Dexmethylphenidate for ADHD User Reviews (Page 4)

• Joh...
• 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 the morning and lasts all day. No problem eating dinner and has kept a healthy weight. With the coupon, we pay zero out of pocket."

• Mon...
• Taken for 5 to 10 years
• December 23, 2017

"I take the smallest dose of 5 mg Focalin XR. I've been on the same dosage for years now. I find it's like a small cup of coffee in how stimulating it is. I find that it also has a side benefit of being a mood stabilizer as well. It also helps me with my mild OCD behaviors, which I notice as the meds wear off. I never noticed my OCD before, but as it wears off, I do now, and can at least be aware of them when I'm not on my meds. I've accidentally taken 2 pills before, and it felt like my head was floating above my body. Strange and not recommended. Also, don't go for the big dose right away."

• Anonymous
• March 11, 2009

"My 6-year-old grandson has been on Focalin for 2 months. We noticed an immediate behavior change in that he is so much more focused in school, with fewer outbursts and getting daily 'Perfect Day' behavior charts. He is so much happier now, and although we are still watching, we haven't seen any side effects."

• jai...
• April 9, 2019

"We started my son on Focalin once doctors felt his anxiety was under control with Prozac. Big mistake. His grades were great, but anxiety went through the roof. Wish we had never gone down that road, still trying to put him back together and get through this 6 months later."

• ada...
• January 31, 2010

"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!"

• Cha...
• December 14, 2014

"My 7-year-old son has had ADHD since he was a toddler. He started taking ADHD meds at the age of 3-three months before turning 4. He was already threatened to be taken out of preschool for his behavior. He's always had an I-don't-care attitude, very destructive unintentionally, couldn't even sit down to watch any TV show longer than 5 minutes. We had the hardest time finding a punishment that he actually feared until a therapist gave us 1-2-3 Magic to watch-it worked! We started him on Vyvanse, but he had 6 side effects from it. He got switched to Focalin as he grew, he's now switched to Focalin XR and now up to 40 mg in the morning and at lunch 5 mg to get him through the day. We love it, but it doesn't last long."

• gre...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• July 15, 2018

"My dose of Focalin is 10 mg. A few hours after taking it, I start to feel very depressed and down, like I can't do anything at all. Makes me feel like I'm going to throw up, feel tired, and have to go poop a lot from it."

• Kar...
• October 3, 2014

"We started our 8-year-old son (then) on methylphenidate I think 10 mg. Then we went up to 20 mg. That was disastrous after a few months with the tantrums, weight loss, and anorexia. We had him switched to Vyvanse 20 mg per day for a few months. Anorexia continued, and after those few months, he became yellowish-skinned, almost jaundiced. He got toxic obviously, so we detoxed him with some fish oil supplements and some other herbal remedies. About 2 weeks later, we put him on Focalin XR 5 mg. His focus is starting to dwindle now that school started. We added the Focalin 2.5 mg to the morning regimen to boost the dosage a little faster (that one is faster absorbed also). Have not heard anything negative from the teacher, so we are crossing our fingers."

• 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 10 mg, and while it took me a while 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), 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 hours later, really stiff neck, crazy distracted/hungry/drained when it wears off."

• Tra...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• April 30, 2024

"I was on 40 mg extended Focalin in the morning and 2 10 mg instant in the afternoon before it got put on back order months ago and still on there as I write this. The Focalin was amazing for me. It worked so well for my ADHD. I concentrated better, had energy, and it just made me feel good mentally, almost like it had a mood stabilizer in it. I’m now having to take Adderall XR and 30mg instant Adderall and I’m not doing well with it. I just want my Focalin back very soon but not sure it’s ever going to be available again the way it’s looking. I hope this review helped someone out there. God bless everyone!"

• Mom...
• September 24, 2017

"Ok, I have been reading up on the side effects 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 20 mg, and it, to me, has honestly done wonders. My son is able to focus, learn, sit still, and get his schoolwork 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 the only concern is he can hold better conversations, but his answers to questions 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 effects."

• mot...
• May 14, 2011

"My 6-year-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 10 mg and has a green day every day since he started the medication. His teachers say how much better he has been at school, and he doesn't run amok through the house anymore. I'm so happy we found Focalin."

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

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

• Anonymous
• January 11, 2011

"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."

• chr...
• 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."

• Tri...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• February 28, 2017

"My son is now going on 9. We started out with Adderall 5 mg XR at age 5. As he got older, we adjusted and went to 5 mg 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 dose kicked in, he would constantly have massive rage, massive hallucinations, massive amounts of itching, breakouts, among other things. The 20 mg XR was way too strong for him. We downgraded to a 10 mg XR with a 2.5 mg immediate release for backup. Best decision we've made."

• 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 competitive swimmer. Yes, we do have behavior problems in the evening, but it's nothing that we can't handle."

• Mom...
• June 7, 2016

"My sixteen-year-old son began taking 15 mg 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."

• AQa...
• August 15, 2019

"Focalin does the trick in getting you less scatterbrained, 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 overstimulation. I'm on the spectrum, and this drug makes my repetitive motor movements worse."

• Hel...
• July 20, 2011

"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 upside, this medication works well for 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 known this before Focalin."

• Bra...
• 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 a night and day difference for me. I had energy, yes, the first week I was shaky but that stopped. I lost weight gained from continuing to eat like a weightlifting 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."

• sto...
• January 23, 2012

"My 10-year-old daughter had her doctor's appointment on Friday. She started Focalin 5 mg on Saturday. Last night, 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."

• bla...
• September 17, 2009

"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."

• Anonymous
• July 28, 2015

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

• Cap...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• August 3, 2018

"I didn’t get diagnosed till I was 30. I’m 31 now. I was taking Adderall XR 25 mg. I just didn’t feel it working like it should. So my doctor switched me to Focalin XR 30 mg. I read the starting dose is 10 mg for adults, I guess since I took a higher dose of Adderall, my doctor felt it was best to get me going on a higher dose of Focalin. My job is working on the phones, I have to call about 300 people a day. There is no way I would be able to perform my job well if I wasn’t taking this medication. I’m focused and not bored, I’m not daydreaming all day, I’m staying in my seat, I don’t have a messy desk. This stuff works."