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meds for anxiety

760 views 9 replies 7 participants last post by  ~mama jewel~ 
#1 ·
I'm coming to the realization that despite trying so many things, spending thousands on therapy, DD1's anxiety is just not going to remain tolerable. Every time I think it might be at a level where we can handle it, something changes and we start the whole thing all over again. Right *now* we are coping but the entire family revolves around her which I don't feel is healthy for the other children either. She also will be going to 1st grade this fall, she has never been in school before so I won't be able to carefully control her days like I have to do now.

We are currently jumping through all the hoops for a new physiologist and when we finally get to see him, I'm not opposed to medication now. Sigh. Anyone BTDT, did it help, words of wisdom?
 
#2 ·
Although meds did not help us, I also have reached the point that I realized it was more detrimental to YoungSon to be so limited by his anxiety, and we were willing to try a few different Rxs. It is hard to admit that things are just not working, and chemicals might be the answer. But it is even harder to watch your child suffer.

I haven't come up with any answers yet, but I know how hard a step this is to take. If you have reached this place through careful consideration, and I know you have, then this is the right thing to try for right now.

I am subbing here to also hear if anyone offers brilliant advice in addition to commiseration.
Sorry I don't have much help to offer...
 
#3 ·
I am commiserating too.


Another mom I know who's DS has AS and a lot of anxiety (same as mine) said that Abilify is working wonders for her son... but the warning of increased suicidal thinking and behavior scares me.
 
#4 ·
Quote:

Originally Posted by mamarhu View Post
Although meds did not help us, I also have reached the point that I realized it was more detrimental to YoungSon to be so limited by his anxiety, and we were willing to try a few different Rxs. But it is even harder to watch your child suffer.

That is exactly how I feel and where we are at. She is limited by what she can do, so much of her life is spend in fear. She struggles enough in other areas as it, she is dyslexic and has SPD that I just want some part of her life to go well. I just rarely see her happy anymore and I want more for her.

Quote:

Originally Posted by serenetabbie View Post
I am commiserating too.


Another mom I know who's DS has AS and a lot of anxiety (same as mine) said that Abilify is working wonders for her son... but the warning of increased suicidal thinking and behavior scares me.
Sigh. I know.

It's nice to hear from other parents in the same boat.
 
#5 ·
MY DS has anxiety & sensory issues as well. Some foods trigger his anxiety so we avoid them, but he has a baseline that just IS. We homeschool, and while we do not revolve things around him anymore (used to before we realized what was going on and worked on it), we do try to accomodate to his resistance to change, need for knowledge & prep time, etc.
 
#6 ·
It is nice... but in a bittersweet sort of way.

I was reading your blog Peony, and my son also deals with insomnia. It is SO bad sometimes... and his anxiety makes it worse. We have tried benadryl in the past, butit makes him so groggy in the morning and then a nightmare at school. This past winter I started giving him melatonin, which did help him get to sleep. At first it seemed so awesome, but then he started complaining of severe nightmares (I read somewhere that vivid dreams are a side effect) so we took him off of it. It never occured to me to mention it to the ped, although I did tell the therapist (he suggested meditation... yeah, easier said than done!). When we go see the psychiatrist this summer I will certainly bring it up.
 
#7 ·
Quote:

Originally Posted by serenetabbie View Post
It is nice... but in a bittersweet sort of way.

I was reading your blog Peony, and my son also deals with insomnia. It is SO bad sometimes... and his anxiety makes it worse. We have tried benadryl in the past, butit makes him so groggy in the morning and then a nightmare at school. This past winter I started giving him melatonin, which did help him get to sleep. At first it seemed so awesome, but then he started complaining of severe nightmares (I read somewhere that vivid dreams are a side effect) so we took him off of it. It never occured to me to mention it to the ped, although I did tell the therapist (he suggested meditation... yeah, easier said than done!). When we go see the psychiatrist this summer I will certainly bring it up.

Yeah, bittersweet. We had vivid nightmares on melatonin as well. Right now she is sleeping better but having nightmares every night, she isn't on anything at the moment. Always something I suppose. I didn't link the anxiety with the insomnia at first either, we have a great pedi who made the connection for me. I doubt I would of thought to bring it up to the psychiatrist. My insomnia isn't anxiety related so I was trying to treat DD1's like it was medical, hence the reason we saw the pedi for it!
 
#8 ·
My 7 year old is on Doxepin. It is an older anti-anxiety med and does not have the black box warnings about suicide. That was really important to DH and me.

The drug has definitely helped significantly with his anxiety. And, it is easily compounded by the pharmacy into a cherry liquid that my son really likes.

But, it did give him nightmares when he took it at night, so we had to switch to mornings. And it has caused a big weight gain. He was very underweight when he started (still wearing a 4T at age 6) but is now barely fitting into a size 8.
Once school lets out this week, DH and I are taking him off of it for the summer to see what happens. We've already cleared it with his psych doctors. There is a 2 week gap between camp ending and school starting where we can start it back up again.
 
#9 ·
My son has anxiety disorder but he also has bipolar disorder so our focus for medication is stabilizing the moods and so far the bipolar meds have worked to stabilize the anxiety as well. He is currently on lithium and risperdal (and eltroxin for thyroid issues but that's a different story). I would never consider leaving a child with a mental illness unmedicated, but that is just me. To me, I don't feel it is my right to mess with my kid's chance at a happy life and I know without the meds he doesn't have any chance at a happy life. I would try the meds and see if they help. You owe it to her to at least give it a shot. As hard as it is for us as parents to see them suffer and have to deal with their issues it is 100 times harder for them to be in their heads and living it (I have bipolar disorder and anxiety disorder myself and have since childhood so I know firsthand).
 
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