Single Moms Raising Autistic Sons


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Monday, August 14, 2006

Mommy's Feeling Much Better!

I was feeling so bad last week that I couldn't even imagine what it would be like to feel good again, didn't even think that it was possible. After talking with my ANP we had decided that to lower my nighttime meds (Seroquel) by 100 mg. should help me out quite a bit with my excessive daytime sleepiness and after several days it has helped me tremendously!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I am very pleased to report that I am feeling much better, refreshed, and my mood is way better than before. No more feeling weird or like I am on drugs, just feeling "normal" with more patience and a happy attitude to boot. Thank you all for your words of support and encouragement they helped me through a rough spot and made life much more bearable for me.
Saturday I got to have some much needed "alone time" and that helped me out as well because Kathleen kept Griffin for me for 7 hours. Thank you so much Kathleen, you were a life saver for me and I don't know what I would have done without you.
On Sunday Griffin was full of energy and did very well all during the day but come evening he was still full of it and had a real hard time settling down. I couldn't get him to cooperate with me in taking Abby out for her evening walk nor could I get him to calm down enough to get sleepy and ready for bed. It seems lately that the melatonin has not been helping much at all so I skipped it and gave him the Clonidine instead. Well, he ended up fighting it pretty hard and he stayed up until almost midnight and my nerves were a wreck. I have got to do some research and find out if I can use more than 5 mg. of the melatonin so that I don't have to give him the Clonidine anymore because I hate giving him drugs. Does anyone know if it is safe to give a 4 year old more than 5 mg. of melatonin? Everyone, have a great and blessed day!

6 comments:

JodiTucker said...

So glad you are feeling better, too!......I simply cannot imagine being a single mum, with bipolar, and an autistic son......You are a special person who I admire for your tenacity and wanting the best for Griffin through it all. Parenting can be tough enough in the best of all circumstances. But the joy that kids bring is priceless.

Anonymous said...

i am also SO GLAD you are feeling better! that must be a huge relief to you. i hope griffin has an easier time going to sleep tonight. i know in our house, things like that go in stages.

K.C.'sMommy said...

Hi Lora,
So happy to hear you are perking right up girl! Hopefully your super cute kiddo is sleeping better:) I will ask K.C.'s therapist if she works with any kiddos taking Melatonin and if she knows how much they take:) Hang in the Lora and give Griffin a hug for us!

Mister Ornery said...

Lora,
Inveterate researcher that I am, a question I have is, are you giving Griffin a synthetic or a 'natural' Melatonin. According to one site, the synthetic is the better alternative due to consistent standards not always achieved in the 'natural' products. The synthetics also achieve a better time release effect. And the one study I have located so far mentions testing done with doese of 2-5 mg on children. Might be a good idea to check for alternatives to Clonidine. I'll let you know when I find any additional information.

K.C.'sMommy said...

Hey there Lora,
I asked K.C.'s therpaist if any of her kiddos took more than 5 mg and she said no. She also said that one of the families that she worked with gave their kiddo 5 mg and it had the opposite effect on her, she was wide awake! She knows of one family who's Pediatrician said it was okay to give their Autistic kiddo one Benadryl at night to help get him to sleep, just on the really tough nights.
When K.C. was younger around 2 I believe, I remember his Ped telling me I could give him a half of a Benadryl. I did because he was up switching the lights on and off endlessly and prowling around the house, it did work, he was out after about 40 minutes:) Hope your little guy is sleeping better:)

Anonymous said...

Hi...I just happened on this blog doin ga search for sleep aids for autistic children. Gosh I felt like I was reading a story about my OWN life. My daughter takes the melatonin and clonidine too...and she is still up and down all during the night like an infant. In the last week she's been up at 3 am for the day twice. and I also take the seroquel...only 100 mgs though. It was just odd to read this. I wish there was some miracle cure for this sleep thing. If we could be rested we'd be able to handle to situation much easier.