slb0523
Welcome to the baord. We are pleased to have another nurse join the rest of us on the board, and the many mom's who have done such research into the use of medications for our 'special' needs that they are very, very knowlegdeable regarding medication use, risks and what to monitor. While I am a nurse, I certainly am new to ASD and all the related things (my son was dx on 02/17/04).
I give my son Omega, B12 and folate (all with the Dr's approval) and I tried the TMG and melatonin. We tried the diet but it is not a fit for us.
I fully respect parents who choose to go the no medication route, some use behavior modification, some supplements and diet, some a combonation of many things ( instead of prescription medication). Again, I respect that very much, that is thier choice and I am always interested in learning about what they have tried and the results (good, bad and indifferent). I just also ask that my decesion to use any and all medications that may help my son be respected. EAch child is different and each parent has a choice to make. I was very, very antidrug at first, then I slowly changed my mind and beleive me , I dont give my child ANYTHING that I havent read and read and read about.
Again, thank you for your opinion, for your concern about children and medication and for your suggestion that we consider alternatives to medication. Just to add my caveat, we need to be very careful of anything we give our kids, be it prescription, "NATURAL" products, supplements, etc.. Some therapy and treatments are considered controversial. That being said, I think this is a wonderful place where we can all share what we know, what we want to know and everything in between.
Welcome and thanks for theinput.
Hello my jonathan is 3 years old and is on to types of meds one is dexatrime for adhd and one is for his focus and also to calm him down and tha med is risptdalMy DS was tried on Resperdal for ADHD (he has Autisim and the Psych says his ADHD, anxiety and O/C behaviors and sensory problems are SYMPTOMS of his autism, yet she must dx them independently (for insurance?). THe last time she and I spoke (about 2 weeks ago) she again told me that his O/C behaviors and anxiety are manifestations of his autism (thats as close as I can come to explaining exactly what she said, I had a 4 year old autistic child screaming in my ear).
The resperdal was wonderful for about 6 or so weeks, I was amazed! But then we got some unwanted side effects (weight gain) that made the Psych uncomfortable with constantly needing to adjust the dose as he steadily gained weight. We then tried SSRI (the only one approved for kids with O/C behaviors is Zoloft,,,it was a living nightmare of aggression, we then tried another SSRI (Prozac) not as horrid as Zoloft but still very, very aggresive. We have been off them for about a month now and he is back to baseline, not much aggresion UNLESS in a new situation (school, therapy). I am about lost with the medication thing. The Psych wants to try abilify, but some parents have reported increased aggresion on that and I simply dont know what to do for now. DS still takes clonidine and she added an AM dose that I can give the whole pil, 1/2 th epill or hold- my choice depending on his behaviors.
What about depakote? Sometimes that is used to help level off their behaviours. Now Jeffrey has adhd so the tenex is suppose to help with that. He takes the depakote mainly for seizures but the other effect is a mood stabilizer. He takes the zoloft for the ocd type behaviours , actually I think he does have ocd, but that is another subject. Risperdal and congeutin was recently added, so we will see how that goes.
Gabe has all of the characteristics of ADHD but doesn't have the diagnoiss. He takes clonidine, up to four times a day. Along with concerta and depakote to help level out his moods. Plus with him having asthma you also have the asthma meds too.
Why do I feel like I have my own pharmacy?
Tammy
My daughter was put on depakote(valproate, valproic acid) at age 3 to "rule out" seizures. The dosage was incorrectly prescribed by her neurologist, and she began to vomit about 5 times a day, she slept most of the day and was very lethargic. I stopped giving her the med and had her liver enzymes checked to make sure it was not affected( depakote can cause liver damage). Luckily she was okay, but her doctor recommended to put her back on the drug and i refused. Later it was confirmed that she was not, and is not having seizures, she is just "stimming". This drug can be very harmful if not taken appropriatley and for the right reason. i would only recommend it for use as an anti-convulsant. I am now an RN and have a better understanding of the drugs the doctors will try to push for learning/mental disorders. PLEASE be careful of what drugs you will give your child!!!! Research the side effects prior to giving any neuro drugs!!!!
And my kids neuro has tons of experience in this area and his liver function is checked twice a year. Every medicine is a double edged sword. Plus Jeffrey does have seizures. And Gabe might.
Tammy
Have u tried giving omega vitamin supplements? They can be very helpful with attention span. I would be cautious before using meds for attention. You can try going to a homeopathic specialist, my daughter sees a terrific one in the houston area. diet can also have a significant effect on attention span.
Hi I am just wondering has anyone tried not using medication for attention problems and what did you do to help your child? Or do kids have to be on meds who have attention problems. My son was not diagnosed with ADHD but has attention problems PDD/NLD. No matter the diagnosis attention in school is not good.