Melatonin...weighted blanket..asbergers.. or spd?

[drabo]

We use melatonin almost every night, 1 mg of the dissolving stuff from GNC.

We use a weighted blanket also, and he loves it. It doesn't help him sleep that much better, but it really helps him calm down. He loves it. They are not really heavy weight, so not hot. We got it here-
http://peaceweightedblankets.com/Default.aspx

We got a referral to the pediatric behavior specialist for our diagnosis.

[RJ6Mommy]

We use Meletonin every night for my nine year old. We were told to by the doctor and any off the pills we get will work and does not matter if it is a 1 mg or a 3 mg. We give him two 3mg because he has severe night terrors and sleep walking doing dangerous things. If we miss a night he is up.
Also my son who is eleven was just diagnosed a year ago being on the ASD and he is extremely intellegent and this is why we battled with schools to test him for IEPs to help him stay on task and deal with his behaviors. Now we finally have help for him. Even though he tests in high school levels did not mean he did not have a form of autism. it is still in question if he his High functioning or aspergers. DOes not really matter since they will all be labled autism.

[Brittany1287]

I ordered a blanket from peaceweightedblankets can't wait to try it! So he was back in school today for the first time. They said like usual he was perfect napped perfect never threw any tantrums was sweet like usual. He was really good for me tonight and never threw one tantrum. I am so confused. I do have an appointment at the childrens hospital next week to get him evaluated. I also had him at the chiropractor yesterday and today she said his neck was really out and maybe he was acting out of pain. I guess we will see how tomorrow goes.

[drabo]

I like the blanket I got from them and the price was great. My son is usually great at school and daycare, his behavior is worse with us and when he is bored and tired.

[mom1mg]

My 8 yo has ppd-nos (a-typical autism) he is SUPER high functioning - you would never know at a casual meeting that he is SN unless you are familiar with what to look for.

ANYWAY I just wanted to mention that he acted much better for teachers and his nannies then he did for us. It was like he saved it all up for at home. What was actually happening was he had huge amounts of anxiety but was a rule follower. He would try so hard to be "good" at school that he would melt down as soon as he got home. This started at a very early age.

ETA - DS one doesn't produce melatonin he was on it from age 3 until just before he turned 9. When we first started using it I fealt guilty but his Dr assured me that it was FAR better for him to take it then to not have it. He was actually very behind his peers and once he started sleeping better he caught right up and was much easier to parent.

Both our kids our now homeschooled, DS2 has very few anxiety and depression issues now and DS1 doesn't take melatonin anymore since he doesn't have to get up at a certain time.

[Brittany1287]

You mamas are so helpful! I wish some of you could see my DS and give me your opinion. I am so afraid when i go to the DR tuesday they are going to say he if fine nothing is wrong. I get so tired of that answer from doctors. Something is clearly not. I have done a LOT of childcare and never dealt with a child with meltdowns like he has.....he was really good for me after school yesterday and went to bed well then at 9 he woke up and was up and down from 9-12:30 then again at 3. He still keeps telling me it hurts. I have no idea what hurts and people keep telling me he just learned the word thats why but I think something really does hurt. Today he screamed and had a tantrum for 1:15 minutes before he finally took a nap. Just before he went to sleep when he was calmed down he said "it hurts" and DH asked him where and he pulled his shirt up and pointed to his left side of his chest? Normal children can be bribed easily I know from watching them. Most the time my son won't listen and still throws a tantrum even if you tell him he can do or have something really awesome if he does xyz. DH works in the oil industry and works 7 on 3 off 12-15 hour days. Flip flop nights/days. So its hard to get a schedule here and he doesn't understand at all what I go through. And when he is here he usually can't get DS to calm down or listen and has no idea how to deal with him so I am solo most of the time. We have no family close and really don't know people around here yet so its kind of overwhelming to me. Hopefully Tuesday the Ped will be helpful!

[MDever]

I am glad you got things moving w/ an evaluation Let's hope they can start you on a road to theraputic intervention.

[walking-iris]

We had pedes dismiss our concerns with our ds too many times---finally we changed drs and just demanded that we have a referral to an OT and a developmental pede.

Also the books Out Of Sync Child and The Out Of Sync Child Has Fun have been really helpful to us. I would really look into getting an into occupational therapy as well.

[TrennaII]

If you really feel something is going on you are probably right. Keep looking for another opinion. Smart kids can have developmental delays too.

I agree with your midwife about the melatonin. It's known to have significant side effects in some people (it can cause depression and moodiness).

I really like Hyland's Calms 4 Kids. It's homeopathic, so it's extremely unlikely to have side effects the way supplements and botanicals can.

[walking-iris]

I use calms Fortes 4 Kids to help my kiddos transition to sleep. I use it more with my 4 year old who is really restless at night and a teeth grinder.

I agree about the "smart" comment---that actually would really other me. My son is ASD and has appropriate cognitive skill sfor his age and is a smart kid.

When we started asking our dr for a referral he said something to the effect that our ds was always so well behaved and polite that he wasn't sure why we were worried. ??? That still bothers me. These myths that these children would all have learning problems and behavioral problems. Which they do a lot of times, but sometimes they are so subtle that it takes a parent to notice. It would be nice if drs would start valuing parental instincts and recognize that we live with these children and they see them at best once or twice a year.