Does anyone's child have a problem with Concerta wearing off right after school making it difficult for sibling peace?

Lisa - posted on 04/28/2013

When you say "booster" which medicine are you referring to?
Thanks so much!

Lisa - posted on 04/28/2013

Our ten year old son started Concerta 8 days ago and is taking 36mg. I am finding that around 3 or 4pm everyday he crashes andd goes from his always happy smiley self to a very emotional, frustrated, angry boy. We go back to the doctor tomorrow to see why this might be happeneing. It wears off after a few hours so around 8pm he is back to his old self. This is all so new to us and we are just trying to reach out to see if others are having similar problems and perhaps give us ideas as to what may or may not have worked for them.
Thank you.

Jennifer - posted on 03/08/2013

I have a 9 year old son, who has been on concerta for almost a year....I have watched my brother go from ritalin to concerta to aderrall and its been horrible for my mom, dad and him. He is violent, steals, lies, attitude problems and is 21. My son seems to loose his focus shortly around dinner time and becomes defiant, stubborn, whiny, etc. I havent experienced him being violent at this moment, but when I was doing more research into concerta I found out some things from MDs and PhDs that concerned me, such as a few possible heart murmers, possible heart failures, possible major depression issues and othersI dont like medication and am trying to find a different solution thats more natural and healthy for my son. So does anyone know of anything that has worked for them? Or any good sites?


Its good to know that I am not the only one facing these issues.

Sue - posted on 05/22/2012

Oh goodness yes! I am so glad you all posted it is such a relief to know we are not a lone in this battle. My 9 year old takes concerta and respidone in the morning but is such a handful as soon as he gets off the bus. He picks fights with everyone, says he doesn't care, is defiant, rude, swears, all kinds of things that he should know better not to do. One year he learned a racist word from a child on the bus or that is what he told us. We were humiliated trying to explain why it is so hurtful to use such words. He has threatened to hurt people at school you would think he is a totally different child as he is quiet and laid back, only has an issue here and there. Nothing like what we see at home. I need help b/c I love my son to death but there are times he pushes me to a limit that makes me want to pull my hair out and run away screaming. UGH hope someone can help us!!!

Tanya - posted on 05/17/2012

AHHHH I am new to this and feel the same this last month.

Josie - posted on 02/27/2012

Yes my 11 y o girl is a spazz once school is over. she pretty much gets on everyones nerves so we have to keep her busy til bed time. I actually give her the bedtime meds at 4:30 because she fights so hard to stay up nd be nosey! she still doesn't fall asleep til 9 and that's on trazodone and allergy meds! hot mess. Then in the AM it's tough to wake her up so that's another reason we give her the bedtime meds so early.

Sandy - posted on 02/26/2012

Our doctor gave us a 10mg fast acting booster for our son. We can cut it in half and give him the 5mg or the 10 mg. It really helps us get over the homework as well as helping him to remain calm and focus when at karate or scouts.

Beth - posted on 02/12/2012

Tina, why away from caffeine? Caffeine works opposite in ADHD kids, It actually slows them down and allows them to focus. Many ADHD/ADD adults including myself , self medicate with caffeine.

Tina - posted on 02/11/2012

yes i have a daughter who is on concerta as well and it wears off in 12 hrs depending on the dose and is very difficult to deal with at times as well they suggest for us to keep them away from red dyes and caffeine hope all works out

Christine - posted on 11/09/2011

My son was the same way all day, the Dr's put him on Concerta and it is helping 100% at school but about 30mins-hour after he gets home the whinny, stubburn kid starts up and I dont know which is worse the bouncing off the walls and doesn't shut up kids or the one that comes after his meds wear off. I always swore I'd never be one of those moms who put their kids on meds but this kids actually had gotten so bad I'd have to go to my room and cry I was so frustrated...He only takes 18mg but there are days I cant get him to take the pill at all...

Beth - posted on 01/26/2011

we switched back to Vyvance after trying the concerta and it not doing as well and wearing off before school was over.

Dawn - posted on 01/26/2011

I wanted to add an update after seeing all the new posts. Take a relaxation break once and a while and trust me on this... you WILL survive puberty. It's was the same for my son, from about 9-15ish both my husband & I would have been willing to sell him into slavery but we couldn't pay anybody enough to take him. Just kidding, but we all get that feeling. About the middle of his freshman year his maturity finally started catching up to the rest of him and while we still have our issues, he's a lot more enjoyable to be around. He's also taking a very active role in making and WANTING to make changes. He still is a teenager, but we seem to be dealing more with "normal" teenage" issues than ADHD plus puberty issues. He seems to want to control his ADHD instead of letting it control him. So hang in there, it does get better.

