Thread 39 - Covid Cohort - Our Adult Children Now Post 18

[CinnamonOrangeCremeBrulee]

This is a support thread for our young adults post GCSEs 2020, regardless of their educational setting, and their results ( or life updates for those who went into work or have had results earlier). It is respectfully requested that all are supportive and helpful to each other. If you want to start a debate, e.g state vs private, uni vs employment please don't within this thread.

Some of us have been here since first thread back in yr10, some will be new. Everyone has been friendly and helpful in the past. Everyone is welcome. It is hoped this will continue. We were previously on the secondary board and then further education, now we shall be here in 'Parents of Adult Children' gulp

Our DS/DD may continue down various pathways ( employment, apprenticeships, higher ed). Be warned there might be lots of 'Uni Freshers' chat this time of year. My experience is that everyone is welcomed wherever, whatever their child is doing we have some in work, gap years , apprenticeships etc too. Lots of contributors with different experiences and always sympathy and support to be had !

That’s fabulous @cheninblanc. I’m so pleased for her.

@Alsoplayspiccolo DD’s psychiatrist removed melatonin when she reached 18 as it was no longer licensed above 18, now both she and DH take Amitriptyline for sleep which she prefers as there is less of a hangover in the morning and her Meth boots in quicker

DD does need a booster of quick acting meth in the early afternoon, DS is heading in that direction as they’re both on max dose of long acting . The methylphenidate actually helps with her POTS but she still regularly hits a heart rate of 200 when standing

@Tomnooktoldmeto I'm supposed to be on Amitriptyline for something else but so far haven't used it as I was led to believe that using Amitriptyline males one unable to function during the day as you are in a drowsy zombie like state throughout? is this your experience with your dh and DD?

@Shimy i take 100mg of amitryptaline each night to help my headaches. It’s not made me any more tired than usual.

@EquallyDivided I’m exactly the same in meetings. I’ll go in thinking I feel alert, not at all tired, this will be fine and then within 15 mins my eyes are closing. Writing notes is hard too if it’s boring, but dab sometimes help.

@Shimy I’ve been taking the sister drug Nortriptyline for 18 years for pain. Whilst it may sedate you initially you soon develop a tolerance and none of us are drowsy on either form

Amitriptyline is a good old fashioned drug which is why it’s still prescribed and has multiple functions. Nortriptyline is historically meant to be less sedating which is why I take that form because I also take other drugs that can sedate

DD finds Nytol & Sominex better than melatonin. But the Gp still appears to be happy to prescribe it here.
Brilliant news @cheninblanc. Your DD really deserves a fantastic year after all her recent trauma.

Talking about our DC and medication just a quick reminder that from today in England they are no longer eligible for free prescriptions

@Tomnooktoldmeto thought it was free until they turn 19 ?

@cheninblanc What a brilliant start!

I thought same as @Fruitygal that while still 18 prescriptions are still free.

Sounds like your dd had a great day @cheninblanc. Lovely to see you back @ZittiEBuoni.

Can't remember who asked but DS got the Dunelm teddy cushion for Christmas and loves it. Brings it down every night to watch TV.

That sounds like a lot of sleep @icanbewhatiwant. DS is usually up at 7 and is always in bed for 10 - no doubt that will change at uni but swimming for 10 years ingrained that as a habit. Even when he was swimming competitively and getting up at 0430 for training he wouldn't ever sleep until going to bed at 9. I would definitely be asking for a blood test in case anaemic

That's great to hear, @cheninblanc! I look forward to hearing about first days from other people as well, ups and downs. Helps to put things into context.

I am just putting together the Tesco delivery order for the end of next week, and it hit me that I won't be including DD's favourites. Oof. Odd what gets you, isn't it?

Thanks for the new thread! Just catching up. Back at work with tons to do and tick tock to DS leaving

Nottingham Folk - heads up Student Union is now selling Welcome Week events - 4 events. £8.00 each. I've just bought 4 tickets for DD, although she says she won't go to all 4 (1 night before hockey trails) and she doesn't want to go out every single night anyway (like to party but not too hard ;-).

su.nottingham.ac.uk/

@ChristopherTracy
@crazycrofter
@JustHereWithMyPopcorn
@mummyinbeds
@Oblomov22
@singingstones

Sorry if I've missed anyone - thanks to the new thread @CinnamonOrangeCremeBrulee and list @singingstones

On the tiredness thing - I spent years falling asleep first in lectures and then in meetings (including some very interesting 1-2-1 briefings). Diagnosed with underactive thyroid at 30-odd when TTC but I strongly suspect it went all the way back to university.

