ilovedogs

Hello all, it's been a while since I've been on here. My son is 12(almost 13 now) and we've been coming here since he turned 9 so it's been a few years, WOW! He still tics, they still wax and wane and I still haven't truly figured out all his triggers. But, all in all, we're doing well. I have thought about cutting out dairy for him soon because he clears his throat when he eats dairy and sometimes a bit in the morning afterwards if he had dairy the night before. I do have a question, though. Has anyone seen an increase in tics if their kids get chiropractic adjustments? My son had his second adjustment today and his shoulder tic is WAY exaggerated today and he's doing an eyebrow raise that he hasn't done in months. I noticed it right after the doc adjusted his upper back. So, has anyone else seen any reactions good or bad relating to chiropractic treatment? I'm at a loss, I thought it would help. Thanks! Bonnie

This question is actually for my dh. He has suffered from life long depression. He's not into taking meds and he's not good about taking supplements but he will if I put them in front of him and tell him "TAKE THESE!!!" Anyway, I was wondering which supplements would be best. I'm hoping Chemar comes on here because I know she's had experience with many of the supplements. There is a question about whether my dh is bi-polar according to my therapist but I think it's depression and anxiety and stress that seem to be the ongoing factors. I was going to have him try SAM-e but then I thought maybe 5-HTP would help. He's tried B vitamins, fish oils, and GABA for certain periods of time but only gets temporary relief and he gets frustrated so he then stops taking stuff altogether. Things are really stressful around our house and I'd love to hear other's experience. Thanks, Bonnie

I have not seen an increase in tics from using Flonase with ds. I do know that he tics more when we travel to hotel rooms, etc and I attribute that to the allergens, etc in the room. My ds still has carpet in his room and even some stuffed animals but we use a HEPA filter from Rabbit air in his room and keep it on all day. It seems to do a good job.

I have not seen that with my son. I give him immune boosting supplements whenever we travel and during cold and flu season and I don't see him tic anymore than usual. If you have an autoimmune condition, though, you may want to stay away from immune boosting supplements.

My ds likes flavored coconut water for potassium replacement. We also use packets from Trace Minerals Research called Power Pak. They come in different flavors and are excellent at replacing minerals as well as vitamins like C and Bs. I found them on Iherb and at our local health food store and Whole Foods probably carries them, too. If he really needs a sports drink and all that's available is Gatorade or Powerade, I choose Powerade in the white cherry flavor. No artificial colors and Powerade has a better balance of electrolyte replacement than Gatorade does. Along with the fact that they have a white drink so I can avoid the food colorings. My ds plays competitive tennis in 100 degree weather for 6 months out of the year so we try to stay on top of his electrolytes and hydration. Also, you can buy electrolyte enhanced waters or PH balanced waters as a back up. My ds is fond of Fiji water, Smartwater, and Essentia. Anyway, there are lots of other choices out there even if they cost more than Gatorade and plain water, LOL!

Now he's having trouble with stomach problems right at bedtime. I have been resorting to Tums at bedtime and he only takes one, which usually takes care of the issue for him. He says he feels bloated but also hungry at the same time along with some nausea. I know that the enzymes will help with meals but what else can I do at night? I guess one Tums every night isn't that big of deal. I know parents who give Tums to their kids just to get them more calcium. Any thoughts?

Thanks for the recommendations ladies. Yes, Chemar, we've tried quercetin for over a year and didn't see any results. Actually, neither one of us did and I was using both a nasal spray and capsules while ds was just using the nasal spray. I'll look into the enzymes, though.

Lately, my 12 year old ds has been having some digestive issues and I've finally realized it's when he eats beef like cheeseburgers or meatball subs, etc. He gets really full and then has trouble eating for a few days and can't finish a meal. He also has been clearing his throat a lot and he's been drinking more cow's milk instead of the rice milk he used to take so I think I need to switch him back to rice or almond milk. And, on top of all that he also has been complaining about chest tightness, has allergies that are getting worse, and has trouble adapting to the heat(it was 95 here yesterday and he felt sick when he was outside). Anyway, I need to find a new doctor because our naturopath has expanded his practice and he's harder to get in with. I think I really need to find a DAN specialist, quite frankly, but my husband is fighting me on the cost. He just doesn't see the big picture. So, in the mean time I think ds might benefit from the use of enzymes. Any thoughts?

I am pretty good about cleaning out the humidifier and since we live in AZ, we need a bit of moisture in the air since our average humidity is less than 10%. I really need to figure out how to boost his immune system and mine, too, LOL, since I am the one who starts all these problems!

