Wednesday, December 3, 2014

Right time for Medications

Lets talk about prescription medications. I am so tired of being judged on giving medications to my daughter. I get it from my parent, my extended family, some friends and even strangers. They tell me to change my daughter diet. Have you tried gluten free diet? Have you cut out red dyes? Eat all organic? Have you tried essential oils? The chiropractor? Hang her from her feet? Just kidding I added that one in.

My point is that they all have their opinions based on the child they see. They see a glimmer of the explosive child. She holds it in while she is out. She will run around like a 3 year old, she will get angry when I say no, she will scream at me and stomp her feet. But she will never escalate to the point she does at home. At home she lets Hulk out. She rages to the point where she will throw up. She has night terrors and sleeps horribly. She is always tired and irritable. Her moods cycle so much I can’t even get used to one before the next one comes. She can’t focus in school because of how badly she cycles.

Believe me when I say that I tried everything before I decided to turn to psychiatric medication. I tried eating organic, cutting out gluten, and dyes. We gave her expensive vitamins, supplements, and minerals.  Nothing worked. She stayed the same.  I always said as long as it didn’t affect her focus at school we wouldn’t medicate. She was able to complete kindergarten and first grade fine and it wasn’t until we moved overseas and she started second grade that it became an issue.

If you have a child that is an ultra rapid cycler and cannot focus enough to learn in school then its time for medication. If your child is a safety liability who runs away when confronted with unwanted tasks, then its time for medication.  If your child is crying and is telling you that they cant stop or control themselves, then its time for medication. If your child is combative and hits you or his siblings, its time for medication. My point is that you as a parent must decide when is the right time for medication. Don’t let others bully you into starting it before you believe your child needs it.

You also can let others bully you into not giving medication to your child. When my family told me that I was poisoning my child with these medications I basically explained it to them this way. If my child had diabetes or high blood pressure you would want me to give them medication right, because they would need it. And they said of course that is a medical necessity; their bodies need that medicine. I say so do the mentally ill. They have a problem with the neurotransmitters and the medications help balance this out.


I would much rather not give medications but I have too. My daughter is much happier, less moody and irritable, and can function at school. She is back to being a happy go lucky 8 year old. Hulk has gone on vacation and hopefully it’s an extended one. This lithium, risperidone combo seems to be a good fit. I am monitoring it and keeping my fingers crossed that no problems arise because for the first time in about 3 months I can finally release that breath I had been holding in.

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