Re: School wants Risperadol

[Guest guest]

In a message dated 1/10/2006 7:50:46 PM Central Standard Time,

friendsofcam@... writes:

<<My sons autism preschool wants him on Risperadol because he isn't paying

attention and is easily distracted.>>

Are you sure the drug they suggested was Risperdol? If so, this would raise

a big red flag for me about the preschool. Risperdol is a psychotropic drug

usually used to treat schizophrenia and accute bipolar mania, and people with

major rage issues. It can have some really nasty side effects. It certainly

wouldn't be the first drug to try for attention or distraction issues and

certainly not with a preschooler. I can't imagine Dr. Goldberg ever

prescribing

that for a preschooler.

While you may have already explored this direction, my first action would be

to observe how the people at the school are working with him, the environment

(sensory stimulation like lights, sounds, lots of color and action can easily

distract), if it's a positive, encouraging atmosphere and if they're working

with him at an appropriate level. Often, working at too high or low a level

for our kids can make it look like they have attention issues or are easily

distracted. Bringing the work down a level or bumping it up can sometimes get

the

kids' attention really fast.

Also, check to see if they're using sweet treats or colored candy as

motivators. Amazingly, this is pretty common in schools designed to " treat

autism "

and then after the kid is sugared up, they wonder why he's hyper and not paying

attention.

If you've ruled out environmental and school-related issues, and things in

his diet that may be making it harder for him to pay attention, and want to

explore drugs, perhaps you could look into SSRIs or Tenex.

Gaylen

[Guest guest]

Perhaps you could convince them of a trial of Tenex

instead? Have you tried it? I would recommend

against Risperdal. There are risks. My son's school

put my son on a reward-based behavior program and

helped his attention without meds. Of course, a

preschool isn't quite the same as like public school

where you could briefly turn it around on them.

The SSRIs can improve focus too, but the Tenex seems

to be a good one for 3/4 of the kids...

--- friendsofcam <friendsofcam@...> wrote:

> Does Dr. Goldberg ever give Risperadol and for what?

> My sons autism

> preschool wants him on Risperadol because he isn't

> paying attention

> and is easily distracted. I'm concerned about long

> term effects and

> if this isn't just masking the problem. Does this

> mix with everything

> else these kids are on? Is prozac used instead of

> this or with it?

> Thanks

>

>

>

>

__________________________________________________

[Guest guest]

Dr. G doesn't like to use risperdal unless absolutely necessary, and if that it

would be extremely low dose.

My son was on risperdal when we joined Dr. (from a previous doc). He was on it

for severe aggression issues ( & my understanding is that it is usually used for

behavioral issues like aggression, not so much for focus, etc.) However, as my

son improved on the protocol, we were eventually able to take him off risperdal,

and he's been mostly aggression free.

I'd check on a different approach for focus before I'd do risperdal--I don't

think it's the right med for that.

Heidi

-------------- Original message --------------

From: " friendsofcam " <friendsofcam@...>

> Does Dr. Goldberg ever give Risperadol and for what? My sons autism

> preschool wants him on Risperadol because he isn't paying attention

> and is easily distracted. I'm concerned about long term effects and

> if this isn't just masking the problem. Does this mix with everything

> else these kids are on? Is prozac used instead of this or with it?

> Thanks

>

>

>

>

>

> Responsibility for the content of this message lies strictly with

> the original author(s), and is not necessarily endorsed by or the

> opinion of the Research Institute and/or the Parent Coalition.

>

>

[Guest guest]

I'm not sure what Risperadol does, but I have never heard of Dr. Goldberg

using it (I don't think he does). To help my little guy (age 5) focus a bit

better he put him on Tenex because he said he was too young for Strattera.

He talked about maybe trying him on Strattera when he is 6.

I know that Dr. McDougle, at Riley Childrens Hospital in

Indianapolis is really into Risperadol. Here's a link to a page that

discusses a study done on it-

http://rileychildrenshospital.com/newstory.jsp?newsid=87

(you have to page down a little to find the article... " Study Finds

Anti-Psychotic Medication Useful In Treating Behavioral Disturbance Among

Children With Autism " ). Fred Volkmar, (big autism name from Yale) was in on

the study, too.

