I'm so very sorry that your DS, and your family, is going through this. We had a similar reaction to the ADHD med Concerta. My DS11( then 9) was on it for about 2.5 months, and we saw our son become confrontational, aggressive, and downright unpleasant to be around. He told his principle that he felt angry and violent. It became dramatically worse when the Concerta wore off in the afternoon. He also developed a vocal tic, somewhere between a throat-clearing and a hum. When our doctor said that he needed to be on a higher dose, I reluctantly agreed, against every instinct in my body. He broke out in a full body rash that itched like mad. So much for Concerta.
I remember that he felt better when he went off of the medicine, but it took a while to get out of his system completely. I want to say it was a few weeks to a month. The vocal tic took 8 months to go away.
A year later, we tried to put him on Zoloft for social anxiety, and with the hope that it might also help with the ADHD symptoms. He was really struggling in school, both socially and academically. It was like he was just shutting down. However, he also had a very bad reaction to that medicine. Within a month, he was sleeping in his closet with a metal bar because he was convinced that someone was going to try to attack him. His anxiety levels went through the roof.
There is a happy ending to the story. Now at age 11.5, he is in a different school (one that is much more accepting of quirks and differences), with a second grade acceleration to 8th grade, and is doing well. He has a good group of like-minded friends, and that somehow makes the slow drudgery of school bearable. He still struggles with ADHD-like symptoms occasionally , but they seem to come and go. He has many food allergies, and when he gets into an allergen... then look out! His corn allergy makes him jittergy, impulsive, and if it is a large enough dose, then he becomes very argumentative. The only tantrums that he has ever had were after eating corn. I know that sounds strange, but I thought I would just pass it along. Most people don't think of food allergies as contributing to behavior issues.
The secret for us was to realize that in the summer, when he was away from the school and not being exposed to food allergens, he was a sweet, happy kid that we enjoyed being around. Within a week of being in a bad academic/social fit in school, then the angry, frustrated kid returned. He is a child that has very low tolerance for the boredom of school and for being in a socially stressful situation that included bullying. His old school was just plain toxic to him emotionally. He felt like a constant failure because he didn't fit in and because he was so different. He was being told on a daily basis that he was somehow "broken" because he didn't fit in. (his words) The stress of it was just eating away at him inside. (and yes, we heard the same refrain about how much he hated himself.) The new school is not perfect. He is still not being challenged academically. But we seem to be making do, mostly because he has found a solid group of friends who accept him, and the grade skip has helped. He now has some measure of self-worth again, and has regained his confidence in himself as a person. We are crossing our fingers and hoping that it lasts.
I hope that helps some. Each child is so different. They all have different levels of tolerance to different triggers. I know that having a kid who is having a rough time makes everyone's life difficult in the family. As a parent you can feel your heart just tearing apart as you watch your kid struggle. The worse part is not knowing what to do to help your child. I feel for you. Just know that, somewhere, somehow, there is a way out of this maze. I hope you find the answers you need with this new program. Just take a deep breath and trust your instincts.
<<hugs>>
