DS suicidal thoughts- scared

[Vvworrriedmum]

Ds is 11, has asd and adhd
In bed tonight he was really upset and crying he came into my room and told me he was thinking about suicide and it was really upsetting him.
im so worried about him, he's only 11 I never expected to hear him say that.
he did take his adhd medication today after not taking any for ages and this one is quite new to him, could it be caused by that?
whst can I do?
he has an appointment with his adhd camhs nurse next week anyway and I'm going to stop giving him the medication in case
im so worried I feel sick

Hi OP, I'm so sorry you're both going through this.

Is there anything else that might be a trigger? Does he use any social media sites that might be discussing this for example?

No social media or anything and no unsupervised internet access (at my house) however his dad is less strict and the other week he'd been came accross therian stuff and was convinced he was a therian- I told him that isn't a real thing etc and that it's just internet stuff he's way too young to be involved in but now I'm worried of that was the wrong thing to say or if it's something he's read on one of those websites, I don't know really he's seemed completely fine today been doing Lego, Playing games with me and his brother etc

It can be the medication. Autistic children are much more sensitive to side effects. I’m not saying it is for certain but it can have an impact on mood especially when stopped and started again (not criticising that as I realise it’s the Christmas break). I’d reassure him that thoughts are a sign of feeling really sad and overwhelmed and that he has done the right thing by telling you and should always do so. Try and look like it isn’t upsetting you too much. It’s great he is telling you and it’s good he is seeing the Camhs nurse. Make sure he has any means to harm himself taken away just to be extra safe. Most Camhs have a duty or crisis line so do call if needed.

It might help to tell him the medication could be making him think this way?

Sometimes it is important to separate intrusive thoughts from genuine suicidal ideations. As an autistic woman, thoughts of suicide are very familiar to me and I had intrusive thoughts at many points throughout my life. This is quite difficult to explain but I have absolutely zero intent to commit suicide, yet, when I am overwhelmed or upset the "visions" come and they are very distressing. I am upset by my own thoughts of suicide not because I want to end my life but because I don't and these thoughts are intrusive and difficult to shake off. But they do pass relatively quickly. It's called rumination and the topics of rumination can vary for people.
So yes, speak to CAMHS but I wouldn't necessarily be alarmed at this stage.

I do think it sounds more like intrusive thoughts rather than ideation because he was so distressed about thinking about it. Said half his brain wanted him to and the other half didn't.
i have OCD so intrusive thoughts are something I do get a lot and it sounded similar.
really panicked me hearing him say that though and so sad for him that this is something he has to deal with at 11. I explained it could be from his medication and showed him where is says "thoughts of harming self or others" under the side effects and that did seem to calm him quite a lot

Firstly, remain calm in front of him, even if you’re freaking out on the inside. I have an 11yo DD and suicide delay is absolutely rife (but thankfully nothing more than an ideology) . Dont push or beg for him to open up. Let it happen naturally, spend quality time with him and if you do want to broach the subject to a “shoulder to shoulder” approach - as in don’t do face to face, do it when you’re side by side. For example in the car or on a walk. Keep it high level: “So how are you feeling after you were short the other night?” And let him lead.