My hunch (and it is no more than that) is that Dr. Goldberg probably feels

that there are meds better able to help a child grow a healthy brain and

body than Risperadol. Dr. McDougle is a psychiatrist researching autism. I

just couldn't bring myself to take my son to a psychiatrist when I felt he

was ILL. I think you are right to be concerned that it might just mask the

problem.

I'm sorry I can't be of more help.

Caroline

> From: friendsofcam <friendsofcam@...>

> Reply-< >

> Date: Wed, 11 Jan 2006 01:49:40 +0000

> < >

> Subject: School wants Risperadol

>

> Does Dr. Goldberg ever give Risperadol and for what? My sons autism

> preschool wants him on Risperadol because he isn't paying attention

> and is easily distracted. I'm concerned about long term effects and

> if this isn't just masking the problem. Does this mix with everything

> else these kids are on? Is prozac used instead of this or with it?

> Thanks

[Guest guest]

Thanks for the comment Heidi... that's the first I have ever heard that he

might use it.

Caroline

> Dr. G doesn't like to use risperdal unless absolutely necessary, and if that

> it would be extremely low dose.

[Guest guest]

I have a real problem with any school suggesting a drug for a child. These

people are not medically trained practitioners, they are educators. They

should simply let you know that they are concerned about your child's

inability to focus/attend and offer suggestions as to who you could approach

for a solution (like your family doctor, a behaviourist, etc.). Imagine if

your doctor came in and told them what curriculum they should cover.

I think their approach is completely inappropriate.

Sorry for the rant, but I had to throw it in.

Rhoda

Re: School wants Risperadol

> In a message dated 1/10/2006 7:50:46 PM Central Standard Time,

> friendsofcam@... writes:

> <<My sons autism preschool wants him on Risperadol because he isn't paying

> attention and is easily distracted.>>

> Are you sure the drug they suggested was Risperdol? If so, this would

raise

> a big red flag for me about the preschool. Risperdol is a psychotropic

drug

> usually used to treat schizophrenia and accute bipolar mania, and people

with

> major rage issues. It can have some really nasty side effects. It

certainly

> wouldn't be the first drug to try for attention or distraction issues and

> certainly not with a preschooler. I can't imagine Dr. Goldberg ever

prescribing

> that for a preschooler.

>

> While you may have already explored this direction, my first action would

be

> to observe how the people at the school are working with him, the

environment

> (sensory stimulation like lights, sounds, lots of color and action can

easily

> distract), if it's a positive, encouraging atmosphere and if they're

working

> with him at an appropriate level. Often, working at too high or low a

level

> for our kids can make it look like they have attention issues or are

easily

> distracted. Bringing the work down a level or bumping it up can sometimes

get the

> kids' attention really fast.

>

> Also, check to see if they're using sweet treats or colored candy as

> motivators. Amazingly, this is pretty common in schools designed to

" treat autism "

> and then after the kid is sugared up, they wonder why he's hyper and not

paying

> attention.

>

> If you've ruled out environmental and school-related issues, and things in

> his diet that may be making it harder for him to pay attention, and want

to

> explore drugs, perhaps you could look into SSRIs or Tenex.

> Gaylen

>

>

>

[Guest guest]

What you describe could certainly affect his ability and willingness to work

for them. Would you be eager to cooperate with someone who was pushing you

away and didn't take time to take care of your most basic needs? When my son

was very young and extremely inside himself, we ran an intensive Son-Rise

therapy program. Along with basic techniques on reaching and teaching the

child,

they stress the importance of surrounding the child with positive people who are

comfortable with him/her and how a person's attitude could greatly affect the

functioning of these very sensative kids. I saw this played out several

times when we had a volunteer who wasn't comfortable with the program or tried

an

outside therapist who didn't show respect for him. He'd pull more inside

himself with everyone, even though who worked well with him, and not focus as

well. When we'd let that person go, he'd bounce back really quickly. Would it

be

possible to change schools or classrooms?

Gaylen

[Guest guest]

My initial reaction was exactly the same as Rhoda's...had to chime

in and say that!!

I would explore the SSRI and Tenex routes 1st. My son is still

disrctable on these.

We are beginning Strattera this weekend....results of neurospect

showed overload in the frontal lobes ... attention problems,

fidgety, staying on task problems. We will let you know if it helps!

>

> I have a real problem with any school suggesting a drug for a

child. These

> people are not medically trained practitioners, they are

educators. They

> should simply let you know that they are concerned about your

child's

> inability to focus/attend and offer suggestions as to who you

could approach

> for a solution (like your family doctor, a behaviourist, etc.).

