Your child with add/adhd?

How do you feel about those drugs for ADD or ADHD? I hated taking those meds when i was little and now that I have a child I could never imagine giving her those types of medicines....I remember how jacked up I felt and it's crazy that I felt that way. I read an article that those drugs might be getting a "Black Box" labeling on them making them the most "unsafe" prescriptions???

I also read an article stating that medical marijuana could help with ADD/ADHD because it could help relax the children...NOT smoking it of course because we all know that smoking anything is bad for anyone, but maybe putting it in their foods or drink. So my questions are, How do you feel about the usual ADD/ADHD drugs? Would you rather have a safer drug for you child to take? Would you rather them take stimulants like adderall, ritalin, concerta? or medical marijuana or what?

I'd go natural when they are young. There are learning therapies that seek to expand attention. There is this old fashioned thing called giving kids places and lots of time to burn off energy. Archaic, I know. I'd stick with that unless learning or socialization was seriously compromised. If tutoring was needed, then I'd tutor. I don't believe in unnecessary drugs, and I think the system tends to falsely label kids who can't sit still as ADHD when they are really just active, bored kids. For those who are severe, idk. Small quantities of speed might be necessary. If marijuana was legal, then I'd consider it, actually let the kid make the call. I know someone w/ADHD who self-medicated this way, didn't get high, just calmed down. My mom is ADD and my brother was falsely tagged ADHD by a teacher or two. Btw, Provigil is another new non-speed med they are starting to use with sucess for ADD/ADHD. It was developed for Narcolepsy and can still be hard to get insurance to cover. However, it still is a med.

OK.GREAT QUESTION!!!!! I have a 14 year old with severe ADHD.well he had severe ADHD from 2nd grade to 8th grade. I also have ADHD and OCD. I fought with the school board for 8 years over meds. They insisted I put him on something because he couldnt hold still, fidgeted all the time. He was SO SMART but just couldnt do homework or pay attention.Everything bored him.Except video games, running, sports etc. So I took him to therapist after therapist and we tried med after med....not ever for very long becuz as a nurse, i seen what these meds do to children.I would put him on...and then take him off stating"too many side effects". The school would lay off for awhile then come back at me so again, new med....then off. Now he is 14 and WONDERFUL. still very active but doing so great, hes outgrowing it. homework still sucks but he excels at other things. hes on no meds at all. his schedule is very structured. his class room small, he goes to vo tech instead of all the other study halls etc. it works. If when he is 18 he wants to go on an ADHD med, fine, he is an adult. but i wont make my child a zombie, or deathly thin. i wont make his heart race.those pill swork by speeding up the metabolism to such a degree that it actually slows the body doen. the body system itself is working so hard for the med, that the physical body and mind gets tired.
Now recently in the last 2 years or so the makers of prozac i believe came out with concerta. concerta is not a stimulant. i would have tried that if my insurance had been willing to pay for it, but they wouldnt. Ive heard both good and bad. As for medical use of marijuana, i do blieve inusing it for cancer, aids etc. i dont care if people smoke it for recreation, none of my business...the only reason i wouldnt use it for my child is the lazy factor. it does make you lazy, and eat. so then you have a lazy fat child. i cant see the benefit of that either.
STRUCTURE works the best. and lots of love. ADHD, ADD children have been proven to be highly intelligent. their brain works faster and harder than the average child. they are bored because they learn at an advanced level, the problem is...they have trouble sitting still ong enough to pick the information up. small classes work wonders.
sorry so long of an answer. im anti adhd meds.
I myselfuse effexor XR for my ADHD, it works great for me. Although i wouldnt ever give it to my child.