When my daughter was about 6, she tended to have temper tantrums. at school, at home, at social occasions. I once gave her one of my Valium pills in an effort to calm her down. It didn't work. We were in family councelling at the time. I told the psychologist/social worker I had slipped my child a valium. Within days, I was ordered to see a Psychiatrist. I did so and convinced him I was not an abusive Mom. I never gave my daughter another Valium. Oh, she's still a handful at age 23.

The medicating one surprised me too. While I don't condone that at all, I surely can understand why a mother would be tempted to do it. Especially mothers of really difficult children.

What kind of medication would they use? Allergy meds? Mom's own meds? Scary.

I know of two moms who used to give their kids Dimmetap (sp?) so they would sleep at night and also if they were getting too hyper during the day. They did this on a regular basis and didn't think it was an issue because it was an OTC med. Fast forward 20 years and both of these kids have substance abuse issues.

lol lol...we lived in a 2 br upper condo...had a 4yo 2yo, and had b/g twins...so 3 in diapers...we just went with the flow, although my parents took the 2 older kids home with them so i could spend some quality time with newborns for acouple of weeks...

i guess when you don't know differently, you make do...we were able to sell the condo and move into a house, by the time the babies were around 6 months...

the oldest is now 39...and we survived!

Remember Triaminic? Is it even made anymore? One of my kids always behaved horribly when he was given Triaminic for a cold.

Not to disagree with you Matti, but I question the connection between the Dimetapp and current substance abuse. But you never know.

Susanjf--you survived a lot, didn't you? Luckily you had your dear parents to take the pressure off. I suspect it's the ones with no help who are tempted to medicate kids.

I have a child (now in their 50's) that had temper problems. At that time they were giving ritalin and it did help a bit, but later thru reading, etc, found if we took sugar away and watched the preservatives it made all the difference. Problem was 40 years ago the medical people (in our area) did not have the knowledge to work things out. They were into the pill stage. He has turned out pretty good, but still has issues but much more willing to work on problems. But then I still give him "mommie" talks.

We were flying to Hawaii when DD was 14 months old. I gave her some benadryl prior to the flight and she slept most of the way. That's the only time I ever did that, and I was a peds ICU nurse at the time so I new the proper dose and used benadryl syrup which was made for children. Worked like a charm for us.

The medicating at home bothered me more than the airline flights--although I wonder what some of those other "special events" were. Parents' parties, maybe? And I'm thinking some of those meds were probably a lot stronger than benadryl.

Marie, I did the same thing with the sugar, etc. Heck, I react badly to sugar!

Year ago and I mean, at least 50 years ago, I had a neighbor that gave her baby paragoric (sp) to make him sleep...They moved and I really didn't keep in touch but I sure hope he didn't become an addict....I don't even think that stuff is made any more.....

The medication on a regular basis doesn't surprise me. I've suspected a mom I knew of doing this on a daily basis. The kids were starting to have serious behavioral problems. Dad was a pharmacist so who knows what all the kids were getting. The parents left town and cut ties to everyone. We wonder if they had gotten reported t child welfare.

I have medicated my children on trips with permission from the pediatrician and proper dosage. I did it when we would have to drive through Dallas. We weren't used to the traffic and need full concentration to deal with the other drivers on the road.

I know people that have done it for a certain reason....

My niece would get overtired and hysterical but refuse to sleep every night (right after she stopped napping during the day, so around 2 yrs old?). Healthwise she was beginning to suffer, since she would get worked up into such a lather and throw up etc. and only maybe get two hours of solid sleep at night. Her doctor prescribed a medicine that contained a barbituate to make her sleepy. NOPE - it had the opposite effect. He suggested a certain cough medicine, which did work to make her sleepy. But she didn't look any better (dark circles under the eyes, and so on) or any more rested, and her mood did not improve during the day.

She became an even more miserable hysterical monster. That was the end of THAT. She eventually outgrew the sleep problem, although she was a pretty crabby girl for a while.

I couldn't see anybody doing that in a daily basis "just because" to get a child to sleep.

Dances.

Sounds eerily familiar...think Casey Anthony.

I'm not a bit surprised! We livce in a world where most people think a pill is the answer to all the problems. Personally, I think pills and the cause of MOST of the problems! People now want instand everything.

Instead of popping pills down a CHILD...how about using good old fashion DISIPLINE! But no...that's "child abuse"! I guess drugging a child isn't!

Benedryl is the med of choice. I've never done it to a child, but I have heard about other mothers doing so.

Not surprised at all by your finding.

I wouldn't do it (well, I might give a fussy child a Benadryl on a long plane ride), but it doesn't surprise me and I certainly don't think it's anything new. For most of history, it was alcohol. Everyone drank it (what else would you drink? Water?), and I'm sure it calmed the kids right down. Now, it's pills.

I not one time Ever thought to drug my kids,I figured that was it,live with it.wow

I find it amazing that all you ladies are apalled by a parent that would medicate their child, yet you send your kids to school and when they act like normal healthy active children instead of the lethargic seat ornaments the teachers prefer, they label the child ADHD and send you to the drugstore to by the ridelan, xanax or whatever other designer drug their pushing this week.

