Searching for CBD and navigating the choices when living in a non-legalized cannabis state leaves parents researching the Internet. But through cannabis networking events, business owners, who are also parents, openly share about their families. My daughter was diagnosed with ADHD three years ago. And we’ve been comparing traditional pharmaceuticals against CBD for ADHD with the help of Origin CBD. Origin uses a 99.85% CBD isolate created by the individual who created CW, who is based in Kentucky.
For years we tried alternative treatments, using supplements and diet changes and the reality kicked in when we found our daughter on a balcony, standing on a chair, 28 floors up in Miami after speaking with her about never going out on the balcony. The impulsivity was too much for her to control and, like many parents, we had to find a pediatric doctor specializing in chemical imbalances. At least that is what we were told.
Luckily my daughter, now 9 years old, could swallow pills at a young age. Besides the ADHD medication of 15mg Focalin XR, she has prescribed a pharmaceutical-grade Omega, which works wonders! It’s called Vayarin (for any parent looking for help in using natural supplementation). They are offering $20 off your first order and no more prescription needed! It takes a few weeks to see a difference as it builds up in your child’s system but definitely helps. Since my daughter’s body responded so well to this, I didn’t want to stop searching for alternative treatments to replace her ADHD medication.
Health insurance doesn’t pay for the doctor visits nor will they pay for her medication. Any treatment for my daughter is out of pocket so the cost was already in our budget.
Here are the prices to compare ADHD medication to CBD:
| Medication | Amount | Cost Per Bottle |
|---|---|---|
| Vayarin | 60 pills, 30 days | $50.00 |
| Focalin XR (15mg) | 30 pills, 30 days | $90.00 (using GoodRx) |
| Origin Therapeutics CBD (10 mg) | 30 pills, 30 days | $40.00 |
If you replace just the ADHD medication, you can save about $90 a month. If the CBD helps all issues, then you potentially could save yourself $140 a month on your child’s medication by replacing the Focalin and Vayarin with CBD oil. That’s $1,680 per year. Not using GoodRx, Focalin XR was costing us $360 per month or $4,320 per year! Even if we need two bottles of CBD per month at $40.00 x 2, we still would save on medication cost by $3,360 per year!
Since last year, we had our daughter tested using Genomind.com to find out that with her genetics, she shouldn’t be on any type of stimulant. We took her off all pharmaceuticals and only kept her on Vayarin for three weeks. Unfortunately, she still needs a low dose non-stimulant and we supplement with a custom made CBD gummy bear at bedtime.
| Medication | Amount | Cost Per Bottle |
|---|---|---|
| Vayarin | 60 pills, 30 days | $50.00 |
| Intuniv (3 mg) | 30 pills, 30 days | $30.00 (using Costco) |
| CBD gummy bears (10 mg) | 20 bears, 20 days | $5.00 |
We are closer to almost an all-natural approach to ADHD. It takes a lot of time, research, patience and advocating for your child.
ADHD medication
The ADHD medication (Focalin XR) worked but had side effects. For instance, my daughter stopped eating, lost weight and became scared for no reason. The doctor’s response to my concerns was to “not give the medication on the weekends.” If my daughter wasn’t so severe, maybe that would have worked. Without medication, on the weekends she couldn’t go out of the house due to her impulsivity. My daughter was a competitive swimmer with swim meets on the weekends, so not giving her medication every weekend wasn’t an option. Also living in tropical weather, as a family, we like to be outside and do things most of the year, like spending time at the beach or playing at the park.
Since stopping the ADHD medication, our daughter is back to being her happy self. Although she stopped swimming competitively, she is now exploring other interests. She enjoys spending time with us, reading, doing art, singing (lots of singing) and going out again. Before any doctor or parent puts their child on Focalin, I urge you to do a genetic test, if available or affordable. It could have saved us years of aggravation and confusion for my daughter.
CBD for ADHD
When I started the research and journey to supplement CBD for my daughter’s ADHD, I reached out to OriginCBD.com. Since last year, I have switched our daughter’s ADHD medication to a very low dose non-stimulant to help her at school and custom made CBD gummy. Our daughter’s impulsivity is under control, she is back to eating, sleeping, communicating, being social and wants to be involved in life. We took her out to dinner a few weeks ago and when we went to order for her, she stopped us and said, “I can order for myself.” Then she did it!
As she matures, she is understanding of her ADHD. We talk about how she is doing on and off medication. We also discuss the nighttime gummy to see if it helps her and apparently it does.
CBD gummy bears
What I have learned, and continue to learn is no matter if it’s pharmaceutical drugs or natural medicine, there is NO ONE SIZE FITS ALL approach. Each person’s genetic makeup is different. Even if you are siblings, it doesn’t mean what works for one will work for the other individual. If you have patience, do your research, ask questions and not give up; you eventually find the answers you have been looking for.
Being told for a year that I shouldn’t give the Focalin XR for the weekends and it would “solve” the side effects was untrue. As a parent, we know our children and how they behave. All I observed was a child’s who wasn’t given a strong, chemical and have her chemicals be thrown off for two days and then have to try and readjust them during the week, while in school, to never being herself.
I am sure that our ADHD journey isn’t over yet but at least we have made some progress toward a more natural treatment. Don’t give up; just keep advocating!
Below are the videos of my experience with Origin’s CBD last year. Within 24 hours their prior CEO, Scott, responded and we started working together, figuring out the right dose for my daughter. We started with 10mg CBD pills with coconut oil, and saw a response but not enough to take her out of the house. I shared our observations with Scott, by email and he called me to discuss further and explain about the dosages.
In a conversation with Scott, he shared, “I always wanted to help people and receiving the feedback I get about our product is truly helping individuals; it’s amazing!” The next weekend we tried 20mg in the morning and around 3 p.m., gave another 10mg. We spent the entire day out of the house and really tested it by bringing her to an arcade. No running away, no freak outs, and she enjoyed herself! And she ate all day, even asking for food!
For people who have trouble using CBD with terpenes, you can request customized dosages and pills in the notes section and Origin will accommodate. Receive 10% off any order by using the coupon code: mjrates
Want to continue discussing ADHD alternative treatments? Come join the conversation!
