Medication causing Tics

Teresa - posted on 04/14/2013

My son is 15, was diagnosed with tourette's about 2 or 3 years ago; he was also diagnosed with ADHD(which in my gut is not right). his tics used to be toleratable but since his metadate was increased it seems his tics have increased and has developed new ones. Does anyone have any natural ways to help with tics. Also have you heard of Tic Tamer?

Rebecca - posted on 03/19/2013

My daughter has tics.She is on Adderall and gets them in her neck. They will come and go. The dr put her on Guanfacine to help with them.

Hemali - posted on 03/15/2013

Yes. Tics can come and go (transient kind) allergents, and some medications even some dye's can affect an onset. However every child is different. My most important thoughts in regards to this is the take great caution when Dr.s suggest so much meds for a young child. I would try and stay away as much as possible. Children are often over medicated these days. Maybe seek out some natural alternatives to ADHD, and other neurological issues. I have a daughter and she is 6. I decided to take her off of OTC or any other drugs due to an onset of TICS. She usually does better without all the meds. It goes away. Diet/ Sugar intake etc all make a huge difference with ADHD as well. It's best to just not tamper with meds/kids so young. I just feel there is an alarming amount of over medication of Kids in the US. I'm trying not to assume too much as I know every situation is different but best to be on the side of caution.

Deirdre - posted on 01/06/2013

My son had a cough since Oct. The doctor first said it was allergies,after a bottle of Allegra,they said it was a sinus infection,a bottle of antibiotics and mucin ex,when that didn't work they told me to give him delsym. I brought him back and insisted on an answer and that is when they told me about transient tics. I feel the medicine made him hyper at times when he not normally like that. The doctor said it would go away on its own. After talking with his teacher, she suspected it. I wish she told me. Now that I know not to call attention to it, I am watching him to see when he is coughing and clearing his throught more and later in the day when he more tired is when he coughs more. He is 10.

Camellia - posted on 12/08/2012

I'm a grandmother raising 3 grand daughters and the 9 year has been on ADHD medication since she was 6. She was on Adderall for a while, then Concerta, then back on Adderall and it seems that no matter which medication she's on she gets a terrible cough. The cough didn't start till about a year after taking the meds. Now, even if she has coffee or tea as a replacement stimulant she even gets a cough. An inhaler was working last year, but since we upped her dose the inhaler doesn't seem to help much. It seems its one thing or the other, and the cough seems to be easier for the teacher to handle than "the other." If anyone hears of an alternative to these meds - Please post it!!!!!

Casey - posted on 09/20/2012

My son also developed tics while taking metadata. Took him off the med this summer and tics went away.

Pam - posted on 09/12/2012

Hi All! My 9-year old son just developed awful tics (about 50 an hour) after starting Lamictal. I'm so mad about pharmaceutical dangers being tested on our kids. I'm taking him off Lamictal immediately but wanted to suggest good natural products that help him when he's not on chemical meds. My favorite is SYNAPTOL ADD/ADHD relief. All natural, safe with any medications...just a really good product by Hello Life LLC. and it is FDA approved! It is a clear liquid with no smell and no taste and comes with a dropper. PERFECT!

The other two I'm using also are Kids Relief Calm homeopathic medicine with a great tasting grape liquid for kids 2 and up. Finally the other good one is Sea Buddies Concentrate Focus formula capsules that i open up and put in Gerber apples or bananas and my son loves all of the above formula. It really helps him focus and calm down. God Bless You All!!!

Tammy - posted on 08/05/2012

Has anyone come up with an alternative medicine for ADHD that does not cause tics....will to try anything!

