The Forums › Forums › Medication › Psychostimulants – General › To Medicate, Or Not To Medicate › Re: To Medicate, Or Not To Medicate
As he is 14, I think he has the right to make the decision after being informed of the options. Behavioural modification/counseling may benefit him for task completion. But, medication may be the right route for him also. Try and see. If it helps, continue. If not, look for something else. So much of treatment is trial and error.
My own experience with stimulant withdrawal saw a drastic reduction in school performance for many years until I was able to develop coping strategies and even they are not foolproof. I stopped taking meds in Grade 7, having been diagnosed in Grade 4, and went from B+ to D student overnight. My decision to stop taking meds was to assert personal control over my situation and I am not comfortable taking medication. I made it through two university degrees with a LOT of difficulty and shifts in focus. I should note that I am a combined type and not inattentive type, which some view as completely different disorders from one another, e.g. Dr. Russell Barkley. The stimulants help with my need to move about and ability to continue with a task for a longer period of time, but that is it. They don’t help me start tasks or stay on topic/task.
I read somewhere that stimulant treatment of the ADHD-PI subtype has a lower likelihood of being beneficial than for the combined type with other treatment options seeing higher rates of improvement, but I can’t remember the source.
The good news is that the should be little to no impulsivity from the disorder, which can cause quite a bit of havoc for developing ad keeping social bonds, spending limits and other responsibilities, as this is not usually an associated impairment with that subtype.
REPORT ABUSE