Imagine if

> your doctor came in and told them what curriculum they should

cover.

>

> I think their approach is completely inappropriate.

>

> Sorry for the rant, but I had to throw it in.

>

> Rhoda

> Re: School wants Risperadol

>

>

> > In a message dated 1/10/2006 7:50:46 PM Central Standard Time,

> > friendsofcam@y... writes:

> > <<My sons autism preschool wants him on Risperadol because he

isn't paying

> > attention and is easily distracted.>>

> > Are you sure the drug they suggested was Risperdol? If so, this

would

> raise

> > a big red flag for me about the preschool. Risperdol is a

psychotropic

> drug

> > usually used to treat schizophrenia and accute bipolar mania,

and people

> with

> > major rage issues. It can have some really nasty side effects.

It

> certainly

> > wouldn't be the first drug to try for attention or distraction

issues and

> > certainly not with a preschooler. I can't imagine Dr.

Goldberg ever

> prescribing

> > that for a preschooler.

> >

> > While you may have already explored this direction, my first

action would

> be

> > to observe how the people at the school are working with him, the

> environment

> > (sensory stimulation like lights, sounds, lots of color and

action can

> easily

> > distract), if it's a positive, encouraging atmosphere and if

they're

> working

> > with him at an appropriate level. Often, working at too high or

low a

> level

> > for our kids can make it look like they have attention issues or

are

> easily

> > distracted. Bringing the work down a level or bumping it up can

sometimes

> get the

> > kids' attention really fast.

> >

> > Also, check to see if they're using sweet treats or colored

candy as

> > motivators. Amazingly, this is pretty common in schools

designed to

> " treat autism "

> > and then after the kid is sugared up, they wonder why he's hyper

and not

> paying

> > attention.

> >

> > If you've ruled out environmental and school-related issues, and

things in

> > his diet that may be making it harder for him to pay attention,

and want

> to

> > explore drugs, perhaps you could look into SSRIs or Tenex.

> > Gaylen

> >

> >

> >

[Guest guest]

my 5 year old is on risperdal . He has PDD NOS and probable early

onset bipolar as well .I would not put my child on risperdal for

distractability /focus issues ! Our little guy was EXTREMELY self

injurous and agressive to others as well as rapidly cycling from

elated to crying /angry several times throughout the day with no

appartant provocation .I mean he could be playing QUIETLY AND ALL OF

THE SUDDEN BEGIN SOBBING HYSTERICALLY AND WHEN ASKED WHY HE WOULD

RESPOND " I DONT KNOW I DONT KNOW ? " run to hide cry for 15 minutes

then sit up and begin singing happily to himself .....Both his birth

mother ,her father and HIS mother all had/have bipolar type 1 .

we put him on the smallest possible dose and he has done very

well ,The rapid cycling TOTALLY disappeared and so did the extreme

self injurour behavor and the agression towards others ,mostly except

when he is in situations that really tax his SID which is severe . jme

but there are plenty of other alternatives to try before adding an

antiphcotic to your childs body ! how about a sensory diet to help him

focus and be less distracted ? we are seeing incredible improvement

using this method .

With all due respect to your childs teacher they are certainly NOT

qualified to recommend medications for your child !

[Guest guest]

I am suprised the preschool is pushing in that

direction.

What it does it smooths the spikes and agressive

meltdowns.

s bee on it two years now, it works....

is 59 inches tall 80lbs. and 10yrs. old he is on

the smallest possible dose of it. He is on 1/2 mg

sliced in half taken daily. Our Dr. Nemith really does

not give out larger doses even to older and larger

kids due to the side effects.

Please type it in and research it on the internet, you

really want to go light on this med. Just my honest

opnion.

kev

--- friendsofcam <friendsofcam@...> wrote:

> Does Dr. Goldberg ever give Risperadol and for what?

> My sons autism

> preschool wants him on Risperadol because he isn't

> paying attention

> and is easily distracted. I'm concerned about long

> term effects and

> if this isn't just masking the problem. Does this

> mix with everything

> else these kids are on? Is prozac used instead of

> this or with it?

> Thanks

>

>

>

>

__________________________________________________

[Guest guest]

No, we were on Risperdal when we joined Dr. G and he wanted us off it. It does

some LONG TERM damage and I don't believe he's for it. In fact, we just used it

for emergency aggression and it brought on diabetic-like symptoms...extreme

thirst, coupled with extreme urination. It was really difficult.

