ADHD medication side effects create an apprehension to pursuing medication for ADHD management. While it is true that there can be some scary side effects from ADHD medication, you should not believe that this is unusual. Additionally, most of these side effects appear temporarily and won’t affect long-term health.
The reality is most all prescription drugs come with some side effects. Some side effects appear very minor. Most side effects last a short period. In the case of ADHD medications, while some might appear unsettling, most side effects can be quickly addressed.
Many of you might be wondering why you should even continue reading. ADHD medications might not seem worth it.
Is that really the case, though?
Why Understanding ADHD Medication Side Effects is Important
Why is this even important? After all, there exist many alternative supplements for ADHD treatment.
Here at FastBraiin even, we highly recommend supplements. We believe that supplements can be an integral part of a treatment plan. From seeing it time and again, we know that supplements can in many cases treat ADHD.
At the same time, however, we also understand the important place ADHD prescribed medications hold. If you do not want to treat ADHD with prescriptions, we would challenge you to consider treating ADHD with medicine. Medicines remain one of the most effective methods to treating ADHD symptoms.
With that being said, you need to understand ADHD medication side effects. In this post, we look closer at those side effects, their factors, and how to address or reduce their impact.
Factors That Impact ADHD Medication Side Effects
First, part of understanding ADHD medication side effects involves possessing a firm grasp on the factors that impact the side effects. The two greatest factors impacting side effects include dosage and type of medication.
Dosage and ADHD Medication Side Effects
First, you need to understand the importance of identifying how to get the correct dosage of your ADHD medication. Medications for ADHD work through raising the levels of chemicals in your brain.
Raise the chemicals to the right level and your child’s focus increases. Raise the level too much and negative side effects can result.
Many doctors recommend finding the appropriate dose of medication through starting at a low dosage and slowly raising the dosage until reaching the desired results. How a particular medication effects each child depends on their metabolism levels.
Metabolism means how fast the child breaks down the medicine into their blood stream. Starting at a low dose means you won’t give your child too much if their body breaks it down too quickly.
Type of Prescription and ADHD Medication Side Effects
Secondly, you should understand that the type of ADHD medication has an impact on side effects.
There exist two major groups of stimulant medications, methylphenidate, which includes Ritalin, and amphetamines, which include Adderall. These medications can be prescribe in slow releasing or quick release formats depending on your needs.
You should always depend on your doctor’s recommend for the type of medication to take and the right formula. Unfortunately, though, these arrangements could produce unwanted side effects. If side effects become too cumbersome or distracting, you should talk to your doctor about changing the type or formula.
Common ADHD Medication Side Effects
After understanding what factors impact ADHD medication side effects, you need to understand what side effects to look for.
The most common ADHD medication side effects include the following:
- Sleep problems
- Loss of appetite or eating problems
- Headaches
- Tics
- Emotional problems
- Moodiness
While most all of these side effects cause issues and distractions, sleep problems and loss of appetite typically cause the most problems for families. These two issues appear quite often as a result of ADHD medications. In response, many families simply stop taking their medications.
We believe that you should only halt a schedule of medication with consultation from your doctor. Simply stopping, though, might not be the best solution.
Let’s talk more about ways to reduce ADHD medication side effects.
Ways to Reduce ADHD Medication Side Effects
Reducing ADHD medication side effects begins with being proactive. Consult with your doctor about the issues you see. Make sure your doctor understands how severe or consistent the side effects are.
Working with your doctor, try some of the following approaches to address side effects.
Change Your Dosage
First, if you see ADHD medication side effects, the dosage might be the culprit. Getting the right dosage depends on correctly understanding your body’s metabolism. How quickly your body breaks down a drug into the blood stream makes a tremendous difference on side effects and effectiveness.
Before anything else, start with changing dosage and see how that changes the side effects.
Change Your Prescribed Stimulant
Secondly, as discussed earlier, doctors prescribe two types of ADHD medication: methylphenidate and amphetamines. If you see side effects from the first prescription, you might want to look at switching medications. Switching prescriptions could impact side effects such as appetite loss.
Work on Timing
Thirdly, most all stimulants take awhile to start working. If part of your issues with prescription medication appear to be that they only work part of the time, it might help to change the timing of your dosage.
The issue at hand might be that your child isn’t fully “covered” by the medication. In consultation with your doctor, try moving dosages up in time and closer together to cover the gaps.
Correct timing can also possibly help sleep issues. If your child cannot sleep at night, part of the problem might be the medicine working at night.
If your child can’t sleep, try to not give them medicine after a set time each day. This might help get rid of insomnia in children with ADHD.
Try Supplements
Lastly, if you started with ADHD medication, you should talk to your doctor about trying supplements. ADHD supplements such as Omega-3 supplements can provide tremendous benefits to addressing your symptoms.
If you do not use supplements already, we recommend researching them to see how they might fit into your management plan.
Don’t Let ADHD Medication Side Effects Scare You Away
ADHD medication side effects can be scary. Don’t let them scare you away, though. With working with your doctor and educating yourself about side effects, you can find a working solution for you and your family.
