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3.8 Overall Rating

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Most voted positive review

59 People found this comment helpful

Our 6 year old son has shown symptoms of ADHD since he was two. Boys will be boys, but he was WAY beyond a typical, energetic kid. We stopped going to church because Sunday school teachers had him in time-out most of the class and couldn't handle him. I didn't go to the grocery alone with him, only if my husband could be there to help corral him. Our pediatricians nurse suggested that he needed ...

Most voted negative review

11 People found this comment helpful

Gave Focalin to my 6 yr old child. It begun with 10mg, but teacher said child was a zombie. It went down to 5 MG. It changed my child completely. Wince a happy loving active child, it turned her into a robot like kid. Her expressions changed. Aches and pains all over her body happened daily. Disabilitating headaches were a daily thing. She was also beginning to have a numbness feeling in he...

Shared reviews and ratings

Anonymous | 19-24 | Female | On medication for less than 1 month | Patient
1/22/2024
Condition: Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity
Overall rating 3.0
Effectiveness
Ease of Use
Satisfaction

Not good focus, or well sustained focus. When I take 20 mg I have ZERO appetite and have a headache and am very tired. On 10 mg I get mild focus but still experience fatigue after it wears off. While there was some benefit, its not enough to counteract the side-effects for me.

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Anonymous | 3-6 | Male | On medication for 5 to less than 10 years | Patient
7/23/2023
Condition: Other
Overall rating 1.0
Effectiveness
Ease of Use
Satisfaction

I was pressured by my son’s school to place him on Focalin XR his elementary school over 30 years ago that he was ADHD. He is actually bipolar and now suffers severe psychosis that lead to his father’s death and warning everyone not to place their children at a young to place them them on meds.

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Dana | 45-54 | Female | On medication for 5 to less than 10 years | Patient
4/24/2023
Condition: Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity
Overall rating 5.0
Effectiveness
Ease of Use
Satisfaction

This medication has changed my life. It completely inhibited my impulsive addictive behaviors as well as helping with my ADHD.

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44frye | 25-34 | Male | On medication for less than 1 month | Patient
3/10/2023
Condition: Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity
Overall rating 1.7
Effectiveness
Ease of Use
Satisfaction

This medicine gives me really bad nausea no matter how I take it and only last for 3 hours max before it’s over.

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Anonymous | 13-18 | Nonbinary | On medication for 2 to less than 5 years | Patient
2/25/2023
Condition: Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity
Overall rating 2.0
Effectiveness
Ease of Use
Satisfaction

im still on it, unfortunately, and the side effects aren’t worth it. i get the work done, sure, but i get real anxious, hands start shaking, i get irritable, lose blood flow to my fingers and toes, and i get headaches as soon as it wears off. this has happened with every stimulant medication i’ve been prescribed. i feel like a zombie, like a lot of others have said. the focus is not worth the side effects, in my opinion, but i know i also experience more of the intense side effects than most others.Read More Read Less

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Anonymous | Transgender | On medication for 5 to less than 10 years | Patient
9/22/2022
Condition: Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity
Overall rating 2.0
Effectiveness
Ease of Use
Satisfaction

My doctor started me on Focalin XR when I was 6 years old because I was always hyper and couldn't concentrate on one thing at a time. I continued until I was 12. From ages 6-11, I was on 20mg, but then switched to 25mg. Everyone in my family describes me as being very void of emotions and original thoughts during these years. I remember being very anxious for this part of my life. My doctors now tell me that I also have Bipolar Disorder, and that there's a chance that I don't have ADHD, and that it could have just been my manic episodes that were mistaken for ADHD. During the years that I took Focalin, I barely had any growth spurts. As a small child, I was estimated to grow up to 5'4-5'6, but I'm 17 years old and 4'10. Until I took Focalin, I was always the tallest of my friends and of my grade. I also have some holes in my memory from those years, with a lot of different memories melding together into this false narrative that I can only see through when others explained what actually happened. Focalin shouldn't be given to kids, or really anyone. On occasions when my prescription couldn't be refilled for a few days after running out, I'd have violent withdrawal symptoms. With drug abuse also running in my family, you must be able to imagine the horror and pain elementary school me went through, throwing up in a toilet for hours after growing up seeing my father withdraw the same way from cocaine and other drugs.Read More Read Less

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Jcrunk | 19-24 | Female | On medication for 2 to less than 5 years | Patient
8/3/2022
Condition: Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity
Overall rating 2.3
Effectiveness
Ease of Use
Satisfaction

When I was in elementary school, my mother put me on this medicine and it worked for like a week or two, but after that, I was losing weight, color, and I looked sick. I was focused but I wasn’t all happy and bubbly like I normally was. I was a complete zombie.

