Wonder if your nurse friend has ever really worked with ADHD kids. I would say you have to be consistent, not firm. But more importantly you have to understand ADHD and what the child is capable of doing or not doing. To ride a child "hard" for something that medically they are incapable of doing is just wrong.
I have a newphew with adhd. But ny best friend is a nurse. I asked her abt meds. Cause i didnt feel like its the right thing for him. SHE said u just have to be firm and ride them harder. My nephew loves me and minds me better than neone
Sounds like some serious adhd along with a seizure disorder possibly autism. He might need a higher dose of the adhd med and the intuniv at night. the lack of appetite will wear off in a few weeks.try giving him breakfast before his meds and plan dinner for after the meds start to wear off
Wow I'm so sorry you are having this much trouble. With my daughter she has adhd and the seizures tendencies and has been on focolin for about 6 yrs now . she doesn't have a sleeping problem but she has spells like a diabedic attack where she gets very pail and cold sweats and dizzy. the meds she has been on help but it decreases her hunger.with him not sleeping try a lavinder bath before bed to relax him. have they tried testing to see if there is another underlined issue going on that it may not be the adhd? he needs a downer for the adhd and try a no sugar/caffine diet.
i have been trying to learn more on my child and what my doc says bc i dont agree with what he has been telling me. but do your homework on aids that you can try. i was told a cup of coffee in the morning(works as a counter active with adhd).
your school should also have a plan to help with a 504 plan or a sped class even for kindergarden.
i guess all i can say is good luck and best wishes, remind people he is only 5 and that is a tough age already and to add a medical issue its just lots of patients and breath...
Oh, that has got to be really rough for you. Especially the nights.
Kind of curious what other ADHD meds have been tried on him. Intuniv is typically used at night to help a child sleep after being on a stim during the day. So kind of wondering why it is not being also used at night? It may be that the seizures are the reason for using the intuniv? And is he on any other meds (that could be causing the night problems. Of course, if he is sleeping a lot during the day - he would stay up much later at night.
And by law your school district should be helping you more I would think. There are early intervention programs that are designed to help kids like your son. And he may already be getting the benefits, but I would talk to his teacher and see if she knows of a way to get more help for him. I would also see about slowly extending his school day as he gets more used to it.
Hope some of this helps. Best wishes.
I would consider having him checked for food allergies. I don't know how much truth there is to it but I have heard that food allergies in children can do crazies things. My understanding of it is that sugar and gluten allergies are the worst for mimicking mental health issues in kids. Something to look into.