Mary - posted on 01/26/2011

No, you're not alone. 11 years old seems to be a major change time for all kids and it's especially difficult for ADHD kids. We needed to change our son from Concerta (he was up to 72 mg and wasn't gaining weight, though it did last a long time) to Vyvanse, which works but wears off too soon. So now we added a short dose of Adderall when he gets home from school to take him through to bedtime. For some reason, maybe just a coincidence, he seems better even in the morning now. No sleep issues, thankfully. I know it's a pain, but keep trying different combinations until you find one that works. And then a few years later you may have to go through it again. Frustrating, but we owe it to our kids to find it.
Good luck!

Tina - posted on 01/25/2011

do u give ur kid dark pop or caffeine if so u should change to light pop thats what we were told to do and keep her away from too much chocolate

Michelle - posted on 01/20/2011

Same here by the time my 11 year old son gets home his Concerta is worn off. He also has to take Clonidine to sleep. This past year has been the hardest. He seems to be getting worse with age. He also has a anxiety disorder. I wish I could make you feel better. But honestly I don't know what to do, it is hard. And he also has a younger brother and sister. I wish you guys luck.

Shannon - posted on 01/20/2011

I so understand what u are going through. I am too exhausted by it. It does not seem to get any better. It is constant havic in my house. He cannot get along with anybody. I just hope he outgrows it . Don't feel alone

Melissa - posted on 01/20/2011

Louise you are DEFINITELY not alone and I really feel so much better knowing I'm not alone after reading all these responses. Both of my daughters have ADHD. The youngest one,7, has no problems on Concerta 18mg and it being enough to last all day. My oldest, 9, is on Concerta 27mg in the morning and she actually takes a second dose of Concerta 18mg at 12pm to last her through homework and the evening time. Before the doctor prescribed that second dose we were seeing a lot of mood swings, fighting with me and her sister. She had NOTHING left to do homework with. I have seen several people mention the Risperdone as well. My 9 year old takes 1mg with breakfast and 1mg at bedtime this seems to have also calmed her mood swings. Good luck. Hang in there and be persistent with the doctor(s). It took us more than two years to find the formula that worked best for my oldest.

Missie - posted on 01/19/2011

We just moved from Adderall to Concerta so of course we are at the base mg. Teacher says we have taken a step backwards, but the other was making her more defiant. My girlfriends said Concerta worked better for longer lasting. So I will let you know if we have any success! I have a 9 YO Girl. I'll have to look up the clonidine...we use meletonin only 3 MG, but when she wakes up at night she can't put herself back to bed unless someone is sleeping with her. :-(

Rhonda - posted on 01/19/2011

Once again, YOU ARE NOT ALONE. I am a grandmother caring for my grandchild (almost 14) who has ADHD. He is on Concertra 54mg and recently was prescribed Ritalin as well. I am hoping that this year in school he will be a lot better behaved. School holidays have been a bit of a nightmare for me, I also suffer from Major Depression so we clash a bit. Hang in there and give lots of love and positive encouragement. We are all in this together.

Emily - posted on 01/19/2011

My son started Concerta at age 6 and had the same problem, so I switched him to Vyvanse. It's also a long-acting stimulant, but seems to be a bit smoother in terms of the wearing off period.

Dawn - posted on 01/19/2011

My son was on concerta for a couple of years and had the same problem. His med provider switched him to Metadate CD and he does very well on it. We were able to up the dosage as he grew and we are going to be upping his dosage again after some additional testing. He did not like the effects of the ritalin booster and said he didn't want to take it anymore when he was on the concerta. On the metadate he currently takes 60mg in the am then 40mg in the afternoon when he gets home from school and it seems to last him even through his late night hockey practices when he gets home around 11:30pm 3 nights a week. He is currently in HS, but he started the metadate when he was in 6th grade.



An added personal note, I have Chronic Fatigue & Fibromyalgia and my "stay awake" med has been discontinued. My neurologist switched me over to 40mg of metadate cd and I don't notice any major side effects. The other nice thing is that I also take Savelle for my fibro (a stronger version of Cymbalta) and it seems to work well together. My son has a bit of anxiety along with the ADHD and his med provider is probably going to put him on cymbalta for his anxiety. The cymbalta seems to have relatively few side effects vs other antidepressants in children.



My son was also on abilify and then risperdol for several years and it really helped until he reached HS and with his late night practices he found it made him too tired in the am and foggy for his first few classes because he was taking it so late. But when he had an earlier bedtime it really helped him with the mood issues he had been experiencing.



