Hello all i'm new here and I have a 5 year
old son who was diagnosed with bipolar if
there are any other parents of young
children I would like to know how they
handle their childs illness and what types
of medications their children are on. My
son is currently on adderallxr , risperdal
and tegretol. Well thank you to anyone
who can answer.
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Cleansingspirit
New User, Becoming EHEALTHy
Joined: 02 Feb 2006 Posts: 5 Location: Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Posted: 02-02-06 23:15pm
I am sorry, I am going to be blunt, and
straight to the topic.
Are you kidding me?...Who the hell
diagnosed a 5 year old with bipolar???...A
person, I hope!
Do you want your child to live
well?...Good!...Get him off all the junk
medication he is on, take all the pop away
from his diet, right now!...He is to drink
water, not juice, not pop! His weight,
divided by two, in ounces, is as much
water as he needs everyday!...So, if he is
40 lbs, divided by two is 20, in ounces,
so, he would need 20 ounces of water a
day, got it?
Now, another pertinent question, when was
he vaccinated last?...There must have been
a vaccination there, and I bet he is
suffering from side-effects!...Welcome to
the real world. If so, it needs to be
antidoted.
Another point, he needs fish oils, and
soon!
If you take this message serious enough,
you could email me, and I will talk to you
further about it. He can be treated,
really fast and effectively, in a matter
of a few months, but you need to act now,
take charge, and stop listening to the
doctors you are listening to!...Really!
Good luck!
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M-K
New User, Becoming EHEALTHy
Joined: 02 Feb 2006 Posts: 20 Location: ,
My Son, Posted: 02-03-06 23:16pm
Well thank you for that post which goes to
show you are not a doctor, my son doesn't
drink any pop. He drinks milk, sugar free
koolaid and water his last shots were when
he turned five and he will be six in
april. I have been to over three
psychologists who have tested him to make
sure. Trust me I don't like having my son
on medication to help him. Yet while I
say that his grades in school have
improved, he no longer attacks his younger
sister and he is calmer then he has ever
been. His father has bipolar also and
refuses to go on medication to help him so
I know what can happen to my son if he
doesn't get the help now that he needs his
father is in prison and has no chance of
getting out. I thank you for concern, yet
I was asking other mothers who are going
threw what i'm going threw to respond.
But again thank you.
M-k
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Cleansingspirit
New User, Becoming EHEALTHy
Joined: 02 Feb 2006 Posts: 5 Location: Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Posted: 02-04-06 10:05am
Hello again,
well, I am indeed a doctor, and I work
with children a lot, mostly with
neurological disorders, including autism
and cerebral palsy!
First, 5 year olds cannot have bipolar
disorder!!!!...There brains are not even
developed, yet!...So, I have to tell you
his problem is somenting else.
But if you insist to agree with the 3
psichologists, then go ahead, do what they
tell you, and good luck!
It will be interesting to see how many
other mothers respond to your query?!...I
am personally interested in learning from
other cases!
By the way, koolaid is pop, no matter how
you look at it. Anyway, did not want to
leave your comment unattended. Be well,
and good luck. I am sorry you are facing
such a difficult case.
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anttm04
Experienced User , Rather EHEALTHy
Joined: 05 Feb 2006 Posts: 121
Posted: 02-05-06 09:17am
Hi there. I am also new to this forum. I
am not a doctor, but I can sympathise with
you and your son. I have 3 children of my
own. My 8 year old was diagnosed with
adhd and a mood disorder at the age of 5,
though his psych. Has consistently raised
the possibility that he may have bipolar.
