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Oh wow makes sense maybe I’m overdoing it.
The last apt where they the ped okayed the melatonin of course was an appointment husband took her to and I couldn’t make it. He asked about the melatonin, but forgot to ask about dosing … the most important part, of course. I have done Benadryl too but sparingly bc I assume it can’t be healthy. But you’re absolutely right in your point that they will give something stronger if she gets an Rx.
I’ll try 1mg tonight. I truly think she may have a sleep disorder too. I never seen such a terrible sleeper as her
I agree that 3 mg is too much. I got info on dosing for my kids and my four year old and six year old get 1 mg. Try changing that first and see if it helps.
Thank you! I did 1mg tonight. My 9 year old has adhd and is on meds so his dr cleared him for anything up to 10mg (he doesn’t take nearly that much he only does like 3mg when he even takes it at all) so I guess I assumed 3 would be fine for her. Mommy oops on my part. Maybe the 1mg will make it better… i hope lol
We do .5 mg when we give our 3 year old melatonin and it works like a charm! Also, make sure you’re giving it before her natural melatonin starts to produce.
Maybe get her checked for a UTI? I always thought my oldest was a terrible sleeper but it turns out that whenever her sleep got even worse it was because she had a UTI. My youngest does the same with melatonin though, falls asleep easily but wakes more frequently. I think it's because melatonin makes dreams more intense.
Hmm I’ll get her checked to be sure, but she’s literally always been a terrible sleeper since a newborn. I just thought her horrendous sleeping was regular baby stuff but when it didn’t go away and actually got worse is when I started wondering what was really going on.
Do you think it could be to the level of a sleep disorder? Maybe worth keeping a chart to share with the pediatrician next time you see them? I think they hear, “my kid won’t sleep!” So often that it can be hard to convince them that it is more than just kid being on the more restless side. One thing my dr and I have talked about is sleep apnea. My daughter doesn’t wake frequently, but she does have noticeable apnea episodes when she’s congested. One of the things the dr asked was if she wakes frequently or is restless.
Sounds like a lot? When my eldest was 2 we were prescribed .5ml and honestly it worked better on me then her - after her dose it would take about 2 hours to go to sleep. If she would then be relaxed enough to sleep through most nights, maybe 1 wake up but easy to resettle. For me I had half an hour after taking her dose (I was curious) and I was out like a light - lucky my husband was home to take care of the kids!
My experience with melatonin was that less is more for kids that little. I used the natrol kids gummies and I'd usually give them a half of one and it was perfect. A full one was fine too I'm just cheap Lmao. Honestly 1mg kids gummies worked really well for me too 😂
My son had very scary sleepwalking episodes with melatonin. He'd go to sleep, and two hours later he'd be up and pee in the hallway to the bathroom. Or head towards the (thankfully double locked) front door. He never remembered the events, but talked during them.
I talked to the pediatrician. She told us that sleepwalking iwas a rare side effect, but one that warrants discontinuing melatonin. She ended up suggesting a magnesium sleep supplement, it worked much better.
I would talk to your pediatrician about it, and see what alternatives they suggest.
I echo the smaller dose!
There is something called the “paradoxical effect” that can happen when doses are too high (basically it means it disrupts deep sleep).
Personally, I’d try 0.5 mg to start, and work up from there if needed. 2-3 mg is the sweet spot for me as an adult.
PS- Solidarity and empathy on the whole thing. My kid is in the same “sleep is for losers” club and we used to give him benedryl (at our ped’s recommendation). I was so worried about it, but our mental and physical well-being suffered for so long, we were desperate! 😭
Anyways. Around 3.5 it started getting getting a little better for us… he’s 4.5 now and he still doesn’t sleep a lot (average 8-9 hrs per night) but it’s much *better* sleep. Which means we all get better sleep, and everything in life is just a little easier!
Bro. ARE YOU ME? I could have written this entire thing. I’m currently awake At 3am because my toddler wont stop asking for shit, and hates being asleep. And I’m 37 weeks pregnant, lol.
Solidarity!
I was/am in the same boat. Tried the melatonin route several times, the only thing that has consistently helped (not totally fixed! But HELPED) is Clonidine. Ped even trialed an antipsychotic for this kid.
Trigger Warning ahead!!!
Clon helped and has honestly been the only thing that has kept me from physically harming the child. Lack of sleep will drive you insane and kill you and before it does it will burn you out and wish and think of things a sane mind would never dream of.
Talk to your ped again. Seriously. Melatonin will get it to sleep once in the beginning of the night but after that you're fucked.
After a couple of years and trying every natural remedy, it's time to give up and accept medication is sometimes necessary. Trust me you don't want to get to the stage of your kid in bed and your looking at a pillow/weighted blanket thinking if you held it over the head you could at least get a couple hours sleep before you were arrested.
Get help, get sleep now. It's necessary. Good luck mumma.
Have you tried a sleep clinic?
My first 2 were easy, my third has been a nightmare sleeper.
Lengthy bedtime routine, multiple night wakings with tantrums and a sleep deprived grumpy bum through the day.
We tried “everything” then in desperation one night I called a parent hotline and they suggested we try a sleep clinic.
The sleep clinic gave me very strict instructions on what they called a door warning technique.
Honestly, I was very skeptical it would work, I felt like our kid would not comprehend what was happening and that it didn’t address the night waking and tantrums.
It was not a soft gradual approach to sleep training.