Most of the mood issues have resolved themselves to some point as he's matured, but it was a long haul for a while and as you can see we are constantly fine tuning his meds. One thing I learned over the years is to listen to what he says about the meds and allow him to discuss how he feels with his med provider. When I started doing that and explaining to his provider how he acted and with him explaining how he felt about the meds we've been able to fine tune things.



Be patient, we've had to adjust meds over and over to get the right combos, each kid is different. I hope this helps you with the decisions you need to make regarding your sons meds.

Linda - posted on 01/19/2011

You are definitely not alone! My 6 year old has been on Concerta since the day he turned 6 (in Aus its illegal for under 6's to be prescribed it). He started on 27mg but he is now on the next dose up (36mg) and that has made a huge difference. When he was on Ritalin we would have 4-5 hours of rebound nearly every night so bad that we almost took him off meds because the rebound was harder to deal with than an unmedicated day! He also has a clonidine at around 3.30 then another half about half an hour before bed. He now goes to bed and to sleep more easily than his 3 year old brother who doesn't (appear to) have ADHD. Hang in there.

Janine - posted on 01/19/2011

You need to tell the doctor and get an ER extended release

Angella - posted on 01/19/2011

My youngest son (10) is on concerta 54mg and has been for 2 years. We give him mealatonin at night to help him sleep. we were having lots of issues with what we thought were the meds wearing off. It turns out that he is also bipolar and ocd. He is not taking Intuitiv in the evening that last for 12 hrs and lamectal for the bipolar disorder. They might want to try another does or different medication that last longer.

Dee - posted on 01/19/2011

Wanted to say in response to Maripauline D'Amore above ... my son is totally powered by the computer so it's worth persevering if that is his thing. My son's computer time is measured out and allotted ... that goes for PC, Wii, DS or whatever - he has a certain amount of computer time per day that has to be earned by good behaviour and helping around the house. He can then choose EITHER the computer, his DS OR the wii etc to spend his computer time on.

Use whatever motivates your child as a reward! My older daughter (non ADHD) is motivated by cash money and will always do what she is asked as she knows her pocket money depends on it!!

Amanda - posted on 01/19/2011

My 9 year old has had similar issues. His Concerta doesn't totally wear off but does start to wane right after school. I tried a ritalin boost but he didn't like the way it made him feel. We did Cog-med in the beginning of the school year. It helped alot! We did try to give him a little coffee to make it through homework and dinner but I needed to add so much sugar to get him to drink it that it didn't do any good. We have started sugar free energy drinks after school. So Far so good! Also, on days that i can squeeze it in ,we go to the open swim at the Y. Those days he is sooo much calmer. I wish there was more hours in the day so I could do it daily! You are not alone, as you can see here. If you can ,you could check to see if there is a CHADD group near you.

Dee - posted on 01/19/2011

You definitely aren't alone! My son's meds worked okay for a while then didn't work so well after a while. In total I switched him three times before we found the right drug / combo. My son was on ritalin first - I gave him a dose in the morning and he needed a top-up by the afternoon. It's the standard to start most ADHD kids off with but it isn't always the right medication. You as his mother will know best if it is working for him or not. It wasn't right for my boy because he had such horrible trouble sleeping at night.

I knew my son was on the right meds when I got a call from his school to say that at break time he spent the entire 20 minutes just sitting on a step watching his classmates run around. I told the teacher it's because he's finally getting a chance to let the world catch up with him!!

My son also has melatonin in the evenings now that helps to calm him. I've experimented with the dosage and time I give it to him to find the right combo for us... with the support of his doctor.

These things DO take time. Thankfully these kids have parents like us who give a damn and support them. Hopefully you will find the right meds / combo for you and your boy too

Good luck xx

Mari - posted on 01/19/2011

Trust me you are not the only one whos child is like this!! When my 7 yr olds meds wear off he's "a whole nother level"...not only does he consistently argue with my younger son, but he gets hyper and very mouthy and feels that he can do whatever he wants to do. His whole attitude is I don't care. Don't get me wrong Dominic has a huge heart and can be the best big brother there is. He is supposed to take another 10 mg of ritalin after school and 1mg of tenex, but I very rarely give it to him because I'm afraid of him not being able to sleep at night. In the morning it's 72 mg of concerta, 10 mg of ritalin, 1/2 mg of risperidone, and 1mg of tenex....you would think that he wouldn't need any more meds after school, but trust me there's days I want to pull my hair out. My husband and I take away computer, xbox, wii,and dsi privileges and I don't think it seems like that's really working anymore. Idk what else to do to try and get him to do "the right thing" when his meds wear off.....Good luck to you and any advice you have, I am willing to take!