Currently he is on strattera and
terazadone, and has recently been
precribed risperdal, though has not
started that particular med. Yet. He has
been on several (the most effective
combination was straterra and zyprexa
combination but the insurance companies do
not like to cover these meds for children
under 12)..Anyway, I understand your
frustration. In terms of discipline, I
can say that dealing with a child like
this is not easy..I gave up spanking when
he was 2..It was ineffective and only made
problems worse. Time-out (in the
traditional sense) is also not
effective..Mostly, I have found that
speaking to him very firmly and
matter-of-factly, but in a calm tone of
voice helps a lot...I try to pick my
battles very carefully..Those issues with
high importance (fighting with siblings,
dangerous behaviors, etc. ) are dealt
with immediately by separating him from
the rest of us (usually in his room, where
he is able to calm down) and then we spend
time talking about what is going on. The
more annoying-type behaviors are dealt
with by ignoring him when possible,as they
are mostly done out of seeking attention.
I have found, that when I need to give
consequences, they are in smaller
increments...For example, if he is all
wound up and not staying in bed at night,
I will first give him a warning and then
he loses 10 min. Of play time the next
day..When behavior continues, I add 10
min. Per time...Sometimes he will end up
grounded for an entire afternoon; others
with only 10 min...This seeems to have
been the most effective type of discipline
as he still has a chance to "redeem"
himself..And he has made progress this
way..I hope this helps..
Here is a website I have found
particularly helpful:
juvenile bipolar research foundation http://www
.Bpchildresearch.Org/juv_bipolar/index.Htm
l
you can also do a search on juvenile
bipolar or early onset bipolar disorder
that will offer many articles/websites
dealing with this very thing...Good luck
to you.. :)
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M-K
New User, Becoming EHEALTHy
Joined: 02 Feb 2006 Posts: 20 Location: ,
Thank You Posted: 02-11-06 22:56pm
I would like to thank you for your message
since I have last been on here my son had
a allergic reaction to his tegretol and we
have had to put him on lithium soo maybe
that might still help him. Anyother
parents who would like to share their
stories, like anttm04 has stated not alot
of programs are avaliable to parents of
bi-polar children. Well untill next time
thank you again anttm04 at least i'm not
alone.
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anttm04
Experienced User , Rather EHEALTHy
Joined: 05 Feb 2006 Posts: 121
Posted: 02-11-06 23:39pm
No, m-k, you sure aren't alone..It sure
feels that way though, doesn't it? I hope
your little one is feeling better with the
med. Switch...My boy's psychiatrist has
spoken of putting him on lithium or
depakote, but I am not quite ready for
that step (especially given that his is
not confirmed as bipolar yet)..Please let
me know how your child does on the
lithium...I am so afraid of that..We also
have the problem that my sons metabolism
seems to be unusually high, so we are
having to raise the doseage on his meds
more often than I am comfortable
with...And the side effects are often
uncomfortable for him...We had success
with the strattera and zyprexa
combination...Since he's been on the
trazadone, he seems to have gone into a
(mainly) manic stage..Frustrating!!!! His
teacher is even noticing behavior changes
in school. So, we are currently having
some significant difficulties...Please let
me know of any strategies that you have
for dealing with the behaviors that go
along with this..I am running out of ideas
(i jokingly told his case manager that I
was going to end up needing medication
before we get him okay again)..Anyway,
it's comforting to know that someone out
there knows what I am going through as
well... :d
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M-K
New User, Becoming EHEALTHy
Joined: 02 Feb 2006 Posts: 20 Location: ,
Anttm04 Posted: 02-12-06 01:46am
My son was also on strattera yet it seemed
not in the bit to help him then my sons
doctor stated to me that my son was on the
short acting and he needed to be on a
longer medication strattera was only
working for about 3-4 hours thats when we
discussed putting him on adderall xr, 15
milligrams is all that he is taking and it
is working for about 10 hours a day I know
there was a huge difference in my son
within the first week of taking adderall
but I know it is a combnation of the other
medications also that he is taking. But I
though maybe allowing you to know that
strattera didn't work for my son because
it wasn't a extended release tablet might
help you out let me know if anything
changes. As for the behavior my son has
done a 180 i'm able to talk to him now
when he is upset where as before he would
spit, kick and throw stuff at me. He is
able to calm himself better also he is no
longer fighting at school and has started
to get along with his 3 year old sister
better. Let me know how everything is
going ok.