Rose

School wants Risperadol

>

>Does Dr. Goldberg ever give Risperadol and for what? My sons autism

>preschool wants him on Risperadol because he isn't paying attention

>and is easily distracted. I'm concerned about long term effects and

>if this isn't just masking the problem. Does this mix with everything

>else these kids are on? Is prozac used instead of this or with it?

>Thanks

>

>

>

>

>

>Responsibility for the content of this message lies strictly with

>the original author(s), and is not necessarily endorsed by or the

>opinion of the Research Institute and/or the Parent Coalition.

>

>

[Guest guest]

What kind of sensory diet are you adding?

>

> my 5 year old is on risperdal . He has PDD NOS and probable early

> onset bipolar as well .I would not put my child on risperdal for

> distractability /focus issues ! Our little guy was EXTREMELY self

> injurous and agressive to others as well as rapidly cycling from

> elated to crying /angry several times throughout the day with no

> appartant provocation .I mean he could be playing QUIETLY AND ALL

OF

> THE SUDDEN BEGIN SOBBING HYSTERICALLY AND WHEN ASKED WHY HE WOULD

> RESPOND " I DONT KNOW I DONT KNOW ? " run to hide cry for 15

minutes

> then sit up and begin singing happily to himself .....Both his

birth

> mother ,her father and HIS mother all had/have bipolar type 1 .

> we put him on the smallest possible dose and he has done very

> well ,The rapid cycling TOTALLY disappeared and so did the

extreme

> self injurour behavor and the agression towards others ,mostly

except

> when he is in situations that really tax his SID which is severe .

jme

> but there are plenty of other alternatives to try before adding an

> antiphcotic to your childs body ! how about a sensory diet to help

him

> focus and be less distracted ? we are seeing incredible

improvement

> using this method .

> With all due respect to your childs teacher they are certainly NOT

> qualified to recommend medications for your child !

>

>

>

>

[Guest guest]

I wondered if it was partly the difference in teaching because last

year he did really well. In this class I noticed some differences.

In the last class when he was overwhelmed or frustrated the teachers

let him pause and hug them. Then, he'd go back to his task. I th

ink he felt connected. In his current class, they say " No, go back

to work. " and they push him away. I noticed this the first week of

school. After this he would begin to fidget more. Little things

like that. They also, I think, leave him in a wet diaper too

long. This can be very distracting. I was very upset at them at the

first of the year because when I came to help in class I could see

he was suffering in this horrible diaper and I mentioned it and they

said, " he's been changed. " I could see he hadn't been for a long

time. And he was developing horrible rashes on certain days. I

mentioned this to the teacher and the supervisor... " He needs to be

changed more. " One of the aids said, " she's going to ruin

everything. " I guess if they didn't have time, they were skipping

kids and only changing at certain times.

>

> In a message dated 1/10/2006 7:50:46 PM Central Standard Time,

> friendsofcam@y... writes:

> <<My sons autism preschool wants him on Risperadol because he

isn't paying

> attention and is easily distracted.>>

> Are you sure the drug they suggested was Risperdol? If so, this

would raise

> a big red flag for me about the preschool. Risperdol is a

psychotropic drug

> usually used to treat schizophrenia and accute bipolar mania, and

people with

> major rage issues. It can have some really nasty side effects.

It certainly

> wouldn't be the first drug to try for attention or distraction

issues and

> certainly not with a preschooler. I can't imagine Dr. Goldberg

ever prescribing

> that for a preschooler.

>

> While you may have already explored this direction, my first

action would be

> to observe how the people at the school are working with him, the

environment

> (sensory stimulation like lights, sounds, lots of color and action

can easily

> distract), if it's a positive, encouraging atmosphere and if

they're working

> with him at an appropriate level. Often, working at too high or

low a level

> for our kids can make it look like they have attention issues or

are easily

> distracted. Bringing the work down a level or bumping it up can

sometimes get the

> kids' attention really fast.

>

> Also, check to see if they're using sweet treats or colored candy

as

> motivators. Amazingly, this is pretty common in schools designed

to " treat autism "

> and then after the kid is sugared up, they wonder why he's hyper

and not paying

> attention.

