ADHD Meds and Decreased Appetite

[Anonymous]

We have managed for many years without meds for our 15 year old DS. He is a freshman in high school (private), and while his grades are excellent, the management of the work load is becoming a challenge and source of anxiety for him. He doesn't have anxiety for any other reason, and the psychiatrist felt confident he doesn't have an anxiety disorder. This is a new school for him and he has made some friends and is really happy there.

A little history...when he was diagnosed at age 7, we tried Focalin and it effected his mood terribly (irritability). We also tried Ritalin and that gave him tics. So we are staying away from that class of medicine intentionally. After that he was on Intuniv for about 18 months, and we eventually weaned him off that because it was zapping him of energy and effecting his athletics. Luckily DS was able to compensate and managed to succeed through middle school without medication.

We thought we would try meds this year to see if it helps him better organize himself with regard to school work. He is on 30 mg of Vyvanse. We started very low and yesterday was the first dose at 30. I ask him daily about his day and how he felt, and yesterday was the first day he had decreased appetite. He usually comes home famished and raids the cabinets for snacks, and that did not happen yesterday. I realize this is a long acting medication, and we intentionally chose this because he has a very long day. He takes it at 6:30 am before he leaves the house, and he is often doing homework until 10. The homework is usually at least 3 hours of work, and that is a big part of his organization challenge.

My question is whether he will eventually get used to the medication and get his appetite back. We don't see the doctor for another week or so, and I don't want to call her with this question.

Thanks in advance.

[Anonymous]

Feed him a huge breakfast in the morning and let him eat late at night if that's when he gets hungry.

Some disagree but if your child can manage weekends without medication that can be a good way to get some calories in for the week.

[Anonymous]

Yeah, but DS is the same - we do as the PP said. Huge breakfast and a lot of eating at dinner and after. Its an issue but not as much as the ADHD

[Anonymous]

My DS is 11 and takes Vyvanse. He has virtually no appetite during the day and the doctor said that is how you know the medicine is the correct dosage. He does eat breakfast since the medicine hasn't kicked in yet. He might eat a little bit from his lunch and dinner is hit or miss. If he likes what we are having, he will eat some of it. Many nights, he eats nothing for dinner. I do let him eat a bowl of cereal before bed after the meds have worn off because the doctor suggested it. He has taken Vyvanse for nearly 3 years now and the no appetite has remained constant.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My DS is 11 and takes Vyvanse. He has virtually no appetite during the day and the doctor said that is how you know the medicine is the correct dosage. He does eat breakfast since the medicine hasn't kicked in yet. He might eat a little bit from his lunch and dinner is hit or miss. If he likes what we are having, he will eat some of it. Many nights, he eats nothing for dinner. I do let him eat a bowl of cereal before bed after the meds have worn off because the doctor suggested it. He has taken Vyvanse for nearly 3 years now and the no appetite has remained constant.

OP here. Wow. I don't know if I would find this acceptable for a growing child to not eat 3 meals a day. Well, we will have to see, but if there is not significant improvement in his ability to focus, I would prefer he be off the meds and eat normally. He is a healthy, very fit kid just starting to show some real muscle tone, and I would hate to see him lose that. Plus he is doing all these athletics lately and needs to replace all the calories he burns. Will have to evaluate as we go along I guess.

[Anonymous]

New poster here. Our DS is 8.5, and has been on Vyvanse 30 mg for around 2 years now. His appetite was definitely suppressed the first few months, but bounced back after that. The pediatrician required him to come in monthly for awhile to make sure he continued to gain weight.

[Anonymous]

OP, many of us manage this with our growing kids just fine. My kid takes Concerta, and appetite during the day hasn't come back. But we have her eat a really hearty breakfast before the meds kick in, we try to get some fruit into her after school (she'll usually eat a bit on her own) and then make her a huge, rather late dinner. Lots of olive oil and avocado and full fat yogurt and other healthy fats help keep their weight up.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My DS is 11 and takes Vyvanse. He has virtually no appetite during the day and the doctor said that is how you know the medicine is the correct dosage. He does eat breakfast since the medicine hasn't kicked in yet. He might eat a little bit from his lunch and dinner is hit or miss. If he likes what we are having, he will eat some of it. Many nights, he eats nothing for dinner. I do let him eat a bowl of cereal before bed after the meds have worn off because the doctor suggested it. He has taken Vyvanse for nearly 3 years now and the no appetite has remained constant.

OP here. Wow. I don't know if I would find this acceptable for a growing child to not eat 3 meals a day. Well, we will have to see, but if there is not significant improvement in his ability to focus, I would prefer he be off the meds and eat normally. He is a healthy, very fit kid just starting to show some real muscle tone, and I would hate to see him lose that. Plus he is doing all these athletics lately and needs to replace all the calories he burns. Will have to evaluate as we go along I guess.

