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SN children

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Original poster

Melatonin and DREAMING

19 replies

TheRealMrsF · 06/07/2005 21:08

Someone is considering trying MELATONIN for their daughters...but one of them currently suffers badly from nighmares etc

In my case,my boys are more restful with melatonin...therefore either dream less..or are having 'better' dreams that don't disturb them.

Just wondered if the rest of you who use or have stopped using melatonin could shed some light on this...as this MNETTER is having a very hard time of it at the momnet...and having had great sucess with both my sons taking melatonin...i would love this to be her solution too.

OP posts:

misdee · 06/07/2005 21:10

its me btw. dd1 is having very horriblke dreams about her dad. its quite upsetting. dd2 sleeping is bad and always has been. they have been perscribed vallergen but am not 100% with sedating them with anti histimine.

lou33 · 06/07/2005 21:26

misdee, we use it from time to time as well, and they have always slept really well

lou33 · 06/07/2005 21:27

also the vallergan will only work for a short time, unless you keep increasing the dosage, because they get used to it.

Original poster

TheRealMrsF · 06/07/2005 21:39

also a sedated sleeep is not such good quality as a 'natural' sleep...but if the only option availabe was sedation...then that's what i'd use...luckily for us ..melatonin works.(

OP posts:

Chocol8 · 06/07/2005 21:45

Melatonin worked well for my ds (9mg) when he took it just before bedtime.

I have found since stopping it (he didn't need it as he was knackered from a busy day at his new school) that he does have more nightmares now.

I use a little roller bottle of lavender oil and put it just under his nose (do the same for me) and he's out like a light these days - I just hope it continues!

I hope Melatonin does work for you - it was certainly a godsend to me.

jenk1 · 06/07/2005 22:35

DS has been having nightmares about death,accidents etc and u have all just hit the nail on the head for me, is this part of the AS and if so how do i get medication,-he isnt even at the specialist centre yet and they r not rushing

jayzmummy · 06/07/2005 23:07

misdee.
You can buy milk in sainsburys or tescos which is called Nightime. It is in a blue carton and has a higher melatonin level than ordinary milk.
Try some lavendar oil...rub it into the soles of ds's feet as it absorbs quicker into the bloodstream that way. Alo sprinkle a couple of drops on her pillow and hopefully she will drift off into a wonderful restful sleep.

I know you are probaby far to busy to go shopping for this but I am sure that you will have a wait before you can get to see the paed to have melatonin prescribed....this will help until then so long as you can send someone out to collect the milk and oil for you.

Thinking of you lots.xxxx

Original poster

TheRealMrsF · 06/07/2005 23:30

jenk- i will post tomorrow in reply...i've took my sleeping tab ...and am feeling woozy!!

OP posts:

Fio2 · 07/07/2005 09:49

stupid question but could it make them vomit????

I bought the nighttime milk from sainsburys and it made dd vomit and i have started using the bottle davros sent me in 1967 and first night was fine, but last night was vomit city

Loobie · 07/07/2005 09:51

I know i dont dream but if i take one of ds melatonin i dream very vivid dreams,not scary but very real,ds not affected in this way though.

maddiemo · 07/07/2005 09:58

My son suffers from bad dreams and night terors and to be honest melatonin seems to have no effect on this. We use it to get him to sleep at a reasonable time and he usually will stay asleep for 2-3 hours.

I think the milk jayzmum suggested is a good first stop.

Jenk Melatonin is prescribed by paed. Where I am it is only prescribed after every other avenue (visual timetables, social stories etc) has failed. It regulates a bed time rather than acts as a sleeping tablet.

PeachyClair · 07/07/2005 11:06

Hnag on then- are the nightmares common with sn?

We were told Sam's nightmares (they really haunt him nightly) were a coincidence, and not related.

Trying to get something for Sam but GP won't discuss ANYTHING. Currently he settles at 11 if FORCED (which is an improvement)but cant wake. he needs the sleep, he just seems to have a mental block against it that we cannot shift, and the nightmares dont help.

The fact I get 5 hours sleep max, broken down into mini sleeps, is apparently irrlevant. hate to admit it, but I almost left last week as so tired (would have come back after a nights sleep). But you know, gp doesn't want to know...

PeachyClair · 07/07/2005 11:08

Oh the milks sounds good but Sam allergic to milk. I could do lavendar oil, but nobody else allowed to touch him (his rules) so I would still never get a break. Also, am scared of setting new routines coz they come back to haunt me if I dare need a break / have an appointment.

MotherEve · 08/07/2005 23:39

We used Vallergan on and off for five years - has caused dreadful problems with J's teeth - IMO -
Melatonin was the best thing since sliced bread when we started it last summer - but it doesn't work for everyone.

There are some results to a questionnaire re Melatonin on this website.

The final question was:
Does melatonin seem to affect the content of your dreams?

50% answered yes.

If so, how?

44% of respondents reported more pleasant content.
38% of respondents reported more strange content.
31% of respondents reported more nightmarish (frightening) content.

misdee · 09/07/2005 07:20

my kids dont have ASD or anything (well dd2 is debatable if i am completely honest, some people have suggested she is on the spectrum, have paed appointment in sept). dd1 bad dreams are related to her dad and his heart problems. she dreams very vivid dreams about him and having operations etc. the gp perscribed vallergan in the hope that it'll make her drowsey and likely to dream less. so far she hasnt had any bad dreams for well over a week, but am not using vallergen every night. used it for 2 nights on dd2, and it seems to have helped her get back to good sleeping patterns. she is now sleepinh 11hours a night and not 8.

monica2 · 09/07/2005 11:55

DD has 1 3mg caps of melatonin, and has nightmares a couple of times a week since taking it for 2 years, she had frequent nightmares prior to melatonin so I don't think it has increased them but she certainly remembers them in more detail and seem more violent/vivid.

Does anyone know if there is any difference in taking the dose split into 3 1mg as oppose to 1 3mg, I did hear one worked as a slow release throughout the night??

pp1 · 14/08/2009 21:25

Hi anyone give me any advice or help I have a son Jack who has Down Syndrome he has not slept a full or even half night since been born in May 2008 could someone please help me ..

2shoes · 14/08/2009 21:41

It is the most wonderful drug ever
dd has been on it a couple of weeks. she is on another drug thats side affect is insomnia. the melatonin has given her back her sleep.

Debs75 · 17/08/2009 15:33

Those of you who give melatonin how do you do it?

Ds won't take medicine such as calpol so he had dissolvable pain relief. I don't think he would take a tablet either.

Would love to try melatonin as he doesn't get to sleep till midnight and is very noisy and aggressive on a night

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