Becky - posted on 01/19/2011

Yes Louise you are not alone! I have 2 boys. My oldest(11) has Autism Spectrum Disorder, ADHD and Sensory Processing Disorder. He is on Ritalin 2 times a day and Risperidone. He is the same way when he gets home from school. He is so moody, mean, disrespectful etc. Then as the day wears on he gets very hyper b/c all his meds have worn off. My youngest son is about to turn 6 and has ADHD. He is on Concerta once a day. It seems to last thru the afternoon which is good. But my sons fight consistanly!! All day every day. It is terrible. I don't know what to do either...It is so frustrating. Seems like everything I try doesn't make a difference. It is so hard. I hope you find something to help and it gets better. But I know it helps me to read other people's struggles and to know I am not the only one going thru this...

Tina - posted on 01/19/2011

you are definately not alone.. Jerell is on 27mg Concerta and a half a catapres (clonidine) as well in the mornings...and I still find that it is wearing off by the time I pick him up from school.. his paediatrician said at our last visit that he may have to have a ritalin tablet as well after school to get through the afternoon if this combination doesn't work.. only problem is that we don't go back til march this year. Jerell is also on 1/2 a catapres (clonidine) before bed as well and I give that to him 1 hour before bedtime. he can be "difficult" in the afternoons as well as non co-operative in the mornings until his meds have "kicked in".. I LOVE Jerell more than life, but I don't LIKE him in the mornings.. jerell is 8.. other than trying to keep him calm, and let him have "me time" when he comes home from school, I too don't know what else to do. have you tried giving him some "me time" by himself in his room when he comes home and see if that makes a difference. Our paediatrician suggested this for Jerell but his 2y.o brother Logan doesn't understand why "Dowl" (his way of saying Jel) doesn't want to play..... I am sorry if I am not making sense.. it is early morning here and my brain is not quite awake yet.. LOL... I hope you find a solution that works for you and your son.. take care :)

Terri - posted on 01/19/2011

First off, don't feel alone! My son is similar in manner towards his sister late in the day. We have the double whammy of both kids having ADHD, so when they get along it's great, but when they don't it's like World War III! My son is now 13 and made the decision when he entered middle school that he did not want to take meds. His sister has been off Concerta since she started high school. We have worked a lot on behavior modification with both kids to try to keep them first on the lowest dose of meds possible and second to get them to take ownership of their condition and learn to work around it. Fortunately both kids are able to focus when they absolutely have to, and they're getting better about understanding when that is! Last year, recognizing that it takes two people to argue, we started an initiative in our house that works well: if the siblings fight, they both get punished. Sounds harsh, but it does work. If the kids know that "he/she started it" is not going to let them off the hook, they seem more inclined to try to work things out. It can be amazing what the threat of no PS2 or Phone can do to keep the peace. Again, this is something that works with my kids, can't say if it will work for everyone's kid.

Amber - posted on 01/19/2011

First off, you are not alone! We all have different situations but we all struggle to find the right medications and to do what's best for our kids, sometimes with results that don't quite seem to come soon enough!

My son takes Concerta and it seems to last most of the day. However, he also takes Risperidone for Oppositional Defiance Disorder (and depression). Where he was once nasty, spiteful and throwing tantrums (sometimes violent ones) when he wasn't getting his way, he is now sweet, helpful and better able to reason before acting out. Risperidone is a powerful drug though so most family doctors won't touch it. My son's meds are regulated by a psychiatrist who recommended the Risperidone. Perhaps you could ask the doctor if it might be something helpful for your son. Best of luck to you! I know how exhausting it all is!

Phyllis - posted on 01/13/2011

Sounds exactly like my 7 year old. Concerta lasts until 1pm, then he gets 5mg Ritilin to finish the school day, and 5 mg at home to get through until supper. Clonidine and Melatonin at night. On weekends he takes the full 10mg of ritalin around 2pm. The doctor says we just gotta tough it out until he is old enough to up the dose of Concerta and take away the ritalin. I find that caffeine can help take the edge off. I use either a small glass of pop, but usually a caffeine tablet (ask your pharmacy). This helps a little to calm him, but the sibling fighting still gets borderline dangerous.

Veronica - posted on 01/12/2011

we were having a real problem with concerta, we switched Ian to strattera. it takes a month to know if it will work but it did and he has been much better and in school to. also he has sensory prossesing disorder, and that was causing him to be a real jerk!!! once we figured this out, and gave him what he needed sensory -wise. (he liked "crashing" into us and is alway wanting to wrestle) he also started calming down. there are books on this the library has them or amazon. but your school special ed person may know about it. my son isnt in special ED but he gat some small acomidations at school, and that also helps him to be better at home, because he isnt as mad or frustrated when he gets home. you will be fine, breathe! There are tons of things to try I was ready to freak out on ian but its getting better day by day. we still have things to work on TRUST ME!!