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Zeke T | 13-18 | Male | On medication for 10 years or more | Patient
7/29/2022
Condition: Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity
Overall rating 2.7
Effectiveness
Ease of Use
Satisfaction

16 year old boy. I’ve been on this medicine for 10-12 years to treat severe ADHD and lack of focus. It has helped me get straight A’s in school and I’ve gotten a lot of opportunities because of that. I’m fun, I like to laugh, and I like to play a lot. However when I’m on this medicine I turn into a completely different person: within the first 10-20 minutes of taking it, I get a rush of euphoria and I feel like really happy but that doesn’t last long after that I’m irritable, agitated, don’t want to be bothered by anybody and I just be rude towards anyone who tries to talk to me. Talking is like a chore. I feel depressed and like a zombie. Social interaction for me is just impossible on this medicine. Every time my parents ask me to do something I have an attitude and I get upset. The euphoric effect and the concentration are the only things I really like about it. But after being on the same medicine for a decade your body gets used to it so it nots really effective for me anymore instead of concentrating on what I need to focus on I instead daydream and hyper focus on whatever’s going on in my head. At first I was taking 25mg then I went down to 20mg, then 15mg, then 10mg, and now I’m back up to 15mg. And I still feel like a depressed zombie, I’m ready to get off this medicine. I’ve told my mama more than once before that I want to try another med but she was all like: “but Zeke this one is working”, yeah but I’m tired of feeling empty and being mad all the time. Yea it helped overcome my behavioral issues and get good grades (which my grades have never really been bad). But it’s starting to not work anymore. I’m pretty sure the medicine has also stunted my growth. And also when I’m on this medicine my appetite goes away but being on this medicine for years, whenever I don’t take it I have a crazy appetite and I’ve gained a lot of weight. Jumped from 114lbs to 180lbs in just a couple of months (2020). I’m sick of it tbh. Really wanna try adderall.Read More Read Less

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Mom305 | 7-12 | Female | On medication for 1 to less than 2 years | Caregiver
5/30/2022
Condition: Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity
Overall rating 5.0
Effectiveness
Ease of Use
Satisfaction

My 9 yr old daughter takes 15 MG XR and she is doing awesome in school. I love the medication because although it’s XR, once I picker her from her after school program she’s all over the place and hyper little girl I love so much. I started her on Focalin when I noticed she was not focusing in school and it was affecting her learning. Once she started the medication it was an instant change. She was able to focus and bring her grades up and still be the social butterfly she is. It didn’t make her zombie like at all. Honestly no side affects. Her appetite is good. Im not going to lie I was skeptical at first and I tried for 2yrs not to give her any medication after she was diagnosed with ADHD and with a learning disability, but after that, something had to give. I had to help her help herself. Focalin helps her. Read More Read Less

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KingTut33 | 45-54 | Male | On medication for less than 1 month | Patient
1/25/2022
Condition: Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity
Overall rating 2.3
Effectiveness
Ease of Use
Satisfaction

I don't like it from the beginning I started to take it. It doesn't last throughout the day. I feel sick to my stomach and depressed when it wears off. The doctor now wants me to try regular Focalin twice daily, but I'm skeptical. If it doesn't work then I'll go back on the Adderall XR.

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Alaina Pancake | 25-34 | Female | On medication for 2 to less than 5 years | Patient
7/29/2021
Condition: Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity
Overall rating 3.3
Effectiveness
Ease of Use
Satisfaction

I am a 26 year old female who took this when I was between the ages of 11-13, I have the combined type. Started on 5mg and worked up to 15 or 20 (can't remember). The only pros to this medication were that I was insanely focused and had no issues getting work done, in fact it's all I wanted to do. Other than that, I'll walk you through a day of what it was like to be on focalin. After taking my pill in the morning, I would get spasms in my chest/sternum almost every day within 30 mins of taking it (it was almost like I was shivering violently in pulses). That would only last 10-15 minutes. Throughout the school day, the most little things could make me internally rage countless times. I'd be sitting at the lunch table with my friends and would feel no love towards them, just annoyance and frustration. Literally, my friends would make me angry for absolutely no reason every day. In fact, anyone who got in my way of a task/thought I wanted to complete in the most efficient way possible would just make me unnecessarily angry. Like actual burning anger. I was a pretty happy go lucky, love everyone type of kid so this was out of character for me. It caused much internal conflict as I hated myself for feeling that way. All I wanted to do was be an effective working machine, and I was a preteen. I was also a very talkative kid but while on focalin, I never wanted to talk to anyone. By the time the school day would come to an end, I'd have a raging headache pretty much every day (I was a regular at the nurse for Advil). Focalin would also make me not even slightly hungry, so when it would ware off I'd be starving. It also became a habit of mine to crash on the couch within 30 minutes of getting home, I would be exhausted. I hope someone finds this helpful. If you or your kid is on this medication, please be mindful of these side effects. Read More Read Less

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Anonymous | 35-44 | On medication for 1 to 6 months | Patient
4/7/2021
Condition: Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity
Overall rating 1.7
Effectiveness
Ease of Use
Satisfaction

I was switched to this after other common stimulants werenâ??t helping. This really did help calm my mind. For the first time since I can remember, my mind was quiet. It was quite remarkable. Unfortunately, I started to notice severe mood swings in the evenings. I would get enraged, throwing things, and it was not pretty. After my doc took me off, those feelings stopped.