DD also had a phase of tiredness, beyond her usual teenage lie-ins, along with loss of appetite and inability to concentrate. That was diagnosed as low folate and B12 so she took tablets for a while. She was then back to normal levels of both vitamins and energy (for her, not high).

I’m a little concerned with her going off to uni with this in the recent past. There was no reason for her to be low in B12 (she eats like a bird, and is fussy, but does eat meat etc). So they gave her supplements, she was okay, they didn’t repeat the prescription, what’s fixed?! I’ll be sending her off with multivitamins but she’s not good at taking them - though she was great with her prescribed ones.

And I have no idea why she got B12 tablets rather than injections, seems unusual!

I had my thyroid checked a few years ago, it is more of an attention thing for me I think, unless I am absolutely absorbed in something I struggle to stay awake when sitting still. I read compulsively, always have done, I remember as a child sitting at the table I would read anything in sight (backs or cereal packets, ketchup bottles whatever), if I am sitting somewhere and there are newspapers or magazines I find the urge to read them completely irresistible, I used to scroll Ceefax endlessly. Of course I now spend far too much time on my phone but its always reading, I never play games and rarely watch video content.

Brother and family are down for the week so I missed all the ADHD talk.

With dd, her ASD dx meant that I was reading a lot of her behaviours as that, when ADHD was probably more appropriate. The constant tiredness sounds familiar, and thanks for the info about melatonin - will see if we can switch to amitriptyline now.

She is incapable - literally incapable - of doing anything within a prescribed time frame as her attention will drift from what she needs to do to absolutely anything that distracts her.

In conversation, I think she feels that she's drowning in information, as she will clutch at any random thing you say and hyper-focus on it, even if it's totally irrelevant to what you're saying e.g.
Me: Have you packed your bag for the weekend?
DD: Bag? I'm taking a suitcase.
Me: Bag, suitcase, whatever, have you packed it?
DD: So should I be taking a bag?
etc. etc.

She can't have more than one thing scheduled for the day, and she has severe difficulty starting anything - already we've had several attempts to put the booked driving lesson off to the week after.

Time will tell if she ever gets the diagnostic questionnaire done! Though as ADHD experts, they're probably used to this...

Fantastic news @cheninblanc 😊😊

Cheers @Heifer. I have forwarded your post to ds1.

Well done Chenin dd. I think she's out first starter isn't she?

Amitriptyline is used off-licence as a sleeping aid. It's actually an old fashioned tricyclic antidepressant ( with all the risks of a tricyclic) & there are very mixed reviews on it's efficacy in sleeping disorders. It's known however to be very effective in treating pain. My kids ADHD specialist doesn't use it & recommended mirtazipine for Ds's sleeping issues instead. This worked really well but made him put weight on very rapidly. So I use it rarely.

@Zittaebuoni that's all sounds very familiar. DS is the same. I'm getting him to sort out a couple of Uni emails a day.
He reads them if left to his own devices & then often misinterprets what they're asking him to do. Coupled with teenage male arrogance where he thinks he knows it all 🤦🏼‍♀️

Apologies to all those who responded to my query re: Amitriptyline. I will come back to respond properly. Just rushing to the doctors again with DS (post surgery)
Thank you.

@DontCallMeBaby you can be low in folate and B12 with coeliac disease, we routinely take Jarrow B right as it uses methylated B vitamins which are the most Bio available forms

@Fruitygal I bought this for DD a few years ago and she loves it, uses it daily and will be taking it to uni
Reading support pillow

@ZittiEBuoni great to hear your update, good luck to DD with the driving lessons (even if postponed). There are a lot of traits you've mentioned with my DD (who actually said the other day she thinks she may have ADD but she only wanted diagnosis for dyslexia last year so didn't go down that route)...

@Oblomov22 sorry to hear about the rubbish weather... at least you won't get sunburnt ;-)

@cheninblanc great to hear 1st day well went, really pleased for you both.

I've got a question to ask about spending money. Hope it's not prying but what do you consider to be enough spending money each week/month. DDs and I are disagreeing about what she needs (catered so no food needed) just going out, toiletries/makeup/clothes etc etc etc etc..... We will pay sports fees/kit etc.