Don't Buy Into These "Trends" About Treatment For ADD

Treatment For ADHD

Psychosocial therapy is the primary treatment for add. These medications include stimulants like amphetamine and methylphenidate, and nonstimulants like atomoxetine, viloxazine, guanfacine, clonidine and gu.

Stimulant medication should not be used in patients with active substance abuse problems but they are a possibility for those who are in stable recovery. Combination therapy using antidepressants particularly SSRIs, is an alternative option.

Stimulants

Stimulants increase norepinephrine and dopamine levels between synapses in the brain. This improves focus and reduces hyperactivity and impulses. Most doctors prescribe medication from the stimulant class to treat ADHD. They might prescribe methylphenidate (Concerta or Ritalin) or amphetamines. Both are similar medications. The type of medicine prescribed will depend on a person's biochemistry as well as how well they react to the medicine.  Iam Psychiatry  may take up to seven days for the full effects of a drug to become evident. The medicine will work if you notice improvements in memory, concentration sleep, impulsivity, and sleep.

Some of the side effects include a decreased appetite, difficulty sleeping, and an increase in blood pressure and heart rate. Certain people with medical conditions like high blood pressure or heart disease, should not take them. The stimulants have a high risk for abuse and are tightly controlled drugs. Only psychiatrists or paediatricians or in certain cases general practitioners, are able to prescribe stimulants. They are available in the form of tablets, pills patches that can be applied to the skin or liquids.

Children and adolescents who consume stimulants frequently experience problems with appetite and weight loss. If the dosage is too high, they can also develop symptoms of tics. In this case, the doctor will reduce the dose to prevent the symptoms from getting worse.

Stimulant medication is used by around 70 to 80 percent of adults and children with ADHD. A majority of children and young adults notice that their symptoms improve through treatment. This is especially the case for children who have teachers, parents, or carers who can report improvements.

Early use of stimulants may lower the risk of developing drug use disorders later in life. Wilens and colleagues79,80 Katusic and colleagues81,82 and Biederman and colleagues83 discovered that treatment with stimulants decreases the risk for substance use disorders in adolescents, but the protective effect diminishes in the early years of adulthood.