My 6yo difficult child, is making me nuts about taking the medications. We have tried a couple since we started in late Aug (plus dosage changes), and have found Concerta 27 mg seems to be what he needs for his ADHD. The problem is he has convinced himself he can't swallow it. No matter that he HAS done it successfully several times.
Every day is a battle to take the capsule. It can take a hour to get it down. We tried yogurt and it worked great 1 day, got it down day 2, then no more effective than water the next day. Tried bottled water vs. a cup. Same thing. When he gets distracted by a cough or near gag, then he swallows it, almost by accident. What kills me is that for almost the first whole week, he did it with a glass of water without issue.
He's going to class late and making me late (I work at his school). Should we contiue on taking the medications however long it takes? Should I issue him a "deadline" and after that just impose consequences? I hate to do that, because the medications really make a difference in his focus/behavior in class, but this daily battle is killing me. We did buy a new eductional game for his Leapster game player to try and motivate him (take medications every day for 1 week and it's his, then he can play it every day that he takes medications after that. If no medications, it takes a rest for the day). He wants the game but it is not speeding up the medicine swallowing in the morning.
I am trying to be very patient with him - but hom many times can you explain to put the pill on your tongue and swallow it quickly without getting annoyed?
What do you think? Tips on how to get it down are appreciated, but even more important is how do we handle it in the meanwhile?
Jules
Every day is a battle to take the capsule. It can take a hour to get it down. We tried yogurt and it worked great 1 day, got it down day 2, then no more effective than water the next day. Tried bottled water vs. a cup. Same thing. When he gets distracted by a cough or near gag, then he swallows it, almost by accident. What kills me is that for almost the first whole week, he did it with a glass of water without issue.
He's going to class late and making me late (I work at his school). Should we contiue on taking the medications however long it takes? Should I issue him a "deadline" and after that just impose consequences? I hate to do that, because the medications really make a difference in his focus/behavior in class, but this daily battle is killing me. We did buy a new eductional game for his Leapster game player to try and motivate him (take medications every day for 1 week and it's his, then he can play it every day that he takes medications after that. If no medications, it takes a rest for the day). He wants the game but it is not speeding up the medicine swallowing in the morning.
I am trying to be very patient with him - but hom many times can you explain to put the pill on your tongue and swallow it quickly without getting annoyed?
What do you think? Tips on how to get it down are appreciated, but even more important is how do we handle it in the meanwhile?
Jules