>

> If you've ruled out environmental and school-related issues, and

things in

> his diet that may be making it harder for him to pay attention,

and want to

> explore drugs, perhaps you could look into SSRIs or Tenex.

> Gaylen

>

>

>

[Guest guest]

my son's developmental ped wanted to put him on risperdahl. specifically to

help calm him down and focus.

tried many other things over the years and have found what works best for me

is GABA, 5-HTP and teanine (amino acids) act as neurotransmitters.

vicki

[Guest guest]

OMG I SOOOO second what Gaylen said. We had a bad

teacher for my son one year in preschool, and they

were about to kick him out, and when I moved him, the

new teacher was so spectacular and made wonderful

improvements in him. However, he still had a lot of

damage/behaviors from the previous experience, and

actually ended up getting kicked out, because they

would not tolerate hitting and he couldn't seem to

stop. When he realized the consequence that

happened... getting kicked out of the school he DID

love for that behavior, he started public school, and

did not hit anymore... not because of how the new

teachers were, but because he had loved the last one,

and just had not understood the consequences or

believed that he was capable of not hitting.

It was a crushing experience, but he has recovered

with a much more intact opinion of his ability to

control himself, and does great, and I attribute it to

the traumatic decision of the school that had to kick

him out. I was devastated, but it was the best thing

that could have happened. Oops. That wasn't really

related to the topic, but it is VERY important to

address the possibility that the teacher is not

handling him right. You have to give these kids so

much positive reinforcement, and treat them like you

KNOW they are inherantly good and WANT to do right,

and that you want to help them. When a teacher is

privately frustrated with the child (understandably),

even if she is doing her very best to hide her

feelings, your child is going to subconciously pick up

on it and react to it. The teacher before the bad one

was puzzled by him and always had a type of frown on

her face when we discussed him, and it initially made

me uncomfortable, but she was so good with him, and

protected him from a bully. When the next teacher did

NOT manage the bully and protect him, my son

eventually went nuts, and I realized after the fact

that it was actually her, and not my son - which I

kept looking for answers for what was wrong with HIM..

I never would have guessed that it was his teacher and

the bully. He was so stressed out all the time that

he couldn't think straight... an over-crowded too

bright too loud and rowdy class.

If you could find a Waldorf or Montessori school with

an opening, I love those environments. But any calmer

environment with a teacher with a mannerism that

manages to keep a class predictable and safe would be

good. And if you can't change, then I'd start

educating them on sensory issues and make certain that

someone observes the environment from his perspective

to look for problems. You could have an occupational

therapist go observe and find out a possible trigger.

Or tenex.

HTH, and GOOD LUCK. I know the stress you're going

thru having to face the preschool every single day and

have this problem forefront on your mind. Hang in

there, it won't necessarily be a permanent problem. I

wouldn't have believed that while I was going thru it.

--- Googahly@... wrote:

> What you describe could certainly affect his ability

> and willingness to work

> for them. Would you be eager to cooperate with

> someone who was pushing you

> away and didn't take time to take care of your most

> basic needs? When my son

> was very young and extremely inside himself, we ran

> an intensive Son-Rise

> therapy program. Along with basic techniques on

> reaching and teaching the child,

> they stress the importance of surrounding the child

> with positive people who are

> comfortable with him/her and how a person's attitude

> could greatly affect the

> functioning of these very sensative kids. I saw

> this played out several

> times when we had a volunteer who wasn't comfortable

> with the program or tried an

> outside therapist who didn't show respect for him.

> He'd pull more inside

> himself with everyone, even though who worked well

> with him, and not focus as

> well. When we'd let that person go, he'd bounce

> back really quickly. Would it be

> possible to change schools or classrooms?

> Gaylen

>

>

> [Non-text portions of this message have been

> removed]

>

>

__________________________________________________

[Guest guest]

Hi! We tried Respridal with our daughter--and she was pretty non-functioning

in the afternoon--she would sleep for 3 to 4 hours--which means no school time

-- plus when she woke up she was so angry-- she actually broke my nose with a

remote control. So if I were you--I would consult Dr. Goldberg--he has other

options for focus and attention. Hope this helps. Tresa

vickila1@... wrote:

my son's developmental ped wanted to put him on risperdahl. specifically to

help calm him down and focus.

tried many other things over the years and have found what works best for me

is GABA, 5-HTP and teanine (amino acids) act as neurotransmitters.

vicki