We've tried zinc but it upsets our stomachs so I have to keep the dose small. I'm just tired of listening to people snorting and coughing and sniffling and that includes myself!~

The only thing I can think of is that he took the cold medicine last night, as well, and maybe he's suffering from some sort of synergistic affect? He also is sick and doesn't have a fever but he had a busy day yesterday and maybe he's also tired from the day before? I called his naturopath and told them that I gave him the cold meds and the melatonin and he said it can take up to 24 hrs for it to leave his system, so I guess we're in a wait and see pattern right now. On a good note, he is eating and drinking just fine and I did get him to go for a walk and will have him go outside later today, too.

LOL! Well, I don't know why he's so exhausted. It's 1:30 here and he's still really tired and doesn't want to keep his eyes open. I did realize that I gave him cold meds last night for his stuffy nose and cough and maybe the melatonin combined with the meds did something but I've done this before and never had this reaction. I'm really worried that I over did it and I feel really bad for him. He can't do schoolwork, he looks so miserable, and I don't want to let him take a nap because I don't want him having trouble getting to bed tonight.

I gave ds too much melatonin last night. I think it was about 1.2 mg. He was used to getting around 600-700 mcg. It is noon now and he still can't wake up and it's really hampering our morning. He wants to go back to bed but I won't let him because then it will upset his sleep schedule tonight. How long does it take to wear off? Thanks!

We have been sick for the second time this season and I can't seem to nip it in the bud fast enough. We all get nasty coughs, congestion, fevers, etc and I feel like I'm trying every natural remedy known to man to treat these viruses but they keep coming back. What do all of you do to stay healthy? We take Esberitox(an echinacea supplement) and Vitamin C. I treat the ilnesses with honey, vitamin C, lemon, mullein tea and other immune buiding teas. I also use a humidifier, use essential oils like eucalyptus and tea tree and thieves, but we keep getting sick and staying sick. Ds has a nasty cough right now due to severe congestion. I'm getting tired of listening to the snot machine across the table, LOL! I had to resort to OTC meds and even those don't help that much. Top all this off with allergy season and I feel like we're all miserable, all the time. Ds says he doesn't feel that bad, he's just tired of coughing. It's too bad he won't swallow pills yet or I'd try some other supplements. When will cold and flu season end???? B

Glad to hear that you're in a waning phase. I do enjoy those times despite the fact that we haven't had a tic free day since the tics started. And, to address your issue about why it waxes and wanes the way it does: LOL, I have no idea!!! I just enjoy it when it happens!

I saw. I heard they were calling it 'mega moon'. Funny thing is, ds isn't waxing very much right now and it's pretty much a full moon tonight.

My ds loves FB and spends a lot of time on there. But, once I say turn it off, he turns it off without a fuss. He also finds other things to do with his time when he's bored of it. It is the first thing he does when he wakes up in the AM and it's the last thing he does before bed, but for the most part I haven't had to manage it too much. I just wanted to say that internet addiction is a very real thing, though. My sister is married to a guy who has some real problems with computer addictions, p*rn, video gaming, etc. It has been a struggle their entire marriage and they are in their mid-30s. He will literally beg her to help him turn the stuff off at a decent time at night. It's like he's not capable of getting off the gaming. She said he stays up many nights until 2 AM playing video games or being on the computer. They actually had a situation last year where he met another woman on World of Warcraft and started an emotional affair with her. He told my sis last year that he wanted a divorce and that he was in love with this woman, whom he had never met IRL. It can get out of hand even for adults so it's so important for us as parents to know what our kids are doing online or with their gaming. Luckily for us, ds has not much interest in gaming. He gets bored after about 30 minutes of video games, LOL! But, my sister is concerned already about her 5 year old son. He is already following in daddy's footsteps and loves to participate in the gaming stuff.

Well, not sure what time he fell asleep last night. I didn't give any melatonin or benadryl, just a 1/2 cup of sleepytime tea at around 11:30 or so. I didn't hear from him the rest of the night so I'm hoping that the tea helped him sleep. I know that the tea makes my eyelids droopy and puts me in a relaxed state so maybe it helped him, too? He has a doc appointment tomorrow so I'm hoping to get some insight from him.