His doctor said that if he doesn't follow his growth curve, he will advise him to stop the medication. He manages to grow 2-3 inches every year so he is obviously getting in enough calories. I never ate 3 meals a day growing up. My mom was a single mom and I was too embarrassed to get free breakfast at school and lunch at school. If I got to school early enough, I would gulp down breakfast before anyone saw me. Back then, everyone knew who got a free lunch so I would just bring an apple or something. I managed to hit my predicted adult height of 5'8".

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My DS is 11 and takes Vyvanse. He has virtually no appetite during the day and the doctor said that is how you know the medicine is the correct dosage. He does eat breakfast since the medicine hasn't kicked in yet. He might eat a little bit from his lunch and dinner is hit or miss. If he likes what we are having, he will eat some of it. Many nights, he eats nothing for dinner. I do let him eat a bowl of cereal before bed after the meds have worn off because the doctor suggested it. He has taken Vyvanse for nearly 3 years now and the no appetite has remained constant.

My doctor never said this. My son has been taking Vyvanse for seven years. Early on, he was not a big eater and he stopped eating completely while the medication was in his system. So, he had a big breakfast and ate again at the end of the day. The doctor did say that it is a commitment for the parents because you have to be willing to make food at odd hours. Fast forward to teenage years. The Vyvanse only sometimes has an effect on appetite. He eats lunch some days at school, though he prefers to do other things. As soon as he comes home from school, he eats what I would consider a meal. He then eats two more meals before bed, but likely by the time he eats them, the medication has worn off.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My DS is 11 and takes Vyvanse. He has virtually no appetite during the day and the doctor said that is how you know the medicine is the correct dosage. He does eat breakfast since the medicine hasn't kicked in yet. He might eat a little bit from his lunch and dinner is hit or miss. If he likes what we are having, he will eat some of it. Many nights, he eats nothing for dinner. I do let him eat a bowl of cereal before bed after the meds have worn off because the doctor suggested it. He has taken Vyvanse for nearly 3 years now and the no appetite has remained constant.

My doctor never said this. My son has been taking Vyvanse for seven years. Early on, he was not a big eater and he stopped eating completely while the medication was in his system. So, he had a big breakfast and ate again at the end of the day. The doctor did say that it is a commitment for the parents because you have to be willing to make food at odd hours. Fast forward to teenage years. The Vyvanse only sometimes has an effect on appetite. He eats lunch some days at school, though he prefers to do other things. As soon as he comes home from school, he eats what I would consider a meal. He then eats two more meals before bed, but likely by the time he eats them, the medication has worn off.

OP here. From my perspective, the benefits of the medicine need to outweigh (no pun intended) dealing with appetite issues. So far there hasn't been any indication that the medicine is making a significant difference -- until today. We increased the dose to 4 mg, and I think this is the dose for him. Suddenly he wants to be supper efficient with his homework and get work done ahead of time. It is like another person. All I can say is WOW. And he had a good lunch today, so maybe we will be ok.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My DS is 11 and takes Vyvanse. He has virtually no appetite during the day and the doctor said that is how you know the medicine is the correct dosage. He does eat breakfast since the medicine hasn't kicked in yet. He might eat a little bit from his lunch and dinner is hit or miss. If he likes what we are having, he will eat some of it. Many nights, he eats nothing for dinner. I do let him eat a bowl of cereal before bed after the meds have worn off because the doctor suggested it. He has taken Vyvanse for nearly 3 years now and the no appetite has remained constant.

My doctor never said this. My son has been taking Vyvanse for seven years. Early on, he was not a big eater and he stopped eating completely while the medication was in his system. So, he had a big breakfast and ate again at the end of the day. The doctor did say that it is a commitment for the parents because you have to be willing to make food at odd hours. Fast forward to teenage years. The Vyvanse only sometimes has an effect on appetite. He eats lunch some days at school, though he prefers to do other things. As soon as he comes home from school, he eats what I would consider a meal. He then eats two more meals before bed, but likely by the time he eats them, the medication has worn off.

OP here. From my perspective, the benefits of the medicine need to outweigh (no pun intended) dealing with appetite issues. So far there hasn't been any indication that the medicine is making a significant difference -- until today. We increased the dose to 4 mg, and I think this is the dose for him. Suddenly he wants to be supper efficient with his homework and get work done ahead of time. It is like another person. All I can say is WOW. And he had a good lunch today, so maybe we will be ok.

The benefits of the meds definitely outweigh the potential slowed weight gain. Now my son isn't so impulsive and therefore isn't a frequent flier in the principal's office. Now he won't say something before thinking so he won't get beat up.

[Anonymous]

My son has ADHD. He takes meds for the attention issues. Unfortunately, just being more attentive does not make his executive functioning any better. We hired an executive functioning coach for about a month. Made a huge difference.

[Anonymous]

Our son has been on Vyvanse for 3 years. It completely takes away his appetite. He has a big breakfast and a big late dinner almost nothing else during the day. He only takes it on school days. Eats like a horse weekends and breaks. Grows like a weed every year.
Works for him and his doctor. We have no concerns.
Good luck!