Aibu to want melatonin prescription for child?

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Nearly 10. Over 3 months not being able to sleep. We’ve sorted the night wakes but she can’t drop off til 11 or later. We’ve tried everything, had professional help etc, nothing working. We are all at our wits end. She was a perfectly normal 11 hour sleeper before that, no issues at all.

Has anyone with a child with no additional needs managed to secure a melatonin prescription for their child? I know children with autism who have prescriptions but no one without any additional needs. Just wondering if she needs a reset. It’s the only thing we haven’t tried.

Thanks bobster i might do that.

woudl suggest mediation cd - rays of calm as below there are others - even if doesnt sleep then will be more relaxed...

my ds wouldnt wear ear plugs so no help althogh my niece sleeps in ear defenders! so maybe trail and error...

white noise can be useful for some

end of term won't help she is probably over wound....
to a certain extent give up on trying to 'cure it' sort out some practicals blackout/CD /excercise nice bedtime routine - and tehn she is to stay in bed....
it is like learning any skill the more practice the better...

and yes to the piriton if that breaks the cycle my dc have bad hayfever so much higher dose anti histamine for months - a week of piriton is nothing in comparison....

Thank you Avery really helpful. We have audio sleep stories so might try one before bed tonight. Plus My other daughter uses it for allergies loads but I suppose I’m worried about her becoming reliant. I might try the ear plugs/defenders first actually. That feels better somehow.

I really cannot believe anyone would buy online drugs, especially for children.
My son never ever slept through the night from the day he was born, even now at 33. So he has work that compliments his patterns...he has a really active mind. No special needs, but is unable to switch off.
I was tempted when he was dependant to give him anti histamine, but never did in the end. So I can understand the temptation.

▪If you're looking at natural substances, Chamomile or lavender essential oils induce sleep - sprinkle a few drops on a tissue and place near her pillow.
▪White noise app or a relaxation meditation techniques for children.
▪Warmed milk and quiet time before bed.
▪Does she have something bothering her? - what is she thinking about when she is awake?
▪Reading can be relaxing before bed.

Gosh lolly your poor son. That sounds incredibly tough.

I suppose I know my daughter can do it and use done for her whole life. Some night fears have tripped off this sleepless habit. I am torn between curing her and letting her ride it out and resolve it herself. My gut just wants her to sleep but my cautious mum Says MrsG method is better in the long run.

Though I’d be hapoy to give her back the ear defenders/try ear plugs in the short term.

I hate typing this but I have threatened to cancel our holiday (all in one room) in a few weeks unless this is sorted and stop evening activities if she doesn’t sleep... any views?

Thank you all sweetness - we do all that already. What’s bothering her is worry about not sleeping, rather than the actual fears which prompted this period of not sleeping and seems to have resolved.

Hi there

Just a quick message to say look up weighted blankets too!

Namefor - I’ve heard this but it’s bogging hot here at the moment? Are they very warm?

I’m a lifelong poor sleeper and can recommend a weighted blanket, ear plugs and an eye mask at an absolute minimum. Also proper blackout curtains.

I’m in the US and have taken melatonin, as it’s an over the counter supplement. I will say that a .5mg dose is the sweet spot, according to new research. Larger doses can leave you feeling groggy. Have you any friends traveling to the US in the near future?

ds struggles to sleep if he doesn't get off screens at least an hour before bed, if he is too hot, if he slept too much the night before/got up later than normal in the morning, if he eats too late, is dehydrated, or if his mind is just over active which I think it is common to go through phases of this in pre/early teens/puberty. He sometimes sleepwalks too/talks rubbish and if guided back to bed cant remember in the morning that he came through.

Even now at 15 he is off all screens including his phone least an hour before bed on school nights, it is a great habit to get them into and it doesn't bother him having to be off - he spends the time getting his bag ready for school, getting ready for bed, having a drink, doing some French revision flash cards with me, reading.

He doesn't come through now, but when he was younger if he couldn't sleep due to an over active mind he'd come into our bed and nod off within 10-15 mins. I'd much rather he was in my bed and everyone got some sleep than give him prescription only medicines off an ebay seller! I am shocked people actually do this to their children.

Thank you stop but I wouldn’t do anything without a prescription.

Sleep is an area that has previously been pretty underreasredh and not given the importance it deserves. We are increasingly finding out how amazing sleep is for us, mentally and physically.

If you have a child that struggles with sleep - you need to both put a lot of work into good sleep hygiene habits. Not just taking a drug that you order on the internet and are asking MN about, rather than doing any decent quality research.

There are plenty of research paper,s and forums far more knowledgeable on sleep than bloody MN with shit like 'I give my kid 5mg hun its fine"

Some non drug things that help. Remember you have to be consistent and it takes a while for effects to be seen.

• Same routine all the time. No staying up late at the weekend and getting up late.
• Sunrise alarm clock.
• A good dose of blue light in the morning. Artificial blue light box or get outside for some sunshine on the eyes. You need to experiment to see how long and at what time is optimum for you. Too much too early in your circadian rhythm and you'll be too sleepy too early, then if you fight through it you're screwed.
• Being outside during the day with lots of bright natural light is helpful
• Zero caffeine.
• Low sugar diet and certainly no sugar later in the evening on including natural sugars like fruit.
• No alcohol (not a concern for your child!)
• Wear the orange glasses in the evenings to mitigate blue light from TVs and stuff. They used to be quite cheap but now they are in vogue and expensive!
• Bedroom for sleeping only so you have sleepy thoughts associated with your bedroom and bed,
• Get things like teeth brushed out of the way earlier, before bed. As a brightly lit bathroom and the activity can flick you back to awake.
• Quiet and dark bedroom

The evidence isn't clear re staying in bed and not sleeping, or getting up, doing something else (like listening to an audiobook downstairs) and then going back to bed and re-starting going to bed.

Personally I stay in bed. I am a fan of lying in bed with my eyes closed, in the dark, resting (with an easy and quiet audiobook I've heard before) as for me I still feel relatively rested and relaxed.

What def doesn't help is stressing about it as PP have mentioned. Meditation is good if you can do this.

And she doesn’t sleep with us! No one sleeps then which is worse. We just aren’t used to it. And they don’t watch tv or have screens day to day either.

My DS is much younger but we have switched his night light to a red light one(£5 from amazon) and it has had a very positive impact. Red light is the only light that does not disrupt the production of melatonin. He doesn't like being in the complete dark.

You can get Melatonin on line.
It really didn't work for me though.
Gave me a really upset stomach.

Sominex is pretty good though.
Again, on-line.

I hope you get it sorted soon OP.

Oh yes, also like another PP said weighted blankets can help.Bit of an issue in summer tho!

For me personally the sunrise alarm clock is brilliant too!

Sort blue skies I was at work earlier and missed your very helpful message. Thank you.

Might try a red night too.

Night light

I buy it online. Ridiculous to get a person hooked on sedative anti-histamines when melatonin is safe and OTC is most countries except Backwards Britain.

Have you tried mindfulness? Theres some great apps and audio. I like the sleep ones

Promethazine mentioned above is also known as Phenergan. It's an old fashioned sedating antihistamine. I use it sometimes to reset my sleep, I find it very good. You can buy it over the counter but will need to ask a pharmacist

Melatonin is not licensed for use in children in the UK, at all.
It has been licensed for the last nine months for children.