Do you drug your babies so you can get a good night's sleep?

[pablopatito]

DP and I are not ones for drugs, both being brought up my mothers from the "plenty of water and lots of fresh air" school of medical care. But DS (11 months old) has been teething and has a cold and he's been having even more broken sleep than normal and he's never been a brilliant sleeper. So the last couple of nights we've given him a dose of medised and omg, he's slept like a log! We haven't had a peep out of him for 12 solid hours. Its bliss! I've had the best nights sleep I've had in over a year.

Suddenly, the tempation to drug him at the merest whiff of a sniff has become overwhelming.

So the decision to drug? How can I be sure I only drug him because its right for him, and not be influenced by my selfish desire to get a good night's sleep?

Get your GP's advice as to appropriate use of medised. Have never used it so don't know much about it, but think you are only meant to use it for a limited number of days at a time.

I can understand the temptation.... no good avice really.

this post actualy made me laugh lol, i think every mother that has discovered medised and its amazing sleep inducing powers have thought about constantly using it but i think you know really that its not fair, how would you like to be drugged to sleep (seriously now!) by all means use it to stop pain to help your baby get the sleep he needs but not for your own sleep! xxx

i did once
ut it never wirks

I just wanted to add a converstaion that made me so angry and sad.
I was in the Health Clinic one day getting DS1 weighed. There was this woman there with her baby talking to the H.V. The H.V asked "does he sleep well?" To which the mum replied "no he's been waking up every night at about 2.00am so I give him calpol and leave him to cry himself back to sleep" By this time I had got so engrossed in listening I forgot I was meant to be dressing DS1 and the H.V. gave me a look! Anyhow, the H.V went on to say "but what if he's hungry or soiled? What if he needs you?!" This woman was completely thick and was more like "Whatever, calpol works so I'll give it!"
Its for reasons like this that I hate Calpol and such like being so readily available. That poor little boy will be just over 2 now.
I'm not for a minute suggesting that you're doing this Pablopatito, it's just your thread reminded me of it.

Apparently my mother drugged me for months
I was a terrible sleeper so she gave me phenergan an antihistamine which also induces sleep.
Worked a treat
Can't say i have had any ill-effects whatsoever and certainly no problems sleeping in later life...
Having said i didn't do it to my own daughter...

I think it's a myth that calpol helps you sleep, though one that loads of people believe. It's only paracetamol how can it help you sleep?

i wish somone would dru gme to sleep, my son sleeps like and angel, its me that cant get to sleep! bring on the medised! xxx

calpol knocks me out. I had bad period pain, took 10ml and fell asleep on the settee 20 mins later. I hate taking anything like that, it has to be severe pain before I do.

pab have had the same thoughts myself as DS was a notoriously bad sleeper and at times I would be at my wits end. When he was teething at around 8mths old someone told me to try medised and he slept through for the first time ever. Like you I had that fleeting thought of how fantastic it was. I dont use the medised that often unless he has a really bad cold where the snottyness stops him having to be woken by the bad nose. However he is 2.4yrs now and I can count on one hand the amount of times that has been. DD is 3mths and I have used it once for her as she had a really bad cold unfortunately it didnt knock her out..lol

I too was raised in the school of "fresh air/sleep/large glass of water cures anything" and I do think it is pretty bad to be using pain relief when it isn't actually needed. my dh takes headache tablets on a pretty regular basis and they are ineffective now, he has to have really strong ones to have any effect.
dd1's arm has to be hanging off before I will give her Calpol. Only if her temperature is significantly raised, and only then if other things haven't worked.
I absolutely would not have Medised in the house, no.

I have done this only once, on an overnight flight from LA to Heathrow. Gave ds Benadryl, he fell asleep in LA and woke up in London. An old lady across the aisle said as we were landing 'I was admiring how you got your son to sleep, you must be a really good mother for he is an absolute angel' - I muttered my thanks as I tried to kick the medicine bottle under the seat out of sight...

I've never been a fan of numbing techniquies and pain concealment. I believe it's healthier to meet needs where possible .... BUT ... I'm going back to work soon with 5am starts , so ask me again in a couple of weeks and I may well have dismounted from my high horse.

Am jealous - NOTHING knocks DS2 out (11 mths)!!!!! Only joking - all those types of medication are only meant to be used on a short term basis anyway aren't they for a particular problem - teething, cold etc.

I drug mine (and look, no guilt!). Drugged dd1 with Phenergan for a year (on prescription I must add!) because she had eczema and was a dreadful sleeper, scratching all night.

Drugged ds for 2 weeks at 10 months (again, on prescription) when I was getting zero sleep as a result of his and dd2's combined nocturnal efforts, and dh working 200 miles away, all during the summer holidays. Was ready to crash the car with myself and the children in it.