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cskelton1984 | 25-34 | Male | On medication for less than 1 month | Patient
1/15/2018
Condition: Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity
Overall rating 4.7
Effectiveness
Ease of Use
Satisfaction

I'm on a combo of Bupropion for ADHD, anxiety, and depression. The Bupropion was somewhat ineffective for ADHD, but helped with the anxiety and depression, so we added focalin/dexmethylphenidate. I am still taking 300mg Bupropion XL and added 10mg dexmethylphenidate er. I am very happy with the results. I feel more focused, have a much greater attention to detail, I am more aware of my surroundings (due to less daydreaming), just overall almost off my ADHD symptoms are significantly reduced. I experienced a very mild headache the first couple of days as well as extreme sleepiness in the afternoon, but a week later, those side effects have subsided. The first couple of days I also felt like I was at a loss of words, like I couldn't form coherent sentences and spoke sort of robotic, that also went away. My only issue is that it's going to be a pain to refill, since it's a controlled drug. It's also not in stock at most pharmacies, so I either have to ask around before my doctor fills it, or wait. Kind of a pain, but worth it in the end.Read More Read Less

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Alight | 25-34 | Female | On medication for 1 to less than 2 years | Patient
8/1/2015
Condition: Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity
Overall rating 4.0
Effectiveness
Ease of Use
Satisfaction

With this medication my ability to focus was improved significantly. I am able to manage a full time job 3 small children and still work on my degree plans. I truly felt a difference in my attention to details and productivity rate I recommend this for adult who has true difficulties focusing.

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anwj1221 | 25-34 | Female | On medication for 1 to less than 2 years | Caregiver
5/1/2015
Condition: Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity
Overall rating 3.7
Effectiveness
Ease of Use
Satisfaction

My son has been taking Focalin XR for a little over a year now. I am satisfied for the most part; however, he has complete lack of appetite for the 7 hours the drug actually works (compensating in the evenings by eating 3 plates at dinner). In addition, his hyperactivity after the drug wears off is significantly increased. We had to start him on Melatonin at night to settle his mind to get him to sleep. We are looking into a longer lasting medication.

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sc nana | 7-12 | Female | On medication for 1 to less than 2 years | Caregiver
2/19/2015
Condition: Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity
Overall rating 5.0
Effectiveness
Ease of Use
Satisfaction

Only an occasional headache, weight loss in first few months...but leveled off now

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Anonymous | 7-12 | On medication for less than 1 month | Caregiver
10/16/2014
Condition: Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity
Overall rating 3.7
Effectiveness
Ease of Use
Satisfaction

My Son was on Ritalin but by 12:30 it would wear off and he would lose focus. So his doctor suggested Focalin because it is a time release capsule so far so good. Sleep patterns have not changed, he eats like crazy no negative side effects. I hope it stays this way

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Sheila | 35-44 | On medication for 1 to 6 months | Caregiver
8/21/2014
Condition: Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity
Overall rating 2.7
Effectiveness
Ease of Use
Satisfaction

Seem to make no change with my daughter. At time felt like it increased a lost, unattentive child :(

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Anonymous | 25-34 | Male | On medication for less than 1 month | Patient
7/29/2014
Condition: Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity
Overall rating 3.0
Effectiveness
Ease of Use
Satisfaction

first day 10mg took at 2pm noticed at 3pm 6 hrs later wore off I thought xr was time releaced ? I am 34 yo male

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Chichi | 13-18 | Female | On medication for 5 to less than 10 years | Patient
7/25/2014
Condition: Other
Overall rating 5.0
Effectiveness
Ease of Use
Satisfaction

Thus medicine has helped me tremendously. I'm 16 now and I've been on it for 8 years, taking a three year break and now ready to be back on it. While on it I was a star child. Perfect grades, attendance, hardly sick, calm, and never any sleeping problems. I did have appetite loss and I stayed thin but nothing to bad. Since being off of it I have developed a depression and anxiety disorder, its impossible to stay focused (ADD) and I've gained an easy 80 pounds. Parents, your kids really do benefit. I'm here to say. I'll be a junior this fall and I'll graduate with honors and a 3.8 GPA. Hope this helps someone.(:Read More Read Less

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