Pill Swallowing

[SeekingBalance]

Hi everyone,

Well, after 2+ years of worrying behavior, lowered self esteem, suspensions, tearful night time confessions, frustration, declining school performance and participation, cognitive behavioral therapy (4 months) and behavior modification programs, I took my nearly 7 year old for a thorough psycho/educational evaluation with a respected educational psychologist. He was diagnosed as gifted and ADHD combined type.

I am surprising okay with the diagnosis (as okay as you can be). I'd come to this conclusion myself using my google-doctoral, and find relief in finally knowing a little bit more about his brain operates.

DS is not THRILLED to try a medication (in addition to ADHD he is a bit oppositional in his presentation), but both DH and I believe that he may need this extra "boost" to support the steps he is learning from the psychologist and to deal with some of the distractedness in the classroom. I want to try it before the end of the school year so that the teacher who knows him so well and communicates with us so well can see any benefits or drawbacks. We have a prescription for 18 mg of Concerta.

However, at 6, he has never swallowed a pill before. We "practiced" this weekend with a tic tac, but he only got frustrated and never got one down.

Any tips from those who have been there/done that?

Thanks - I appreciate any help you can provide me.

Megan

[nola79]

I gave my son a special drink to try with (we usually only drink water or milk). He got to pick what he wanted and we tried over and over again until he got it down. I will say, it wasn't pretty. It took a long time and he and I both got frustrated, but it worked.

[melissa17s]

Ds likes to get some water in his mouth before adding the pill.  He then adds the pill and swallows.  It is not how I take pills, but it works for him, and some of his pills have been large.  We also make him drink a whole glass of water (8 oz) after.

For my brother, my mom used to put his pills into apple sause or yogurt.  For him, it made them slippery enough to go down.  

[Emmeline II]

Maybe he isn't taking in enough liquid? when I take large meds I make sure to use a big gulp. It may also help if he takes a sip before putting in the pill so it doesn't stick to his tongue. If you use a beverage other than water, check that it isn't contraindicated on the insert. 

I just found out that the OJ ds had been taking with his med with interferes with the med's absorption--ds hasn't had a bad day since I stopped the OJ.

For my ds, CBT didn't "take" until he was on his second medication, so the right meds can have an impact of the effectiveness of the therapy.
 

[Kyamo]

When I take pills, I take a bite of food, chew it up thoroughly, add the pill, then swallow the whole thing.  It is a lot easier for me than trying to swallow it with just liquid.   It feels like I am tricking my throat into thinking its just chewed food in there so it doesn't reject.  I know that sounds silly, but maybe he could try that.   

[chiefmir]

Is the pill he has to take as big as a tic tac?  I ask this because my DD just learned how to swallow pills, and we were thrilled to find that the pill was actually smaller and much easier than the practice had been.  My DD (5.5) DESPISES medication flavors of all sorts and would much rather be in pain (for example) than take tylenol (and then she will only take infant) so she was really motivated to learn to swallow a pill (2x daily pill for reflux).

Anyway, here is what worked for her: we always use water and a straw... water can't be TOO cold (like iced) because it is harder for her to swallow quickly.  she takes a small sip of water, puts the pill on the back of her tongue (but to one side a little) and then immediately puts the straw in her mouth with the opening farther back than usual, like halfway down her tongue...so drinking a large sip pushes the pill right down.

[karne]

We definitely have a process here:  we use milk vs water-something about the "thickness" of milk seems to help.  It also seems to help if my kids are standing up rather than sitting down.  They like to get their mouths wet first.  As a last resort I'll put the pill, whole, into applesauce or pudding.

The other piece is that I have to not get frustrated, or pressure at all.  Anxiety about actually swallowing invariably means thatthe pill doesn't get swallowed.

[Guinevere]

I agree that some experimentation is in order. Over the years, and with various kiddos, I have used all of the following with success:

1. Milk

2. Applesauce

3. Yogurt

4. Pudding

5. Smoothie

6. Soup (creamy kind)

7. Milkshake

I also second the staying calm and encouraging part. I don't have issues swallowing pills, but my DH does, and after some trial and error, we finally decided that I needed to take over all pill-swallowing support for our kiddos b/c his anxiety was transferring to them and making the whole thing worse.

Good luck! :)

Guin

[quaz]

I was in junior high before I learned to swallow a pill. Before then I had to chew them. :-(

I still take meds by putting water in my mouth, and then putting the pill in. I still have difficulty swallowing it at times.

Tammy

[SuburbanHippie]

Originally Posted by Kyamo 

When I take pills, I take a bite of food, chew it up thoroughly, add the pill, then swallow the whole thing.  It is a lot easier for me than trying to swallow it with just liquid.   It feels like I am tricking my throat into thinking its just chewed food in there so it doesn't reject.  I know that sounds silly, but maybe he could try that.   

I still do this too and I'm 30.  I taught my 11 year old how to swallow pills this way and he has no issues whatsoever with pills now.

[Kristine233]

Find out if it can be crushed. If its not time release or enteric coated you may be able to crush it and give it with a spoonful of applesauce or pudding or something. My son couldn't swallow pills for a long time, but he did fine with just chewing them up. Said they tasted nasty but he did it without complaint for years before he could actually swallow them.

[SeekingBalance]

Hi everyone! Thanks for all the great suggestions.

He has now had success with the tic tac 3 times! We tried a pill this morning, but I think the "emotional" aspect of the pill swallowing made him hesitate and he couldn't manage - but we'll keep practicing.

What ended up working was swallowing the pill when he had some chewed up food in his mouth - in this case an Oreo which I bought specifically for this purpose!

I'm hoping that with a few more days of practice we'll be ready to start the Concerta. I really do appreciate the benefit of all of your experience.