Controlled Substances

Okay, I think Rob and I've come to the conclusion that controlled substances are probably not the way to go with Ben. The day he was on Concerta was scary, with strange oral stims like flicking his tongue out and in all day long like a lizard and what seemed to be more hyperactivity and irritability culminating in a late night, with him not falling asleep until after midnight. We've tried Adderall three times. I was hopeful the first time, because he had a magnificent, calm morning with no problems after I gave him the first dose. He was cranky in the afternoon, and wouldn't eat or drink. The second day (Thanksgiving) was also a cranky one, with a lot of spitting and he stayed up until 12:30, crying for the last hour before he finally went to sleep. But no, I didn't learn my lesson. I gave him Adderall again yesterday. He was sent home from school in the morning because he was so irritable and cranky and constantly crying that his teachers thought, surely he must be sick. He wasn't. It was Adderall. He had a lousy, crying afternoon, but cheered up in the later part of the day. However, last night he stayed up until 1 AM! He has figured out how to turn the light on in his room and proceeded to do that over and over despite my pleas for him to go to sleep. Poor little guy. I guess my only other option is Stattera, but I don't think I'm going to go down that path anytime soon. He's obviously not reacting well to all of this.