Tenex making tics worse?

[Topaz1968]

I am not sure why my son's tics are worse now than they have been recently. The tics started again about 2 weeks ago. His usual cycle is that they start off slowly and then they come on full force for about 1-2 weeks. It is a very minor vocal tic and sometimes a shoulder shrug. He also squeezes his buttocks. Then, usually they come in "clusters", which is the only way I can really describe them. He will tic 4-5 times in succession and then won't tic for a while.

 

He started Tenex about 1 1/2 weeks ago. He takes 1/2 in the am and 1 at night. I thought the tics were going away, but today they are horrible again. I know that Tenex is not a miracle and may take time to work, but I did not expect the tics to get worse.

 

There may be other factors - but I want to find out if it is the Tenex - has anyone else had a similar problem?

[trggirl]

We used Intuniv which is the same thing only long acting and we had similar results. My daughter seemed to tic more, she developed severe OCD, and she was very spacey. We used it for a month at the lowest dose.

[Topaz1968]

Yes, I am not sure this is the right medication for him. I am really nervous that it is making things worse. He also has a few other side effects, that I think are from the Tenex. They are minor and I am not quite sure if it is the Tenex, but this is our 2nd try at this and I think I was right the first time to take him off of it. The fist time, I took him off because he started to get hives. I thought it was from the Tenex, but it ended up being something else.

 

I am going to give it a month total and then if it is not working, I will call the doctor to take him off. I hate playing around with meds like this, but it is so hard to find the right fit for him.

[gators]

Hi- yes, I thought the same thing when I started my son on Tenex. He was having eye blinking at the time and shortly after starting the Tenex he started with some other tics. He was also extremely anxious and very whiney. We tried it for a month and took him off. We are on a dairy free diet now (not sure if that is doing anything) and a low dose of Topamax. The first few weeks on the Topamax the tics went completely away. Then after about 2 months they came back. We upped the dose and it got better but they have not completely gone away. Dr. wanted to add Intuniv but I wouldn't go for it because of all the side effects with the Tenex. Good luck.

 

Leslie

[Topaz1968]

Thanks Leslie - I will see what happens, but I have a feeling it is not going to work out well. I will ask the doctor about Topamax as well. He can sometimes go for weeks without any real tics, and this is the longest they have lasted that I can remember.

[guy123]

Hi- yes, I thought the same thing when I started my son on Tenex. He was having eye blinking at the time and shortly after starting the Tenex he started with some other tics. He was also extremely anxious and very whiney. We tried it for a month and took him off. We are on a dairy free diet now (not sure if that is doing anything) and a low dose of Topamax. The first few weeks on the Topamax the tics went completely away. Then after about 2 months they came back. We upped the dose and it got better but they have not completely gone away. Dr. wanted to add Intuniv but I wouldn't go for it because of all the side effects with the Tenex. Good luck.

 

Leslie

 

I wonder if the tics came back because his body adapted to the Topamax. Hopefully they won't come back again.

Edited May 7, 2011 by guy123