M-k
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anttm04
Experienced User , Rather EHEALTHy
Joined: 05 Feb 2006 Posts: 121
Posted: 02-12-06 10:39am
Hi again...My son has been on the
strattera now since he was 5 or 6..They
had him started on clonadine, but it made
him cry all day long..His psych said she
doesn't believe he can handle the
stimulant drugs and so strattera has been
a life saver for us...It improved
dramatically with the zyprexa, but they
won't put him on that anymore..They tried
seroquel, which worked kind of, but took
him off that too...Now they have
prescribed risperdol but it has yet to go
through...Did your son suffer any side
effects with the risperdol? I'm asking,
only because the psych. Also prescribed a
med. To counteract the side effects of
risperdol..I guess it can make the child
get real shaky for a while, so I was a bit
nervous about that one too..For a while he
was doing great mood and behavior-wise..No
problems (or few, anyway) in school..He's
never really gotten into fights and all in
school and he's really gentle with animals
and children who are smaller than he
is...But since he started on the
trazadone, he's become absolutely
impossible to deal with..Has to
argue/fight with anyone who disagrees with
him, lies like crazy, cannot complete
anything (school, chores, projects, etc),
fights with his brother and sister all the
time and the tantrums are back..Nothing is
ever his fault..He's almost become
"paranoid" like everyone is out to get him
into trouble...Etc...His teacher is even
noticing changes in him at school...So, I
am worried..I want to take him off the
trazadone, but without it, he can't sleep
(he's never been a good sleeper)..Without
it, he may only sleep 3 or 4 hours a night
and then be miserable throughout the
day...Sometimes I just want to take him
off of everything but that isn't an option
at this point (he was off for several
months last year and showed signs of
suicidal ideation..I almost had him
hospitalized after a straight 2-hour
screaming tantrum!)...Anything, thanks for
listening... :)
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M-K
New User, Becoming EHEALTHy
Joined: 02 Feb 2006 Posts: 20 Location: ,
Posted: 02-12-06 17:55pm
Alex is on risperdal now and I don't
really see any effects, to counter that he
was put on tegretal that helped him at
night, he would finally fall asleep at
9:00-9:30 instead of 12:00-12:30. Yet he
had a reaction to that and that is when we
put him on lithium. I'm still waiting for
the insurance to approve that. Alex was
at the stage of it being everyone elses
fault at school home ect.. Now he is more
open to admit his own faults and tell what
happened instead of the he or she started
it. He once bit a girl at school once for
not giving him the toy he wanted yet all
that has changed with his medication.
Well hope this helps a bit my sons doctor
gave me a website to research all the
medications he was given if you would like
the site it is www.Risperdal.Com
it kinda helped me with side effects
ect... Well hope you have a good day/
evening.
M-k
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anttm04
Experienced User , Rather EHEALTHy
Joined: 05 Feb 2006 Posts: 121
Posted: 02-13-06 09:20am
This whole med. Management thing has
gotten crazy already..Last night when we
went to pick up trey's prescription for
risperdal (which was approved more than a
week ago..I held off because he's been on
antibiotics for an ear infection), the
pharmacy has said that it hasn't gone
through there yet and that it's not fda
approved for children his age (he's
8)...Oh boy...The psychiatrist is asking
me to have a psychological evaluation done
for him so that she can make a diagnosis
one way or the other, so I spent several
hours on the phone fri. To locate a
psychologist to do the eval...We've hit
somewhat of a dead end there..Even his
case manager is coming up empty...He's
supposed to be starting back with
counseling soon, but not sure exactly
when..And I am still not able to find any
kind of support group for dealing with
this...It doesn't appear that there is
much in the way of mental health support
in my area, especially when it comes to
children with problems....I think the
reason that it is so frustrating is
because I can see what this is doing to
him and not being able to help is
excruciating...In the meantime he is
getting worse just as fewer answers are to
be found..Have you had anything similar or
is mental health better in your area? The
psych. Prescribed benztropine to go along
with the risperdol, for the side
effects...That, interestingly went
through, though he won't start that til he
starts the risperdal (if it ever does get
approved)...I've actually asked that if
they are having problems with getting the
risperdol approved, and if they have to
approve something in that class of meds,
that they try to go for the zyprexa
because he did very well with that
one..Relatively few side effects and mood
was stable...I hope all goes well with
your little one...Does the risperdal help
him sleep? Or does he not have sleeping
problems? I would like to be able to take
mine off of the trazadone at some point
(soon, if possible)..Anyway, take care..