Dd2 still gets drugged (Vallergan on prescription) but has unfortunately built up some resistance. But then she does have SN and doesn't quite seem to get the difference between night and day at times - gets up frequently from 1am onwards thinking it's morning.

I don't think there's any shame in needing some sleep, particularly if you have to function during the day.

I seem to have been using calpol constantly recently as ds has had about 3 weeks where he has had raised temperatures and colds. I tend to only give it when his temperature is over 39oC (which it has been quite a lot recently), although that has meant he has had calpol for about 3 weeks on and off (and yes I have been to the doctors several times about it).

The problem is that when you are dosing often it is tempting to give a dose before bed to help them sleep - so I may be guilty of giving it a bit more often than is strictly necessary - .

The other thing is that if I am getting a cold I often get muscle aches and headaches which lemsip helps with - thus letting me sleep. Since lemsip is fundametally paracetamol why shouldn't calpol help ds feel a bit better if he has a bad cold/fever?

As for helping him sleep - it certainly seems to help with teething pain sometimes - and helps him sleep better but I don't give it just for teething anymore as I feel I am giving it so often for illness.

The other times I sometimes give calpol is if he is crying all day and I just can't figure out what the problem is (this happens less often but happened frequently in the past). I was often amazed at the difference in him within 40 mins of givving him the calpol so maybe something was hurting him.

Medised - I have used about twice only for a bad cold but since reading some stuff about it have refused to use it again.

Totally understand the temptation and after a run of bad nights with ds3 recently we've given Medised on the last 2 nights.

Tbh, I feel a bit uncomfortable about it, but OTOH, we only do it if we've been up with him say 3 times - that is so unusual for him as he's usually sparko the moment he gets to bed and doesn't wake till morning - and we'd tried everything else. Very difficult with an 18 month old to know if they are in pain and since he is very dribbly at the moment there is a fair chance that he is teething anyway.

I certainly wouldn't do it routinely, and not for more than say 3 nights.

I have used medised for sedating purposes - when we were away on holiday and having massive problems getting ds1 to settle in the evening, waking several times a night and us all getting really tired and grumpy. It didn't occur to me that we had it until about a week into the holiday - but I have to say it was helpful.
I'd do it again as a short term crisis measure to help get out of a habit but obviously not regularly.

Don't find Calpol makes them sleep at all, only Medised.

Lazycow - what have you read about Medised to put you off it - I'd be really interested to know. Thanks.

I find that every so often for a couple of weeks DS will wake up in the evening and we dose him up with ibuprofedn/calpol etc. I begin to wonder if I am doing it for him or for us. However, nine times out of ten, a tooth will appear and the waking will stop and along with it the medicine stops.

I know my DS is in pain and as his mother if I am able to I want to stop that. If I have access to drugs which will make him confortable I will do so in a moment.

I will admit to once having given medised partly for its sedative properties, when DS was once coming down with a cold and DP and I had a rare opportunity to go out together for the evening. But as medised will make DS's stuffy nose better and make him comfortable at the same time when he might be feeling a little grotty, I feel no guilt for that. He slept beautifully!

However, I wouldn't feel happy to be doing it every night.

medised doesn't work on my little devil, much to my dismay

I would use the medised. It isn't jsut about the mother getting sleep, it's better for the baby. He isn't going to be happy at all if he isn't sleeping properly. I don't believe in drugging generally, but if my kids can't sleep I do it, for them as much as me. I gave dd phenergan once as she had a tickly cough that kept her up three nights runing. I could sleep through it, but she was so tired and miserable. After she slept for a night instead of coughing it cleared up. I wouldn't do it unless they are ill, and during the day I generally leave them to it unless they are running a high temperature. I do think a good nights sleep helps them recover quicker though.

Medised does seem to work wonders - although am v.concerned to hear what you've read about it Lazycow. Medised is so good for colds because it dries up the snot factor - Calpol dosn't seem to do anything for my DS.

Also give a dose of Medised before a plane journey (I convince myself its so the pressure won't hurt his ears so much) but it means that he ususally sleeps at least an hour which is a dream.

I know someone who has given her child medised from the day it was born and if it doesn't have it it's a bad night for everyone.

Please note I am NOT anti medication or vaccines or anything like that.

However Phenergan is the exact same drug (promethazine hydrochloride) as they use in Medised. Phenergan is not licenced for use under 2 years old (without a prescription anyway) yet medised can be used from 3 months. Why is that?

I try and stick to paracetamol (calpol) as it is well tested and has been used for a long time in babies with very little problems. I even steer clear of ibuprofen for babies as there is some doubt over it's safety too (very small amout of doubt but I never said I wasn't paranoid )

I can't help remembering that when I was young junior disprin was very popular (my mum gave it to us a lot) yet now is considered unsafe.

As I said this is just my opinion and many people draw the line as to what they will and will not use somewhere else.