoms, but it works great."

• Texas...
• October 6, 2009

For ADHD "My 9 yr old son who has ADHD and ODD has been on Focalin XR for roughly 5 months now after going through 3 other different medicines for his ADHD that produced a lot of side effects. He dropped down to 42 lbs. VERY SCARY, and he would refuse to eat, period. He also takes 1 mg of Risperdal at night. He has a very high tolerance and is given 40 mg of Focalin XR daily. This is the only drug I have found that does not affect his appetite. He eats non stop when he gets home from school until he goes to bed at night. It has calmed him down but it seems to wear off after 6 hours. Other than that, this medication is GREAT and I will continue to give it to my son."

• ADDvery...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• October 12, 2015

For ADHD "I have no insurance and currently back in school for counseling, social worker.... lets say Human Resources. I am 34 years old, can't get insurance with parents, I'm way over 25! I clean homes and babysit to get extra cash for gas and needs and thankfully my parents have extra rooms, also luckily I have no kids. Was getting my 70mg Vyvanse meds paid all for with card, but after renewing was denied due to couldn't read Dr's last name and no proof of income..have none. Was currently taking 30mg Adderall 2x per day, Dr. wanted to try this and luckily about same price, now the Adderall is now half as much, so I must sacrifice. This medicine is by far the best medication I have found for my condition. May just have to pay more for this, best!!!"

• Anonymous
• August 30, 2009

For Auditory Processing Disorder "I'm a 16 year old female and, I started taking Focalin three days ago, only 2.5. I take it at 7:15 am I notice when it wears of about three hours later. I don't really have trouble falling asleep but I do kind of have trouble staying asleep. All day I have a sore throat and a runny nose, even once I've already felt it wear off. When I stand up I get dizzy and have to stop and hold on to something to keep from falling. I've also experienced high blood pressure from it and headaches that make my eyes water. When I look at a computer or T.V my eyes feel like I'm about to fall asleep but I can't close them except to blink."

• nateman
• April 12, 2016

For ADHD " I Have Struggled with adhd for 10yrs an finally my doc did something about it:) However I did have sleeping problems for first few weeks but that was expected with it being a stimulant but after a month or so my sleeping is back to normal and my mind is not spinning out of control so THANKS DOC! "

• sugar...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• July 8, 2015

For ADHD "I am an 18 year old female with ADHD and my doctor just switched me from vyvanse 30mg to taking focalin 10mg XR and I absolutely hate it. Vyvanse worked for me but would make me bite my lip often in class which was very odd, but something I could work with...Focalin makes me socially anxious (keep in mind I am the most social and extroverted girl), jittery, and worry about random things. I am going to doctor tomorrow after taking it for 2 days and going back to vyvanse."

• Taylor...
• July 22, 2011

For ADHD "37-year old female, 10 mgs about 4.30 AM; prescribed three days ago; used for ADD-like symptoms associated with Asperger's. I feel more comfortable in my skin, focus lasts for more than 12 hours. Only problems: cannot eat apples without getting spacey for about a half-an-hour (used to eat them to boost focus and energy when my Strattera wore off after four hours), and have to really fight to focus during monthly cycle. However, no other complaints, yet. Also on Lisinopril (20 mgs) for blood-pressure and Metoprolol (betamblocker to reduce betawaves for anxiety; 25 mgs). Concerta XR was good too and had the same effect."

• Anonymous
• Taken for less than 1 month
• December 21, 2015

For ADHD "Experienced zombie like state, very hostile, constant headache, felt a feeling of sadness come over me and wanted to cry randomly. I talk with my doc. who told me to decrease my dosage but I still had these effects. On to something else."

• Stella
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• July 1, 2018

For ADHD "I am 62 year old female. I SO wanted focalin to work for me. Prozac and focalin are both NOT good. So tired, can't focus, nauseated, dizzy, reclusive, crying. Now on second day of wellbutrin and already feeling 100% better. I thought focalin would give me a boost.. I’m giving focalin the boot!"

• Itznu...
• January 26, 2011

For ADHD "It is essentially the only medicine that has been prescribed for me for ADD, so I cannot compare it to others. However, I feel it is very effective. I have found greater success varying the strength over time rather than staying with a single dosage level."

• thebe...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• April 24, 2021

For ADHD "I have AHD and I was prescribed 10mg and it's an amazing lifesaver. Man I'm better at regulating my emotions, I can actually focus now! I developed depression from my ADHD which isn't uncommon but I'm really happy and I feel better now too! The only issue is that sometimes I get really anxious and on edge when it starts to kick in but that usually dissipates once it kicks in and it helps to take with food"

• Anonymous
• Taken for less than 1 month
• October 16, 2017

For ADHD "I'm 22 in college, I've been taking Prozac for anxiety and depression and it's worked great!! I decided to take on my ADHD that I've had my whole life. Since having taken Focalin 20mg I have been a MESS. Both medicines contradict each other. I have been very anxious taking this. I'm also very jittery non stop moving and sweaty. I'm hungry to the point of feeling faint, but can't eat bc even the thought of eating makes me want to throw up. Some days my heart feels like it's beating out of my chest. I always wake up at 6am feeling great and fall back asleep and wake up later feeling like rubbish. I haven't really been able to tell if it has helped me focus on school but I'll begin focusing on other things like my phone or daydreaming."