melatonin. any good? easy to get?

[pillsthrillsandbellyaches]

hi guys. any gen on melatonin much appreciated.

got 3 1/2 ds with asd. awake a lot during night.

just wondering about possible use of melatonin. possible side effects?

how easy is it to get prescribed?

gotta go now, another one crying! but will check back tonight, thanks!

I use it for dd2 ASD (3.10) and her sister who is 6 with AS.

You can only get it from a pead (not your GP) but its easy enough to get (well it was for me).

Side effects - we have had none, Melatonin is a natural hormone that you produce to tell you its time to sleep (many ASD children lack the hormone causing sleep problems).

Melatonin helps them get to sleep (works within 20 minutes on my 2) but it doesn't help them to stay asleep (dd2 still wakes in the night). So you can give it before bed (will send them to sleep), if they wake in the night you can give it again (to send them back to sleep).

I use it for DD1 (4.2), brain malformation.

Pre-melatonin, up for hours after bedtime. Waking several times in the night.

Post-melatonin, works within 5 minutes of liquid dose. Begging for bed if we give it too early. Still night waking, but you can't have everything.

if it works it's brilliant works for friends dd but unfortunately didn't for ds the only time he sleeps is when he's ill.

we got it quite easily from paed when we told her about ds frequent night wakimg, anything from 10 -45 mins she gave us 2 bottles
the inly side effect which I have noticed, was at the beginning ds used to giggle a lot in his sleep it was so cute too has stopped doing it so much now tho. but his mood during the day is so much better now that he is fully rested.

tries it a few years ago, but it had the opposite effect on my son, he was awake even longer. !!!

still waiting have tried begging paed have not had full night s sleep in last 4 years.

We have it for ds2 (4 ASD).He has circadin, which is the slow release of melatonin, keeps him asleep rather than helps him go to sleep.

my son was 15 when he got it and was literally ill through lack of sleep. it worked wonders, and got him through his GCSEs, however the effects do seem to wear off after so long. he now uses it intermittently when he feels the need. he is 18. he still doesnt sleep, but half the time now i actually think he doesnt want to. but it really really helped save our sanity, id certainly look into it. i wish id known about it when he was little - i nearly went mad through lack of sleep!

oh by the way....dont think its harmful as its a naturally occuring hormone. aspies/auties dont make enough of it to tell them when to sleep.

Melatonin has been useful for my ds
I found that it works best if he has enough to make him drowsy but not so much that it knocks him out!
ie enough that he is sleepy and goes to sleep conscious that he is going to sleep - if he has too much he wakes up during the night really distressed about who he is and where he is

Also I found that it tends to make him visit the loo (too poo) at least once, probably twice after taking it, before he will possibly go to sleep.

Add to that that it seemed to give him nightmares..............

Thus we dont use it now - except in desperate emergencies