Peter - posted on 07/31/2012

Hi. I am not a mother like you but I am about to be a junior in High school and our stories are very similar. I was diagnosed with ADHD in the 4th grade and was originally prescribed concerta. After a few months I began to start clearing my throat constantly at times for around 2 years but them being tics was never thought of. After I stopped clearing my throat I moved on to other more noticeable tics like bobing my head or dragging my feet when I walked. These tics were terrible and got me made fun of in school so by the time the eight grade came i requested a Dr. visit to see what was the reason for the tics getting worse. The Dr. said that it was the concerta medication which sometimes caused tics so i was taken off of the concerta and prescribed a small dosage of another ADHD medication by the name of vyvance and an anti-seizure medication named topamax to counter act the tics. It seamed that we had finally gotten the medication combination right because up until the end of my freshman year of High school I had been tic free. It was around the end of freshman year that the tics really started up again. My sophomore year started out without too many tics but they still were occurring. Then throughout the year they got progressively worse to the point that they are the worst that they have ever been. Some of the tics are now vocal but only at home and I have been tested for tourettes for which the results have been negative. Over the years the vyvance dosage has been increased along with the topamax but the tics still increase. I DO NOT want to go into my Junior year of High School with these tics distracting me. In the past I have been able to hide the tics but not anymore. I also understand that the medication that i take is a stimulant that cause's these tics and when i don't take the vyvance, I don't have the tics but i need to take the Vyvance to focus. In the end it is like a lose-lose situation. So if there is anyone who knows of any medication that doesnt have tics as a side affect or of a way to stop these tics, PLEASE contact me by email or on this website.

Tammy - posted on 04/07/2012

My daughter still has this coughing tic, it has now been 16 months and I think it's become permanent. She only has her medication on school days and when she was off the meds last summer she still had the tics. At her last appointment I had asked the doctor and he said they can become permanent but it's very rare. The frequency of her tics change like when it first started she was coughing constantly, there was only 15-20 seconds between coughs and it was like that every waking moment for 2 months. Then it pretty much almost stopped all of a sudden where over the next 2 months she only coughed less than 10 times total, but than it began almost every day again but only a couple times a day but has had up to 1 or 2 weeks with no tics then Just before Christmas she stopped for 1 1/2 months than Christmas Eve she started coughing like 20 times an hour but that decreased over the holidays and she also had a cold at that time so I think some of it was due to her cold. By the time she went back to school it was back to just a few times a day for a month then they seem to have stopped again for a month. Now the last couple of weeks it has been every day again up to 6 or 7 times but she has not done it yet today. I have mentioned it to her teacher and she didn't know about the tics and has told me she has not seen my daughter doing this at school. So at least her tics don't happen very often and as long as it stays this way I can deal with it, it doesn't bother her and she doesn't get teased as no one knows she has tics as they hardly happen. I've also noticed that when she does cough it's usually when she is outside or just came in from outside in the colder weather but when the weather is warmer is when it seems to stop so I'm wondering if it has something to do with the colder weather.

Tabitha - posted on 04/06/2012

My son developed eye tics while on Vyvanse and then while on Daytrana started shoulder tics. Took him off both!!

Lucena - posted on 03/31/2012

My son is 13 and had been on concerta since he was 10yr old. Recently we changed to biphentin and I don't think that I like it! He has had tics off and on. From coughing to making noises in his throat! In the last year he has a habit of pilling his hair. So much so that he has noticeable bald spots. He is very upset about it and says he can't help it. He also makes some strange facial expressions. I am so very worried!

I think that kids at school have been bugging him. Tomorrow I am not going to give him any meds. We were away for a weeks vacation in the Dominican and had dropped his dose (conserta at that time) and noticed he didn't have the tics!

I think we may have to reduce his medication to manage the tics!

I am soooo worried, can anyone give me some advice or suggestions?

Jessica - posted on 01/29/2012

My son is 7 and has been tajing Vyvanse 30 mg for about 9 months one day he woke up with a constant cough like the start of a cough to a throat clearing sounds like (hump), he started and didnt stop I took him to the doc and she said no its not a tic dont stop the vyvanse this went on for about 2 weeks. I took him to another doc and he said yes this is from the vyvanse stop the meds. I have stopped the meds and he has for the most part stopped the cough its been 10 days, today I noticed the cough is back....we go to doc in 3 days to follow up. I am at a loss of what to do. For the most part he isnt bouncing off the walls anymore so I am not going to continue to medicate his ADHD, but now Im worried this tic is here forever....

Valerie - posted on 01/20/2011

@ Charlotte- Good luck and keep us posted on what you find if possible!!

Charlotte - posted on 01/19/2011

My nine year old son has had motor ticks with every medicine I have tried. It started with eye blinking, then throat clearing, then coughing, then stuttering and the most severe was the constant head nodding. I have tried almost every ADD medicine and he still had them. His doctor added clonidine to help. It didn't. I can't stand watching him struggle anymore and now kids are making fun of him for it. I only give him his medication on school days and I noticed over Christmas break the tics had almost completely stopped. I don't want to see him struggle in school but these side effects are disturbing and I don't want to pump him full of other medications to control the tics. He's only 9! I am in the process of researching some natural alternatives and taking him off of everything else. He has an appointment with a neurologist but that us still a month away and I won't sit here and watch more tics develop.

