Comments on: Can Focalin XR when taken in the morning cause sleep problems?

By: David S

David S — Fri, 02 Dec 2011 05:34:02 +0000

First to tell if she has bi-polar disorder is to see if she becomes manic on a stimulant. If she does not become manic she is not bi-polar. Mood swings and difficulty falling asleep are typical symptoms of stimulants and are NOT to be confused with bi-polar. never give bi-polar medication to an ADHD kid, they did that to me and I became more agitated and aggressive. It tends to bring out oppositional definat disorder and conduct disorder in ADHD kids. Ask her doctor about a sleep medication like rozerum. I have to take a sleep medication because if I dont, like your daughter I dont sleep. (It has nothing to do with bi-polar, its called insomnia.) I also take Focalin XR and too find it is very hard to sleep because of the extended release formula. Also if you are seeing a good doctor there is no evidence that bi-polar even exists in children under 18.

By: Ms Cat

Ms Cat — Thu, 01 Dec 2011 10:23:45 +0000

Is the Focalin helping with her symptons? If it is than she is ADHD. If it seems to make the symptoms worse, then she most likely has Bipolar disorder. My son is on Adderol XR for ADD and it helps with his symptoms. In the beginning he ate very little and slept very little but it did pass with time. Manic episodes from the Bipolar can also make someone sleep less……. Again, look at her symptoms, if the Focalin helps then give it a little time for the side effects to go away. If her symptoms are worse…. take her back to the doctor and see about trying a med for Bipolar mania.

By: TAT

TAT — Thu, 01 Dec 2011 06:55:57 +0000

IT sure can. Treating bipolar with ADHD medicine is foolish! She probably is not biploar but you need to know. There are a couple of screenings at psychcentral.com you can take but I would want a professional opinion.