:)
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M-K
New User, Becoming EHEALTHy
Joined: 02 Feb 2006 Posts: 20 Location: ,
I Hear Ya There, Posted: 02-13-06 09:54am
The first psychiatrist my son was supposed
to see canceled on us 4 times in a row
thats when I hit my limit, it was offered
threw a center that was well known. So I
found out there were only one other place
I could take my son, in the town I live in
if not there then I would have to take him
a hour away to get help thankfully the
center for psychology has come threw for
us his counselor is great and his doctor
is even better I stay in contact with his
doctor every week about progress and
downfalls. I understand about the
medication alex was on strattera and
couldn't get the adderall untill the
doctor himself called to get it done. The
best thing about alexs doctor is he
handles all the medication calls to our
pharmacy. My son had sleeping problems he
would stay up till 12-1 am when he had
school in the morning really taken a toll
on me. Since he started his risperdal he
is sleeping by 9:30-10:00 but what stinks
about that is I can no longer keep him up
for the movies on friday and saturday
nights cause he has to take it at 8:00 pm
every night. Well I feel for you I know
how frustrating it is I know our local
hospital has help for adults with bipolar
yet with children it is still a no no to
allow a child and parent to get support.
Like the other writer wrote no way can a
child have bipolar well sad to say it
happens and its about time people are
aware of this and parents and children get
the help the badly need.
Keep the faith i'm
here also and we can do this :)
missy (m-k)
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anttm04
Experienced User , Rather EHEALTHy
Joined: 05 Feb 2006 Posts: 121
Posted: 02-13-06 23:27pm
Hi missy..Thank you so much for your
reply..I am here for you too whenever you
need to chat/vent, etc...It's comforting
to know that there is someone out there in
my situation...Where are you, if you don't
mind my asking? I am in fla. And it
seems like there is just nothing for
mental health support...Especially for
children..It makes me a little more at
ease thatyour son has done okay on
risperdal..It doesn't appear likely that
we'll be able to get the risperdal..I am
really pushing for the zyprexa, if
possible, as he was on that before and did
wonderfully on it...I really don't want to
try the lithium or depakote yet...The
psych told me that if we put him on one of
those he would have to have frequent blood
testing...Trey absolutely hates needles
and he is very strong for a boy his
age....I cannot hold him when he is in
panic mode, so my husband has to do the
blood work ups with him (my son can
literally knock me down when he is being
irrational and I am not a small
person)..Right now we are trying to work
on behavior management...Getting him to
follow directions when asked, etc...And
being respectful (which has lately ust
about gone through the window!! As I said
before, he has been somewhat manic since
he started on the trazadone...I am really
afaid for him because as he grows, if
things dont' get better, he may not be
able to control himself and may actually
hurt someone..And it absolutely destroys
him when he actually does (once the raging
stops and all)...Unfortunately (or
fortunately, depending on the way you look
at it), we are on medicaid..I have been a
stay at home mom with the kids since they
were tiny but finished my bachelor's
degree in elementary education in
may..Just having difficulty getting a job
at the moment...Anyway, the whole medicaid
system has changed drastically over the
past year and has made it difficult for
him to get the meds he needs...They tried
cutting him off of strattera last month (i
nearly lost it then)..Suggested that we
try ritalin/adderal...He cannot handle
stimulants at all!!! Anyway, they got it
approved for the rest of the month, for
now..We'll see what next month brings..Let
me know how all is doing with you and
yours and good luck to you with the
lithium..Tracy
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danmarkas
New User, Becoming EHEALTHy
Joined: 18 Feb 2006 Posts: 3
Posted: 02-18-06 13:21pm
Putting any child on brain chemical
changing medications
(especially that young) shows you are not
a mother fit to make decisions for the
basic health of her son. Sorry, its a
slap in the face, but horrible.
