tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-347324365882583578.post5121710647954073116..comments2023-10-01T06:32:11.982-07:00Comments on PEACE in PUZZLES: more on Aspie boyIntegrity Singerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09196095126605205738noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-347324365882583578.post-44196479939148186602010-01-15T13:21:45.787-08:002010-01-15T13:21:45.787-08:00Wow! I admire you for all you have to deal with. I...Wow! I admire you for all you have to deal with. I hope somehow, something will work. {{hugs}}Stacyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00399175088954291174noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-347324365882583578.post-14462103250869042982010-01-15T08:30:14.827-08:002010-01-15T08:30:14.827-08:00I'm new to your blog, and I love it! We too ha...I'm new to your blog, and I love it! We too have a son with Aspergers & Bipolar. It's been overwhelming, so I haven't blogged in quite a while. But suffice it to say, the mood stabilizing drug is not enough, even at the maximum dose. So this week we are adding & starting Zoloft while we wait for (enter fingernails screeching on a blackboard)...an appointment with a psychiatrist next week. Wish me luck!<br /><br />I really appreciate your blog and can totally relate. Best wishes to you and your family.Kids Special Needshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07297507778283892422noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-347324365882583578.post-73310758559310941422010-01-14T20:44:10.309-08:002010-01-14T20:44:10.309-08:00So, did you take my last advice and take a bubble ...So, did you take my last advice and take a bubble bath? :-)<br /><br />There's a couple of ways you can respond directly to comments. You can either post your own comment right below it - just post as if you were commenting on anyone's blog. Some readers may or may not come back to read the additional comments, though. Or, they may subscribe to your comments and get email notificiations when anyone posts a comment. I personally read too many blogs to utilize this feature, myself. Another way is to answer them in a subsequent formal post (or at least direct specific readers to your former comments so they know you've responded to them) or if you want to take the conversation off-line, several of us have private email addresses linked to our blogs. There's a link to mine on my sidebar.<br /><br />As for the rest of the stuff, I'm definately not the one to ask for advise on meds. I'm not a huge fan of doctors in general, but I HATE pschiatrists with a passion! Every single one I've taken my kids to have been unsympathetic, pompass idiots who do nothing more than act like holier-that-thou drug pushers. They also all told me I was stupid for adopting my kids, I should have expected problems, and that I should disrupt and/or let DCFS run my life. I don't think so! <br /><br />As for meds specifically, I hate the stuff almost as much as I loathe the psychiatrists who push them. But I have to keep my kids on ADHD meds. It's the only thing that even remotely allows them to attach or to be "normal" little kids for awhile. All the sleep meds, including melatonin, give my kids nightmares (me too, actually) or have other side effects that make the cure worse than the ailment. <br /><br />Sleep is such a hard one, though. Especially since without sleep, everyone is wacked out...and when the kids don't sleep, Mom doesn't sleep either, which only exponetially compounds everything. Wacked out kids + wacked out mom = YIKES. <br /><br />You're dealing with more than I've have in this department given there are physiological medical issues behind the sleep issues. However, I can relate, at least on some level. I have medical issues myself that make sleep very difficult, and also very precious when I do get it. If I wake up during the night, or espeicially if someone wakes me up, it's curtains. I may as well get showered and dressed for the day because 90% of the time, I'm done. There's no going back to sleep for me, even if I've only been asleep for an hour or so. My kids, unfortunatley, have night terrors/night mares, most of which are associated with PTSD and they are terrified to go to sleep...or more likely to go back to sleep if they've had an episode. So, they are frequently awake during the night and often look and act very sleep deprived during the day. <br /><br />The only thing I've found even remotely effective is to change the bedtime routine. Hot shower with lavendar soap right before bed, snuggly jammies, and a calm atmosphere in the home. Ha, so what did we do tonight? Played Mario Kart on the Wii together right up until I tucked them in. We'll see how that goes!! I'm thinking it will be ok, because it was fun and playful, not emotionally stressful and angry, which 100% of the time causes big time restlessness and sleep disturbances. <br /><br />Hang in there!Dianahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08444891084585965661noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-347324365882583578.post-11105101954480716132010-01-14T19:03:34.346-08:002010-01-14T19:03:34.346-08:00Each kid is different, lots of trial and error, al...Each kid is different, lots of trial and error, all I can share is what combo worked for us. Risperidone has been amazing, 2.5mg/day, the *only* way for mine to function outside of a psych hospital. In addition Depakote helps the moods (good but not as drastic) but much higher dose - 1500mg/day - we needed a blood test to find the correct max dose for her. I hear lithium would be the next stronger med for bipolar, but so far depakote with risperidone has finally stabilized it. And the sleep is great now too, I'm not exactly sure what that is due to.<br />Also add on low doses of ADHD and antidepressants but ADHD and anti-depressants meds make bipolar worse. So when the bipolar is really bad we back off on these meds and mainly treat the really urgent issue (for us) bipolar.<br />Also has family history of mental health issues, and a very low IQ.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com