I don't hear about ADHD like we used to. I've never really believed in the ADHD diagnosis for probably at least 95% of the kids. In my non-expert opinion, the real underlying problem was usually a child getting too much junk food and drinks, a lack of excercise and not enough mental stimulation. Fix those problems and then re-evaluate to see if there is still a problem.

Well, I'll speak for my sisters since I dont have children, but one of my nephews was diagnosed ADHD. My sister refuses to medicate. She spend enormous amount of time working with him and preparing special diets. Limiting or eliminating sugar and processed white flour did wonders.
Another nephew responded well to fish oil. (and no sugar) Go figure.
So, no not all parents accept a diagnoses to medicate just because a teacher deems them unruly.
I think to medicate a child for selfish reasons is nearing abuse. If it is not done in the childs best interest, you need to re-evaluate your motives.
I will say there may be times when some issues can warrant...crying to the point of vomiting, or anxiety on a plane...each case needs evaluating independently.

Quite an inflammatory statement you make, Lazypup. Who says anyone on this board has medicated their child on a whim to treat ADHD or some other behavior issue. Quite the contrary, I would imagine. When DS was in kindergarten his teacher suggested he had adhd because he cleared his throat alot! The school would of course receive more money for a "special" student. I laughed at her and walked out. And if you ever met my son, he is the most laid back dude and was certainly more social than anything back then.

Justlinda, my thoughts exactly.

A lot of people (me included) drugged their babies without knowing it. When my daughter started teething my grandmother told me to go to the drugstore and get some paregoric. At the drugstore, I told the pharmacist what I wanted and why and he gave it to me no questions ask. I found out years later it's a morphine-based drug. Arrgh! I think it's off the market now.

Used to take terpinhydrate (sp?) for coughs, too. It's coedine based also. At least it was years back. A one-year old's dosage was 1/4 tsp. It worked like a miracle.

Well, as one of the people who has drugged her kid for ADHD, I can tell you that she certainly did not behave like a "normal, healthy, active child." And she gets *tons* of exercise (it's easy when you never stop moving and almost never feel tired) and doesn't eat a ton of junk.

And she was beyond thrilled when she started taking the meds and was able to control some behaviors that she'd felt were out of her control. And so excited when she was able to complete a reading assignment in the classroom, something she'd never been able to do.

My RN MIL bragged about giving her infant nephew an aspirin enema. He slept around the clock. I have no doubt she did the worse with my DH. (It was her DH's idea to adopt, not hers.)

I would give a child Benedryl if the pediatrician prescribed it. I take an Ambien on a redeye flight. (I wouldn't take one if I were responsible for a child then, of course.)

I think the first thing that hits new moms is the amount of TIME that a baby takes, even once he is 'on schedule'. Also, *everything*, however minor, takes longer and requires 'a plan of action'. The 'nap when the baby naps' advice has always sounded ridiculous to me. When do you get anything done? That might work if you have household help -- and no other kids!

I used to scoff when someone hired a baby nurse. Not after having one, and not after seeing my neighbor hospitalized after her twins came home. A baby nurse made all the difference! I wish I HAD hired one. I knew nothing about babies, but insisted on doing everything myself. (Poor baby...lol)

My neighbour used to give her daughters Gravol whenever they had to drive anywhere distant. Her kids didn't suffer from car sickness, but she said she used it to make them sleepy so she wouldn't have to put up with 3 noisy, restless kids. I suggested she get them travel games or something to keep them amused, but she preferred to sedate them.

I find it amazing that all you ladies are apalled by a parent that would medicate their child, yet you send your kids to school and when they act like normal healthy active children instead of the lethargic seat ornaments the teachers prefer, they label the child ADHD and send you to the drugstore to by the ridelan, xanax or whatever other designer drug their pushing this week.

Who are you talking to, Lazypup? Where do you get the idea that the women of the KT are out buying Ritalin and Xanax, etc., for their children, or otherwise blindly following orders from the schools? Exactly who is the "you" in your ridiculous statement?

I "almost" want to stroll on by this discussion....but....
Very many years ago, it was common practice in the south to give colicky babies paregoric as it tamed (allegedly) the pains that those infants were experiencing. It was an over the counter medication and was "very commonly" used. My first-born had sever colic, along with "projectile" vomiting. It was prescribed for her and sometime later a soy based formula... then eventually discovered/decided that she had a severe allergy to milk (at age 3 or 4, I think)...and it is true today. Those were 'dark ages' when it came to knowing about allergies....so we have come a long way. And, as for paregoric... I believe it still is a viable "medication", perhaps under another name "phenobarbital" comes to mind; prescribed for different ailments. Was it used in those days to just quiet a cranky child. I don't know. But, times and knowledge change. I also remember a MD giving me Valium so I could "cope" with a child that was testing me to my limits. The implication being that I was already tested beyond my limits.

*I find it amazing that all you ladies are apalled by a parent that would medicate their child, yet you send your kids to school and when they act like normal healthy active children instead of the lethargic seat ornaments the teachers prefer, they label the child ADHD and send you to the drugstore to by the ridelan, xanax or whatever other designer drug their pushing this week.*

Lazypup, to whom are you referring? I have a feeling most of the women on the KT forum will be appalled by your statements, because you aimed them squarely at us.

