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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To give my child medised because I need some sleep!

143 replies

Neighboursfan · 09/09/2007 20:37

I'm not used to ds waking up - he's 16 months and pretty much slept through the night since he was 12 weeks.

His molars are coming through - that and he's just started walking so he's too excited to sleep - and he's up twice a night. I give him milk the first time he wakes but the second time I've had enough and dope him up.

I'm not a good sleeper and when he wakes (even if he goes straight back down), I'm awake for the next hour at least paranoid that he's going to wake again.

I don't think he's particularly in pain, and he doesn't have a fever, so AIBU to give him medised so I can sleep? Please tell me I'm not alone! Obviously it is not happening every night.... but is it wrong to say that medised rocks?

OP posts:
Meglet · 10/09/2007 14:17

Medised if he's in pain but not just to make him sleep.

My wisdom teeth are excruciating when they play up so a baby must have a horrid time when their teeth come through. If I didn't have paracetamol for my teeth I'd go mad.

kslatts · 10/09/2007 14:20

I've never used medised so don't really know what it is used for. I have always given mine calpol or nurofen when they have a high temperature or really need some pain relief, but I would only give them any drugs if I really thought they needed it for pain relief, I would never give something just so I could get some sleep.

I think YABU.

JeremyVile · 10/09/2007 14:21

DS started teething at 7 months he's now 18 months and is currently getting his 13th and 14th teeth through. I have given him Medised at night for teething about ten times in almost a year.

Unless you are very unlucky teething pain is not a constant thing, so it wouldn't be a case of giving it every night for 2 years solid.

Monkeybar · 10/09/2007 14:24

My ds gets medised either for high temp, or if I think it's pain, or if he's really snotty - not just a bit snotty, or he'd have it virtually every day But when he's really struggling to breathe, he gets a low dose of medised - for easing his breathing and the knock on effect of helping him get to sleep.

princessmel · 10/09/2007 14:24

We used to give medised for teething. Calpol didn't make any difference to my 2.

I think its unreasonable if you're doing it just to avoid a bad night though.

suzycreamcheese · 10/09/2007 14:27

try homeopathic teething powders
they worked for ds, am sure of it

neighbours fan..am sure it is really really hard, ..try catch up sleep/rest when you can

bubblagirl · 10/09/2007 14:35

you could get ashton and parsons teething powder it helps to ease tething pain and settle tummy it might just be routine to him now to wake at them times

try to pay him no attention if possible and seee if he'll cry himself off to sleep i used to leave small cup of ater in my ds cot so he could feed himself if waking in night

i have been known to give my ds medised but only if i know its needed

try nurofen for kids better than calpol you might find if you are giving this to help him sleep he will not know how to settle himself so will need it all the time to settle you will have to have few sleepless nights but try the controlled crying leave it 1 min go in and reassure your there then leave 2 mins then 5 then 10 mins he will need to get used to settling himself

bubblagirl · 10/09/2007 14:37

water lol

ScottishMummy · 10/09/2007 14:38

paediatric analgesia are specifically for short term pain relief (no more than 3 days)so to give as a sedative is incorrect administration and potentially harmful

princessmel · 10/09/2007 14:39

There was a smilar thread last night.
Well it was talking about medised as a sedative www.mumsnet.com/Talk/5/384824?stamp=070908221155

ScottishMummy · 10/09/2007 14:42

by incorrectly administering paediatric analgesia you are actually masking the root symptom of another malaise (eg child awakening)

3andnomore · 10/09/2007 15:01

Hm...if he isn't sleeping right now because he is teething (then he is possibly in discomfort), so, giving medised would be fine...but of course not to dope him up!
I always use either medised or ibrufen, because calpol, for some unknown reason, is something that my children just will not take without sicking it up stragiht after....
Also, my Kids alwayus had really runny noses and usually came down with a cold at teh time of teething, so, medised helped their breathing...

ScottishMummy · 10/09/2007 15:08

but op said "I don't think he's particularly in pain, and he doesn't have a fever, so AIBU to give him medised so I can sleep? "

CrookshanksinJimmyChoos · 10/09/2007 15:24

YABU

I only give DS medised when I'm absolutely positive that his cold or teething is giving him such disturbed sleep, that him having a good sleep is beneficial for him. Even then, I don't give him the full dosage of 5mls for his age, give him 2.5ml or 3ml. Lack of sleep is part of the parental job description - as hard as what it is!

MaryBS · 10/09/2007 15:39

My Dr suggested Piriton for the occasional night to aid sleeping, which is suitable from 12 months...

3andnomore · 10/09/2007 15:48

hm, but normally the lil one does sleep well, and it is only now wiht teething that he doesn't...therefor it is not actually unreasonable to consider that the little mite is in discomfort...

When I got my first wisdom tooth through, I was in agony....

grouchyoscar · 10/09/2007 15:49

Have you tried Lavender essential oil to encourage sleep.

A drop of lavender and a drop of camomile worked a treat for DS, still does 4 years later

Re the teething part has anybody suggested anbersol. it's a tiny bottle that 'freezes' the painful gum.

Best of luck with it, teething can be awful

3andnomore · 10/09/2007 15:51

anbesol numbs the whole mouth, never mind just the bit that you put it on...a rather weird feeling...lol...

grouchyoscar · 10/09/2007 16:03

yeah, It's great!! LOL

I had a wisdom tooth coming out in sympathy with DS's mouth. It worked a treat on me too

Original poster
Neighboursfan · 10/09/2007 16:07

Well ladies I had a bad night but didn't give in. He woke at 4am gave him milk (I know I've got to sort that one out as well) he went back for about 20 minutes then woke again screaming. This would have been normally the point where I would give medised.

I gave him water (from a bottle so it would calm him - I've never tried giving water at night from a beaker - I think he'd pull the most almighty tantrum). Took him into our room to calm down a bit. Put him back and he screamed for a bit more then went to sleep. Slept til 8 so I suppose it wasn't that bad really.

I do need help tho in getting him off milk at night. I'll post on a different board about that one.

Thanks all.

OP posts:
Original poster
Neighboursfan · 10/09/2007 16:08

Isn't lavender bad for boys? Gives them man boobs or something.

OP posts:
3andnomore · 10/09/2007 16:22

never heard of that...about lavender I mean, lol....

sputnik · 10/09/2007 18:03

I read that too about lavander and boys. In New Scientist or somewhere like that.

3andnomore · 10/09/2007 22:18

oh dear..there is no hope for my poor boys then...if that is true...manboobs will be theres in teh future...

williamsmummy · 10/09/2007 23:01

I did use medised with my third child quite a lot.
I was first introduced to this stuff at a babies sleep clinic.
For some reason the health visitors left the room, and grabbing the moment asked the other mothers how they coped!
A mum dug in to her babies changing bag and produced a bottle!!

I did try the support of the health visitors, but the controlled sleep crying thing was hopeless.

I have to say that all the health visitors were at a loss to support our family, and a year later there was a medical reasons why our son was so unhappy.
This also happened to another mother in the group. A stream of medical issues that the health visitors had know idea about/or training.

In the years that followed I did cling to the medised bottle, the other drugs that I was advised to use twice daily had far stronger side effects , and didnt support us while we waited to see our consultant.

I would recommened this while children are teething, and have the many colds through out their early years.

Having had four children, the need for sleep, at a survival rate of 4-5 solid hours is required.
Children do eventually learn to go to sleep, others take more time than you would have thought!
Those that need extra support to sleep for a whole night etc do not have sleeping problems due completely to the use of medised.
oh, and by poor sleeping we are talking two seperate hours of sleep a night, and 10-20 min cat naps during the day.