Hi!! My name is Jaki. My 7yo son was diagnosed early March 2012. He has ADD. We discontinued his ADD medication prior to the Dx due to weight loss (we thought it was because of the medication). After Dx we did not resume medication. After 8 weeks of being off medication his inability to focus is really apparent. Not to mention his behavior. I know my son can’t be the first child with ADD to be diagnosed with T1 Diabetes. Do any of you have any experience with this situation? How are you treating the ADD? I’m struggling with what to do. I am afraid the ADD medication will affect his appetite and cause issues with his blood sugar levels. But his behavior is getting out of control. Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated.
Jaki-
I don't have experience with ADD, but know that your son's insulin can be adjusted to accomodate effects from medications or extra food. Work with his doctors to find the best options.
You're so new to diabetes but know that it will all work out okay. I hope you'll share what solutions you find for managing your son's ADD and diabetes so it can help other parents.
Take care.
-Jenna
Hi Jaki,
My son was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes when he was 8 (one month shy of his 9th birthday) and three weeks later he was officially diagnosed with ADHD (and possibly mild aspergers yet determined). While the hospital visit was originally scheduled to discuss medicating my son, that plan changed when he became diabetic. They wanted him to stabilize at least 6 months to a year before started the medication due to its side effects of lack of appetite, nausea, weight loss, etc... which can interfere with diabetes management (he goes to the Montreal Childrens Hospital).
We struggle with my son and his school work and homework but right now don't feel comfortable introducing the medication as we struggle to get his sugars stable and once we do it last for a few months and then we have to restructure his dosage again since he is growing a lot.
That being said, if your son needs the medication I would give it at least 6 months as the Montreal Children"S Hospital psychiatric dept. recommended to stabilize his blood sugars. My son is now 10 and we still have chosen not to medicate and live with the daily struggles of ADHD albeit we may still consider medication at some point.
Feel free to write (I would even be willing to give me email) since I am sure there are not too many moms in our situation. Nevermind that I myself am a Type 1 diabetic for 10 years (on Medtronic pump since Jan/2012) and have other health issues so I have my hands full :-)
Good luck,
Jodi
Hi Jaki. My son is 13 and was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes on 4/21/12. He was diagnosed with ADHD when he was 4 yrs old and has been on various medications ever since. We did not discontinue his medication. He needs it and it has no impact on his sugars or the effectiveness of his insulin. I, too, was concerned about any interaction and I discussed with my nuerologist and endocrinologist. I was assured there was no interaction. I also discussed it with a researcher here at the DRI in Miami. She concurred that there are no known conflicts. As far as dealing with the appetite issue, we give my son essentially two dinners to account for the increased appetite in the evening. He eats a meal with insulin and 3/4pm and another one at 6/7pm. He then snacks a lot of cheese throughout the evening. We have seen no issues with his blood sugars related to any of his medications. He takes Focalin XR during the day and Clonidine at night to sleep. We were actually able to reduce his Focalin dosage some as his behavior seemed to improve with greater blood sugar control. Please feel free to email me if I can help in any other way. Hope this helps! Jamie