Where can I buy melatonin online in the UK for a child?

[SwanRose]

Please can someone tell me where I can buy melatonin in the uk online? I know it’s only given via a prescription but I’m sick of jumping through hoops and waiting months to see a paediatrician meanwhile my child is up every night till 3/4am unable to sleep. I think I read of people buying it online from other countries? any advice on where from? Thanks

(I realise it needs a prescription here but many other countries sell it over the counter)

We have had it prescribed since 2020 and DD is 13 now. She takes 2mg slow release Circadin (occasionally an extra 2mg although she is allowed to take up to 6mg). She is diagnosed with ADHD and it was prescribed by the paediatrician at her ADOS/Qbcheck and then taken on by our GP.

She definitely doesn't make enough naturally. I tested this by giving her a visually identical vitamin D tablet a couple of times. She doesn't take breaks.

She's getting slightly better sleep patterns with age and I think I'll be able to wean her off eventually.

I know it doesn't work for everyone but it has changed our lives and saved our marriage.

Not sleeping is awful for the child as well as the family.

Sorry, I forgot to say that Simply Meds online has it. I haven't ordered it from them as ours comes from the GP, but I have occasionally bought medicines from them for myself and they seem reliable.

With ADHD and the NHS in the state that it is, you've got to do what you've got to do.

We tried EVERYTHING before resorting to medication over a period of 4 years. It dominated our entire lives.

It’s 2/3am usually but seems to be worse in the holidays.

Here: https://britishvita.co.uk/products/piping-rock-melatonin-10mg-120-softgels-pack-of-2-quick-release?srsltid=AfmBOooaIfRzLrcmQXteH32xJq5FbqNBlq6Oqe6h8EXqwWcME57tI07S. Piping Rock is the brand I used to take. I stopped after some time as melatonin doesn't seem to agree with me, though it certainly does work re sleep.

Other recommendations for sleep from one who has been there and tried just about everything: in bed and lights out by 9:30 pm, turn wifi off at night at the router, oil massage to soles of feet (very little oil needed and put on socks if you are worried about the sheets) before closing eyes.

Oh, and blackout blinds--sorry, no time to read whole thread to see if you already have these.

I have given my AuDHD child a 5mg melatonin gummy every night for the last 2 years and it has transformed our lives. Waking up previously many times per night. Couldn’t fall asleep. We had tried it all. For us, this has been life changing. We it originally prescribed in 1mg little white tablets by a private Paed but now we just buy huge tubs of 5mg gummies from the supermarket / pharmacy shelf in the US when we visit family. We buy a years worth at a time and just bring it home in our suitcase. I couldn’t care less what anyone else says / thinks.

If we lived in another European country for example we could buy it off the shelf do people in other countries have different bodies to us that we aren’t allowed something but they are?
I bought melatonin for my ds when he was about 13 from a beauty salon who was randomly selling a USA brand of these no idea if they knew they couldn’t sell them it wasn’t my business I just wanted to buy them. It really helped him, if

I buy mine online from British vita - Piping Rock Kids Melatonin Gummy

This kind of issue is well beyond blackout blinds...

Sorry I see that was a p.s.

The important thing to bear in mind is that in the body, melatonin is primarily produced by the pineal gland in the brain in response to darkness. Light exposure - especially blue light from screens - actively suppresses its release. Hence taking melatonin and not using blackout blinds is a bit like pouring water into a bucket with a hole in it.

Just going to mention it again for anyone reading - don’t start kids on doses as high as 10mg.

Standard starting prescribed dose is 0.5mg - 2mg. High doses can be counterproductive as they desensitise the brain (melatonin receptors can be temporarily switched off if there’s too much melatonin which then makes it even harder to sleep).

It’s really helpful for PP to link to trusted suppliers but make sure you pick a low dose. My DD was prescribed 1mg and it knocks her out like a light.

(I appreciate you were linking the supplier not suggesting the dose @DrNo007 so just wanted to make sure there was no confusion!)

biovea. Drops. What my friend gets for her sen child.

Every country regulates and restricts otc medication differently. National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has melatonin as prescribed medication for very good reasons, especially for children. Look up NICE and BNF resources on it if in doubt.

Thanks all, ive ordered. I don’t care about the judgmental people, we may now actually have a decent quality of life again!

Good luck @SwanRose !

You can’t get it online for a child in the UK, but you can get the same stuff a private dr would prescribe for a child, for yourself from places like pharmacy2u. Our child has a prescription for 2mg circadin which works really well (42kg child). I have bought the same thing from pharmacy2u. You don’t need anything like 10mg. I’d start with 1mg, go up to 2mg if needed.

Though, it’s so expensive that a day trip to Paris with an empty suitcase is a tempting idea!

Also it will make it increasingly harder for you to get your child to sleep without it as it creates dependency. Which is why it’s prescribed. A relative tried to offer it to my child and I didn’t accept for this very reason I don’t want my child dependent on drugs to sleep

Has your child ever stayed up 21 hours? You may feel differently if they had

I was that child, for quite a while. I still get bouts of insomnia as an adult.

Your child still needs medical investigation. Your child should still not be given prescription-only medication without medical supervision.

Then you have no experience as a parent, I can’t work, I don’t have a life, and my other kids are suffering so I will do what I can

I once overheard a mum chatting about how her doctor husband had got melatonin for their kids to make them go to sleep early while camping. No neurodiversity, it was purely for their own convenience.

Take from that what you will.

I'm glad you're ignoring the naysayers, it's hardly dangerous when so many other countries tolerate it

But just to echo PP start on a low dose like 0.5 mg, maybe 1

I also second the magnesium idea, make sure its magnesium glycinate, it's been incredible for my insomnia

The state of New Hampshire tolerates driving without seatbelts. "Other places do it, so it must be safe for us to" isn't an argument.