LessStress38

I may not be the best one to answer this question.
My niece has been on concerta for years.
She is now 9. She had problems with mood and emotions, behavior, hyper activity and defiance.
From what I have seen in her is a major improvement.
She also takes guanfacine.
When she the med wears off she is sometimes tired and hungry. My sister makes sure she eats well and has a good routine with bedtime to lessen any moodiness.
(sometimes melatonin helps with bedtime)
She has had med increases when her symptoms seemed to return over the years.
She can actually have a conversation without being extreme in her expressions now.
If for some reason, she forgets to take her meds, the school calls because it's a 360 degree difference.
She is not a zombie, but now more flexible and can reason more appropriately.
I would suggest to start low and go slow.
I have been on Ritalin myself and know of it's calming affects, but too high dose can cause irratitibility.
You may not know the exact effects until he's been on it a couple weeks.

is the mood stablizer a new med or one he's had before?
I wouldn't suggest starting two new meds at once, because it would be hard to tell which one is doing what?
Especially if there's a problem.
finding the right med and dose is a long process, as you know.
my sister works hard keeping a predictable routine to assist my niece to transition and adapt to the daily, weekly grind.