Abilify

Post Reply New Topic

anybody out there try Abilify? How about for an 8 year old? My son's school is pushing it. I'm very skeptical, but I did make an appointment to talk with his doc. He has high-functioning autism and the school thinks it will help deal with his irritability and outbursts.

I'd be very skeptical about anyone without an MD pushing a drug. They're not qualified to make the suggestion.

Talk to a pediatric psychiatrist about it...

...but my gut reaction is that they're interested in their convenience and his compliance, not his education or his well-being.

Atypical antipsychotics are not anything to play around with. Do they even realize what they're casually tossing around????

We do use Abilify for that very thing for my 13 yo. However, it was the pedi that suggested it when I discussed with him the severity of the issues we'd been having. Seems very odd for a non-medical person to ask that a child be prescribed that. His teachers must work with a number of kids who take the drug to be that familiar with it's use.

I would prefer that he not be on it, but until we can work out better ways to deal with his meltdowns, we needed some breathing room. Abilify is not without it's side effects, and should not be considered lightly. Only you and your pedi should make that decision, regardless of what the school wants.

In terms of effectiveness, from what we've experienced I can say that S1's meltdowns are much shorter in duration, and he is able to remain verbal, although reasoning ability is still non-existent in the midst of one, and self harming behavior is reduced.

I wouldn't even bother following that suggestion, either from the school or the doctor. 8 is WAY too young to be taking psychotropic medications, regardless of whether he's on the spectrum or NT. Having the school pushing the drug just means the teacher, as well as the district, are taking the easy way out when it comes to behavior modification. They want to give your child a chemical lobotomy, so he does't disrupt the class.

Tell the school hugs are not to be applied chemically. Emotions aren't something to be managed via pyramid scheme.

_________________
"Standing on a well-chilled cinder, we see the fading of the suns, and try to recall the vanished brilliance of the origin of the worlds."
-Georges Lemaitre
"I fly through hyperspace, in my green computer interface"
-Gem Tos

I really don't think that kids should take these kinds of drugs without having really severe behaviors that necessitate them.

Thanks. My thoughts exactly.

Do talk to someone about it; I know they have improved life for some of us. They're just not to be used for mere annoyances.

Don't make any decision until zette and a few others weigh in. They have a lot more experience and authority than my mere collection of neuroleptic horror stories.

The IDEA law allows U.S. schools to suggest meds but not to require them as a condition of attending school. Schools sometimes have a way of phrasing the suggestion to make it seem as though your child won't be able to attend without it but legally that isn't so. This needs to be a medical decision, not an educational one.