He'll be messed up forever.
Its not bipolar, its spoiled.
:roll:
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DSmith529
Experienced User , Rather EHEALTHy
Joined: 18 Oct 2005 Posts: 59
Posted: 02-18-06 14:24pm
Quote:
putting any child
on brain chemical changing medications
(especially that young) shows you are not
a mother fit to make decisions for the
basic health of her son. Sorry, its a
slap in the face, but horrible.
He'll be messed up forever.
Its not bipolar, its spoiled.
:roll:
once again, demonstrating borel's theorem
hasn't worked to date.
By the way "it" is used inappropriately in
this sentence, as "it" is a child. The
word you are searching for is "he".
But you keep on typing danmarkas, if you
are immortal and given an infinite amount
of time, you will produce hamlet.
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M-K
New User, Becoming EHEALTHy
Joined: 02 Feb 2006 Posts: 20 Location: ,
Danmarkas, Posted: 02-18-06 21:55pm
Thank you for that well informed
information. I'm honestly abit tired of
people stating to me that it is my fault
that my son has a chemical imbalance and
to call me unfit is taking it abit over
the edge. My sons father I believe is
bi-polar and is in prison for the rest of
his life, now would I rather take the
chance of getting my son help now or
allowing him to become like his father.
Well allowing him to be like his father
then you would blame me for doing nothing
when I saw his behavior decreasing. So
take your pick honestly you dont know my
son and what he is capable of doing to
family,friends and animals. And then to
call him spoiled is soo far from the truth
also. My son has a bed and a dresser in
his room because he has destroyed
everything else that I have gotten him.
When you live one day in my shoes then you
can judge me and my child untill then you
are allowed your opinion but i'm stating
facts.
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anttm04
Experienced User , Rather EHEALTHy
Joined: 05 Feb 2006 Posts: 121
Danmarkas Posted: 02-19-06 22:46pm
I have news for you sir, or madam, or
whatever you may be..It's rather quite
obvious that you a) don't have children of
your own b) you don't have children with
mental health issues or c) you have a
child or children with mental health
issues and are in denial..What ever your
probelm is...Until you have walked in my
shoes or in the shoes of one like me, you
have no clue as to what you are talking
about...We are not dealing with your
typical spoiled child..Whiny because
he/she is used to getting his/her own
way..At least in my case, we are talking
about a child who has had serious
difficulties in his life (outside of
simply behavior) almost from
birth...Pregnancy was difficult at best,
he did nothing but scream for the first
year of his life..He has been climbing and
jumping off of (dangerously high) things
since he was able to walk...At the age of
4 had dental surgery under anesthestics
and within 2 hours of waking up, was in no
pain and racing through the house like
nothing ever happened and when his case
manager came over had run outside, climbed
to the top of the van and jumped off
before either of us could stop him...We're
talking about a child who cannot
sleep..Once he gets to sleep, cannot stay
asleep for more than 3 hours because he is
racing..His tantrums, when he is raging
are so severe that he can scream at the
top of his lungs for more than an hour
straight..He can be (but usually isn't)
violent and he is physically stronger than
I am...He is not spoiled by any means...I
set a rule and I do not back down under
any circumstances, regardless of the
screaming, kicking, throwing things,
etc...And every single time there is a
consequence that follows...I have 2 other
perfectly "normal" children who do not
have his problems and I am frequently
complimented on how nice my kids are...The
point here is, I am an advocate for my
child...I do not like that he has to be on
medication, but he has threatened
suicide...At 8!!!!Years old..I do not take
lightly that he needs medication..It took
me over a year of therapy for him to
decide to conced to trying medication and
I have seen a completely different,
relaxed and happy child whose self-esteem
has increased..Please, until you know what
I and others are really going through,
reserve your judgments...You do more harm
than good for those who are looking for
help..
