alternatives to melatonin?

[thisisyesterday]

Hi all, just wondered if any of you had come across any methods to get children to sleep better!
paediatrician had suggested medication, which I presume would be melatonin? (tho didn't actually ask, bad mummy) but having read up on it DP is not overly keen the idea of using it

are there any other things we can try to help DS1 fall asleep quicker? he is fine once he is asleep, but he takes hours and hours to actually get to sleep.
we had a little success with a relaxation cd, but he now just listens to the whole thing then starts playing.

we need something that will help him naturally wind down and feel sleepy..

I think melatonin is the most mild medication that will help with getting off to sleep. Other sleep medications are much more heavy duty. Ds has been on melatonin for about five years now and dd for a few months. It does help for us.

we are seeing the paed in a couple weeks and plan on asking for melatonin for DS2. He is struggling more and more at night to get to sleep and is taking hours as it is. If we don't do something soon, he will literally wear himself out. We can see the toll it's taking on his behaviour.

Found it ineffective for dd.
Increased ds's seizures
Won't touch Diazepam but have a bottle of Chloral Hydrate when absolutely
desperate.
BTW iI think children who are blind do have difficulty in sleeping at night but will sleep like logs during the day

i'm not really looking for alternative medications... just alternative methods of helping him get to sleep.

i've read a fair bit over the last couple of days about melatonin and i am just concerned that it is not safe for long-term use

i've read about valerian (herbal supplement) , but again getting conflicting points of view on whether it's safe for children or not

My son who is almost 11 has just started taking 3ml melatonin most nights. I had hoped that a 3 day scout camp would send him off to sleep after a hot bath but after midnight surrendered!

I will always remember the night he yawned, said he felt tired and was curled up asleep 10mins later, I cried. I realised that it was something he had never experienced before, ever.

After years of taking good advice and trying all sorts, I did my homework before giving it to him, including trying it myself. I have spoken to 2 GPs in my practice and a Phsych, all of whom said they have a number of both elderly & young patients who they would love to be able to prescribe this for. Particularly when they are suffering from memory, concentration & coordination symptoms. It has to be prescribed by the Paed Consultant here. And all had no hesitations in recommending its use if the benefits were good and my son reports no ill effects but doesn't like the taste. Adding to my own scouring of the Internet, the decision of my husband & I & importantly my son is one we are comfortable with.

Sorry for long post but I hope it gives someone searching sometime and wondering whether or not to use it helpful to hear of a positive experience.

My awkward, clumsy boy who we barely heard from, still has his problems but is enjoying his life far more. He looks forward to going to bed now instead of having to pretend to be asleep after hours of fidgeting & turning. He feels brighter and happier and is so much chattier. He feels he has more energy.

And it's no wonder, he's had 10 years of sleep deprivation & I know how I feel after just a few nights. Never underestimate the benefit of a good nights sleep. This is something we will use during term time and have used these holidays to reset his body clock and stop the sleeping until lunchtime which was creeping in, sometimes on the pretence of feeling unwell.

i take valerian root for night waking, it's more of a relaxant than a sleeping tablet iygwim, it won't help you fall asleep but makes getting back to sleep, if you wake, easier. i think warnings about giving it to minors are just, as being herbal/homeopathic, there are no guidelines etc for production - people taking it may have reactions to anything, eg the casing etc, not nec the contents of the capsule.

melatonin is not a sedative or drug, it is a hormone replacement - often people on the autistic spectrum cannot produce enough of it to fall asleep.

bananas contain natural melatonin, this so any side effects are minimal, surely?

we use melatonin for DD on an ad hoc basis - there is no good reason i can find for letting all of us get into the circle of anxiety and stress due to lack of sleep.

How about Epsom Salts in the bath? Not sure of the correct 'dosage' but you can get 'catering' size packs from chemists, I believe.

Ah now that explains why bananas are now a popular supper here. Thanks for that false started that was something my mum popped up with and like lots of other things we have incorporated into our habits over the years in an attempt to help the kids.

Never heard of Epsom salts tho, what are they? What do they do? Would love to know please.

apparently the melatonin found in food does not appear to transfer into humans... we can eat loads of it but it doesn't alter natural melatonin levels.

I guess I am just thinking that if it's something that can only ever be used short-term then there is little point (unless we're totally desperate)... what we need is a way of maybe teaching him to settle down to sleep by himself or ways of increasing his own production of melatonin in some way? DP has researched a bit more than me and was going on about red light and stuff the other day??
and according to wikipedia
"Wearing glasses that block blue light in the hours before bedtime may avoid melatonin loss."

I did read something once which linked melatonin with watching tv. It made sense to me because my dc are both very obsessed with tv. Dealing with that obsession would however require serious medication for me!

yeah i read that leonie, but then i read something saying that it can increase convulsions in children??

you know i am sure life was a lot easier before we had google and could find all this stuff out for ourselves

Thisisyesterday, I have had years of people reminding me that Margaret Thatcher only needed three hrs sleep and that some people just don't need so much. Other than the recommended guidelines of 10-11 hrs for his age, we had no idea how much he does actually need.

We have made a note of when he sleeps and when he wakes. Working on a wake-up time that leaves him enough time to get sorted in a morning rather than rushing out in tears, we now have a good idea what time to give it to him at night, and therefore what time he functions best, going to sleep at.

As we are still only partway through the first bottle, We haven't considered the length of time it will be required. We didn't take it with us on holiday and my son asked for it on return saying he wasn't enjoying feeling so tired again. I think we will be led by him and his new found desire to snuggle up and drift off to sleep at night, waking looking forward to his day. I think we will benefit from his age & understanding.

I am sure you will be wise to trust your instincts over the years and I wish your family all the very best and lots of sleep soon.

Aside from the psychological aspect, which we have considered & discussed I would be grateful to know or have a link to any other things I may need to look out for please on the negative side of Melatonin.

I stumbled across this thread looking for the experiences of others using melatonin because as I say, we are just a few weeks in and when something has such limited use in the UK is hard to find out credible advice and experience. I would be grateful for any extra leased or consideration please.

Sorry I meant any extra information for consideration please. Damned auto spell!!

is there any reference to those side effects for anyone who isn't NT, Leonie?