I worked for the local school district for 9 years and one of my closest friends on staff there was the Psychitrist who headed the county special needs program....

He told me first hand that he was raising hell about the number of children that had been labelled ADHD. According to him for every one legitimate diagnoses there were upwards of 75 that were receiving meds just because it made both the school and the parents life simpler...

Less than a month ago there was also a program on the history channel on TV that was saying the same thing..Just because a child seems to be what some ppl call hyperactive, that in an of itself does not mean they have ADHD

Lazypup, I totally get what you are saying in your last post, but I don't understand the accusations towards those of us at the KT in your first post. You should never assume.

That's all well and good, Lazypup, and in fact I agree with what you're saying. But you haven't answered my question. The issue, as I stated above and others have posted about as well, is that you aimed a rather nasty comment at the women of the KT for reasons unknown to us. We're not here to serve as scapegoats for whomever it is you happen to be angry with.

Not only were my sister and I drugged on a long flight when I was 4 and she was 2, but our gums were regularly q-tipped with whiskey when we were teething.

We were not damaged for life.

Life goes on. Not appalling to me.

lazypup - "....all you ladies....."!!!!!

Boy you certainly have a low opinion of the ladies here on the KT. How can you associate yourself with women who run off to the pharmacy to medicate their children into submission?

Personally I just love blanket statements, especially the accusatory kind, they're just so ....so......all-encompassingly hurtful.

Thanks.

click on their name youll understand...

I'm surprised at how strong the reactions have been. I don't see anything wrong with the generalization of society as a whole because I quite agree that the diagnosis and drug distribution of ADHD is way out of hand.

However, in lazypup's case, I suspect it was an unfortunate misuse of pronouns rather than specific accusation of people on this forum. At least I hope so!

That's charitable of you, Chi83, but he said:

I find it amazing that all you ladies are apalled by a parent that would medicate their child, yet you send your kids to school......

Since I was the one who said I was appalled, and some others agreed, I can only conclude he was addressing us, not some amorphous group.

Does anyone remember a few years ago when a child died at a daycare center from a Benadryl overdose? The owner regularly bought it in bulk and they passed it out to the kids everyday. Insane.

Here is a link that might be useful: The story

Chi83, I think you have it right, she didn't intend her post to sound like it did. Heaven knows, I'm guilty of not putting my thoughts unto the right words and being jumped on.....so to speak.
When I was first married, I worked as a nurses aid, and when baby boys were circumcised,They were given sugar cubes soaked in whiskey to suck on during the surgery. I always thought, how cruel.

I understand why you would think that but how would he be qualified to know what you do and don't do when raising your kids? I mean, unless he's spying in all of your windows for the last 20 years, I would assume it was a mistake on his part instead of an accusation since there's no possible way there was any merit behind the statement as written.

I'm not saying he was right to say it as obviously it offended a lot of people but I know I've written things that came off differently than I intended, sometimes in the heat of the moment, so I like to give the benefit of the doubt.

What you say is true, Chi--and in fact if he'd been spying in my window for 20 years he'd know that for a number of those years I was a homeschooling mom. :-)

dotmom -- When I was an infant with pyloric stenosis, I was operated on without anesthesia because there were no established guides about how to safely sedate an infant. My mother said I was given that sugar cube w/whiskey. (Hello, my name is Sue, and I'm an alcoh.. Well, that didn't happen -- but I do like a Manhattan!)

nanny -- Projectile vomiting is a symptom of pyloric stenosis. (The sphincter at the top of the stomach is too tight to admit food; milk comes back up with enough force to propel it some distance from the baby.) I guess your child's sphincter eventually relaxed enough to let food through. I had lost a lot of birth weight before my surgery; have a long, ugly scar.

lazypup -- We'd all be better off teaching girls and boys separately, and giving the boys a lot more opportunities to move around during school hours. Everyone, including the teachers, would benefit from daily PE and *recess*!

The regular drug of choice to pacify infants in the Victorian period was laudanum--tincture of opium. It led to many babies' deaths before its consequences were understood.

It is unfortunate that so many think just because it is "over the counter" it would be safe. Not all meds react the same in all; especially little children, hence the benedryl death sited earlier. As a parent we said it in JEST, but never never would I dare give a medication to a child to make my life easier. The possible ramifications are too dire. All those that do, or were given things as children, well I am glad you had good guardian angels. I have a student whose mom did this regularly, the student's brother died due to it. It really isn't worth the risk. I gave my daughter acetaminophen tablets for a fever, she was old enough to chew. Her body did not like the flavor or dye in the "children's tablets" and because it was tied to the acetaminophen when she acquired the meds she is now allergic to acetaminophen too. HUGE price to pay. I was lucky in that IBpropohen became over the counter a year later. What a PAIN to have to be sure a prescription is filled for minor ailments. Alcohol in children is not safe. Teething relief is not worth alcohol poisoning. I continue to be saddened when I read the regulations and scrutiny we put pet owners through, adopted parents, foster parents yet anyone who can procreate we let experiment unabated.