Valerie - posted on 01/13/2011

Hi again! I also forgot to add that my other daughter (I have twins, both with high end ADHD). My other daughter was making a high pitched "squeek" (the best way to describe it I think)... I informed her of that and asked her why she was doing it (they are 15.. this was happening from about age 13-14), and she said she didn't know why. So, I asked the doctor and he said he wasn't sure if it was an actual "tic" or not, or if it was caused by the meds or not.. In my opinion, yes, it's caused from her adderrall and I consider it a "tic". What I did was inform her when she was doing it (she was unaware most of the time when she did it), and she would consiously stop doing it. After a while, it's just about gone now... I rarely hear it.. she also thinks it's from the meds... Just an FYI..

Janet - posted on 01/13/2011

Hi there,
my 12 y/o use to take Concerta and he had really bad tics now he takes Vyvanse for his ADHD. Hes been on it for about 2 yrs but just recently started to complain that it makes him shake aot so we going to see if the dosage can be reduced.As far as the tics going away, for my son they didnt. the dr gave him another med to counteract the tics.

Tiffany - posted on 01/13/2011

I do not know if you have any family history of turrets or if the med's are just causing it but I have been through this with my son and there is a RX that will counter act it. You need to speak to your Dr.

Melissa - posted on 01/12/2011

My son who is 13 developed tics while he was taking Metadate, he was taking 90 mg for over 2 years. He was pulling his hair out by the roots, puckering his lips and making grimincing faces like he was in pain but he wasn't. His doctor took him off of the metadate and switched his medicine to Vyvanse. He was on this for over a year and the only thing that went away was pulling of the hair out, which I am glad about that. He was off of his meds for 9 months and the tics have not got any better. He went to the doctor today and his doctor said that they may not go away and we had to put him back on the Vyvanse 50 mg and gave him clonidine for sleep issues.

Krystle - posted on 01/12/2011

While my daughter was taking concerta she also was coughing(clearing her throat constantly). When we took her off of it, she also quit coughing.

Cara - posted on 01/12/2011

my 8 year old daughter takes adderal and she has ticks alot of hand movement and picking and moving and stuff nothing to serious but it is quite noticeable it might be just be the fact the medicien is causing her to slow down so she constantly has to be moving to keep up with the past i dont think to much of it and i wouldnt worry that she will have it forever hope this helps

Valerie - posted on 01/12/2011

Hello! One of my daughters had a tic from her Adderrall. She did this fast eye movement and sometimes jerk her head a little... after her body acclamated to the med, it stopped.. It happened when we upped her dosage, then subsided a few months later. Good luck! Valerie~~

Jennifer - posted on 01/12/2011

the coughing can go away if u lower the dose or change the med or may go away on its own. my son had a cough for over 6 months but he no longer does it. all meds have side effects and u dont know what u will get when u change.

Tammy - posted on 01/10/2011

I took her to the doctor, he wouldn't change her meds but did reduce the dosage. The day I took her I didn't give her meds and the coughing which I'm still not sure if they are tics wasn't happening nearly as much so I thought for sure it was caused by the meds. The doctor reduced her dosage from 20 mg down to 15 mg which is what she was first put on and the next day I gave her meds to her again and the coughing was happening even less so things are looking better. She is still doing this weird coughing but not nearly as much so it does seem to be getting better. Maybe 20 mg was too much for her even though it's still a very low dose. The doctor said if it continues he will reduce it again down to 10 mg which is the lowest dosage and if she is still doing it then he said the only other thing to do is to stop any medication which I'm hoping we don't have to do. I didn't really think the Biphentin was really working anyway but that one day I didn't give it to her I noticed a big difference so I guess it is working. I'm just going to keep watching her a little more closely but this coughing seems to be getting better and so I'm not sure if it was caused by her meds. The doctor did say it would go away, I'm just hoping we don't have to stop giving her meds for good but like I said she seems to be doing it less and less so here's to hoping it continues to get better.

Phyllis - posted on 01/09/2011

Tics are a common side effect. As far as I have read/seen, most stop when the meds are stopped or changed.