What effect does ADHD meds have on autistic people?

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My 8yo son is on Abilify and I have noticed that he does seem to be more obsessed about things lately. He's also a LOT moodier, but I could also attribute that to a tumultuous year with lots of turnover in support staff both in school and at home. If we could keep our services consistent I believe he might be better able to cope with the demands that are placed on him. I wish I knew for certain why he feels the way he does but he's still nonverbal, though I must admit that since being on Abilify his cognitive abilities and what language he does have have increased significantly. He seems less focused though.

My son is spectrummy with ADHD. He took adderall with good effects, though if the dose was too high his affect would get flat and he would be spacy. But on the right dose even he noticed how much better he did. It primarily helped with his intrusiveness, impulsivity, and hyperactivity. He no longer takes it and he no longer has issues with intrusiveness, impulsivity, and hyperactivity. Now he has issues with extreme disorganization and pragmatic language issues, but the adderall never helped either of those.

It think autism is not of a homogenous etiology. Therefore, I think what causes the symptoms in some people may not be amenable to stimulant medications, whereas what causes the symptoms in others may be amenable to stimulant medications. I suppose one would not know which group one fell in without trying. The good thing about stimulant meds is they are metabolized quickly, so if they have ill effects, it doesn't take long to get them out of your system.

I've been on some pill or another pretty much my whole life. The one that brought out my best has been off the market for 20 years. SSRIs made me clingy and gave me priapism (of course there was hardly anyone in my life to help turn that lemon into lemonade)

Adderall pulled me out of a deep funk when I started on XR20 in 2010 but I noticed meltdowns came back with more frequency and severity in 2011. I've tried for the past year to get a stabilizer added or a dosage change but the doctor never seems to hear me

Well, the reason I mention this topic of adhd meds on autism is that I'm wondering if I have aspergers along with my adhd. I didn't really take into consideration of the possibility that maybe what I heard about adhd meds on autism may have had nothing do having co-morbid adhd.

ADHD meds resolved my adhd symptoms, but I've been having urinary side effects. I guess I just have a really sensitive nervous system.

I'm on generic Ritalin, and it works well for me. Everything I've read says that stimulant ADHD meds are hit or miss for people on the spectrum. For me, it's a hit. For others, they make things worse, not better.