My ds isn't PANDA's but was a good sleeper until just this past year or so. Once he's asleep he sleeps straight through the night without any issues. It's the falling asleep that we have trouble with. I just wish he was tired at 10 PM like he used to be. And, I keep him quite active during the day with tennis, running, cleaning house, running errands, etc. I'm exhausted at the end of the day so I have no idea why he's wired and ready to stay up, LOL! We'll see how he does tonight since he got a good night's sleep last night. I also wish he'd sleep with his door closed so my dh and I could have more privacy.

Well, he was so tired last night that he crashed at 10:30. We'll see how the rest of the week goes. I'm hesitant to go back to the Melatonin because I can't seem to get the dose right. Maybe I'll start with 1 MG and see if that works? I also downloaded a CD from Itunes called "Relaxation Music for Pets and Kids". Seriously! My ds loved it. He put it on his Ipod and played it in his room and said it was quite relaxing. Not saying this will help him fall asleep every night but this might contribute to a relaxed state to make falling asleep easier for him. I have met so many people who have said that when their kids hit 12, they had trouble getting to bed earlier and became more night owlish. So, this all may be part of hormonal changes. We have a family of night owls on both sides of our families. My grandmother (she's 84) still stays up until midnight most nights. She and my uncle were always night people and my husband and his mom are the night owls on his side of the family.

They are taking 2.5 MG or 250 mcg? The tablets I have are 3 MG tablets and I break it down to very small doses. I tried taking a whole 3 MG myself, and I was very groggy upon waking and I didn't feel right. I think the most I've ever given him is 1.5 MG so 1/2 a tablet. Most times I break down the tablets as small as I think he needs for the night so the dose is never consistent. I just started back with our cal/mag supplements so hopefully that will help, too. GABA made him tic more and L-theanine made his OCD go out of control so I try to stay away from anything that affects the GABA receptors right now. I'm a bit gun shy.

I posted over on the TS side of the boards but they aren't very active over there. I know many of you deal with sleep issues so I figured I'd pop my question over here. My ds(he's 12) has been having a terrible time falling to sleep. Last night he finally feel asleep at around 12:30 AM. I had given him 600 mcg of melatonin to start and he said he took it at 11:15(so that was pretty late to begin with). At midnight he was at his wit's end and wanted to sleep so I gave him a 12.5 mg tablet of Benadryl. Then at 12:30 when he couldn't sleep still, I upped his dose of melatonin by 300 mcg. Anyway, he finally fell asleep but I don't know if that was exhaustion or because I had to up the melatonin. My dh thinks that ds had trouble getting to sleep because we have been having some really sweet dessert treats after dinner, usually around 8:30 or so. So, I told ds that we need to cut out sugar after dinner and see if that helps. He basically told me that he felt wide awake at midnight. He said that every time he went to close his eyes, they would spring open and he'd be wide awake. I am taking him to a new GP on Friday to discuss some of his issues but I am so exhausted myself right now because we've been up so late. Any suggestions?

Yes, and they do relax him but don't help him fall asleep any faster. 1 hr before bedtime he has to be off the computer and no TV. This seems to be a sporadic problem, too, same with bedwetting. It will happen a few times a week and then it won't happen for 2 weeks, etc. It's spring allergy time here and I wonder if the season change has something to do with it. I'm just so frustrated because of my own lack of sleep. I will be calling our doc and our naturopath later in the week if this continues. I may try upping his magnesium. Thanks Chemar.

Ds is still having sleep issues. Sometimes it takes him well over an hour to fall asleep and he gets distraught and then makes it even worse because he's so worked up. We've been using melatonin on the nights he's having trouble. He's not using it every night, though. Just the past 2 nights have been tough for him and it's waking me up and then I can't get back to sleep so I want to help figure this out for him so that I can get my rest, too. Right now, he's taking about 400-750 mcg of melatonin and I'm not sure why it's not working. I might have to up it 1.5 MG but I'm just hesitant to do that. We also give magnesium, but maybe I'm not giving him a high enough dose of mag, either? I run lavender oil and lemon balm in his room in a diffuser and I have him read for about a 1/2 hr before he turns out his light. You'd think that a kid who ran a mountain first thing in the morning and then played 2.5 hrs of tennis in the afternoon wouldn't have trouble falling asleep. He also went with me to run a few errands and helped me plant some flowers and did some work around the house. Yet, he was still awake at midnight trying to fall asleep. I finally resorted to benadryl and that did help him. What else can I do?

Peglem, which mathnasium did you work for? Was it here in AZ? I've thought of looking into their program but the closest one for me is in Scottsdale, about 40 mins from my house.