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quicksilver024
New User, Becoming EHEALTHy
Joined: 01 Mar 2006 Posts: 35
Posted: 03-08-06 10:49am
I really dont want to judge you or your
actions, i'm not there and I dont know
what it is like. At the same time this
thread makes me want to cry, seriously, I
dont cry often either. My niece and
nephew are heavily medicated from a very
young age, same types of meds, but you
could throw another couple in there. In
their case I can honestly say, because I
was there; it was their parents lack of
attention and lack of discipline. I find
it absolutely disgusting that because my
niece was having trouble reading, she was
within months put on adderall
(amphetamine), zoloft (antidepressants),
valium (tranquilizers) and depakote. I
know she doesnt have problems, its
becausew my brother is on the road a lot
and his wife works in daycare, meaning she
doesnt have much evergy to "deal" with her
own children when she gets home.
This is pretty much all I have to say, and
again i'm not implying that this is your
case, but my g-d it is troubling for me to
think about. All those drugs will affect
childerens growth development and make
them drugs addicts before theyre even
aware of what a drug is.
I'm sorry it just bothers me, I wish you
the best of luck, just do what you
think is right.
~silver
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erogers33
Experienced User , Rather EHEALTHy
Joined: 09 Jan 2006 Posts: 141 Location: Littleton, CO
Posted: 03-08-06 11:15am
Silver, not all cases are like your neice
and nephew's. Many children .D.O need
medications for their disorders to be
treated. Granted, I don't have children
of my own yet, but I grew up with a
brother who had .A.D.H.D and it wasn't
easy. Did that mean my mom "ignored" him
and didn't raise him right? Absolutely
not. My mother is a wonderful, loving,
caring woman. All of my siblings and
myself were raised to be good people, I
think. My brother was diagnosed at a
young age (probably 6) and was put on
ritalin to control his adhd symptoms, and
it did help. Later on, in his young to
mid-teenage years, he was put on paxil.
Now at the age of 20, my brother is a very
well-rounded, smart, funny, wonderful
individual. It had absolutely nothing to
do with my parents' behaviors or actions.
There really are such things as "chemical
imbalances", no matter what tom cruise may
think!!!
Now on to my fiance, who was recently
diagnosed with bipolar disorder. Again,
this is a chemical imbalance and had
absolutely nothing to do with how he was
raised. In this case, he was in a very
bad motorcycle accident 4 years ago, which
contributed to his being bipolar. After
the accident, he went through rapid-cycle
emotions; one minute he'd be laughing, the
next he'd be in a fit of rage, and the
next he'd be crying. He finally got on
medication about 6 months ago, after being
in denial for so many years. And I can
honestly say that he has made a complete
180 turn. I don't have to worry about
saying something that will put him into a
rage, I don't have to worry about his
happiness being very temporary and
short-lived... Because I really never
knew what type of mood he would be in. He
is on depakote and celexa, and they have
worked wonders.
I guess my point is.... Please think
twice before you think that all cases are
related to parenting behaviors.
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quicksilver024
New User, Becoming EHEALTHy
Joined: 01 Mar 2006 Posts: 35
Posted: 03-09-06 09:45am
Please think twice before assuming I said
these mothers were doing that. Without
actually reading what I said.
To quote myself;
"again i'm not implying that this is the
case"
and i'm not like tom cruise, what he said
made me lose a lot of respect for him,
although he is in the scientology cult. I
for one have gone through almost all the
meds listed in this thread, including
effexor, zoloft, wellbutrin, ativan,
klonopin, xanax, valium, adderall,
depakote, and was almost forced into
lithium.........
The thread just reminded me of my family,
and it made me sad, I for one have been
diagnosed, bipolar, gad, and ocd, it's not
a fun combination.
