They DO need to consider who they prescribe these drugs to. Jason (my son) is on Risperdal but his psychiatrist warned me that it is a very powerful drug and we discussed ALL the possible side effects before opting to go ahead. I was studying psychology at the time and was actually doing a unit in neuropsych, so I asked him about the parts of the brain it affects and I looked up some research papers. He was 15 at the time and the teenage hormones, combined with the need to change his ADHD meds, and the fact he has autism were all in the mix. You can imagine how complex it all was! To his credit, his psychiatrist didn't take any of it lightly and it took us several weeks to get him off the Dexamphetamine, Catapres, and Epilim before leaving him on Prozac and introducing Risperdal.
For the record, he has had minimal side effects from the Risperdal and it worked like a charm. He is now 22 and I am currently weaning him off the Prozac but I'm still undecided what to do about the Risperdal. I certainly dont' want him to ever go through poop out and the sort of w/d that I've seen here and at another forum - but... I also remember only too well the extreme behaviour we had to endure in the past (and believe me, it WAS extreme) and note that his father has untreated ADHD, so Jason's hyperactivity isn't going to go away on its own.
Anyone want to make the decision for me?
Umm... back to the topic - I've heard of kids as young as THREE being put on Risperdal. THREE??? How the heck can they justify that? Their brains are still developing. Surely they realise that it will interfere with that?