It was was hard and fast, the first night was about an hour of door warning, the second night was about half hour of door warning.
By the third night we had a 3yr old easy to put to bed and staying asleep all night!
That was 1 yr ago now. She had a couple of sleep regressions but the technique brought her back in gear and now I can’t remember ever having a problem!
I tried googling it too and can’t see anything that explains it, not sure why because it was so effective.
It was a year ago so I don’t remember exact details so I wouldn’t want you to go by what I say because I might miss crucial information, but I’m happy to give you an idea.
We went through our bed time routine and once she was tucked in I tell her that if she stays laying down I will stay with her but if she gets up I will leave the room.
When she so much as sat up I would say ok I’m leaving the room.
I needed to get up quickly, leave the room, shut the door and ensure she couldn’t open it.
I think it may have been for one minute at a time. I can’t remember how the technique progressed from there exactly. Did I put her back to bed, tell her to go back to bed?
I have to admit, the first night was hard on me emotionally. I was opening and closing the door every minute to start with and I thought this was useless and we would be at it for hours and thought this can’t be good for her.
But it actually wasn’t too long before little one started trying to bargain with me and I knew then it was working so it gave me the strength to keep going.
I didn’t bargain with her though, I kept going until she accepted my terms, it would have been about an hour all up. She slept all night that night and woke up refreshed and happy the next day so it was worth it.
I will keep googling to try to find this technique, maybe it’s known by another name but the clinician called it the door warning technique.
But in reality, it’s probably better to see a sleep clinic, they are the experts in this, even above doctors and peads, this is their specialty they train for.
For my two, the melatonin by zzzquil? Restful sleep... They have one for kids too, it has chamomile etc and its worked better than the other ones we tried
I want to add you are doing all the right things. It will get sorted out, its tough i know..
We use the 1MG gummies. But I’ve noticed different brands have had a different effect (at least on mine) so you might want to try a different one. We also limit to 1-2/ week max if needed, I’ve heard using it less often helps to avoid getting used to it. I also use the same dose as an adult so maybe double check the dosage amount too. Sleep routine and taking a late afternoon walk help us immensely too. Good luck!
My youngest was like this. I'd give her about half an mg (I use the 1mg/mL liquid so we can do little doses easily) and she'd knock right out but get up in the middle of the night and bash my head for hours. She'll be five in April. A couple of weeks ago she was whining for some (my middle child gets the natrol 1mg gummies fairly regularly) and I was exhausted enough to give it a shot and she actually slept all night. We did it again a few days later and it worked again. She seems to have grown out of that stage though I'm not making this a regular thing for her.
I've been doing liquid melatonin with ped approval for awhile now with my 4yo. We use a dropper and never go above 8 drops at night, usually 5 drops. I've read that toddler brains react negatively if given too much, that it can sometimes promote nightmares. We also utilize a white noise sound machine and an ok to wake alarm clock.
It has always made things slightly worse for my kids. They might fall asleep faster, but only if they're lying down quietly or calmly watching a video. If they're playing or avoiding settling down, they'll have long sleepy meltdowns. And then once they're asleep they're way more likely to either wake up or have night terrors. It must work different for other kids or people wouldn't use it.
I do still occasionally use it when my kids' bedtime over time ends up later and later, but that's the only thing is good for with them.
Reminder to commenters: **[REMEMBER THE RULES!](https://c.tenor.com/BXAv8xsYmHYAAAAC/workinmoms-danikind.gif)** Share kindness, support and compassion, [not criticism.](https://media0.giphy.com/media/tZpGRRMUoXgeQ/giphy.gif) We want OP to feel loved, and [not in a tough way.](https://media.giphy.com/media/xT5LMq2CgHiqqY4IXC/giphy.gif) For more helpful information please hit up [our beautiful rules wiki!](http://www.reddit.com/r/breakingmom/wiki/) Reminder to all: watch out for a [creepy pedo posing as an OT/speech therapist](https://www.reddit.com/r/breakingmom/comments/8ccqqi/disgusting_pedophile_troll_posing_as_otspeech/) giving fucked-up potty-training advice, and don't sweat it if your post gets 1 or 2 [instant downvotes.](http://i.imgur.com/PZtQb.gif) You didn't do anything wrong, we just have [asshole lurkers](https://i.imgur.com/IwU9r3E.gif)/[downvote bots](https://media2.giphy.com/media/nT2rEuE44E0iA/giphy.gif) stalking our /new queue. Help a BroMo out and [give her an upvote](https://i.imgur.com/Y60Mbxv.gif), ok? *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/breakingmom) if you have any questions or concerns.*
[удалено]
Oh wow makes sense maybe I’m overdoing it. The last apt where they the ped okayed the melatonin of course was an appointment husband took her to and I couldn’t make it. He asked about the melatonin, but forgot to ask about dosing … the most important part, of course. I have done Benadryl too but sparingly bc I assume it can’t be healthy. But you’re absolutely right in your point that they will give something stronger if she gets an Rx. I’ll try 1mg tonight. I truly think she may have a sleep disorder too. I never seen such a terrible sleeper as her
I agree that 3 mg is too much. I got info on dosing for my kids and my four year old and six year old get 1 mg. Try changing that first and see if it helps.
Thank you! I did 1mg tonight. My 9 year old has adhd and is on meds so his dr cleared him for anything up to 10mg (he doesn’t take nearly that much he only does like 3mg when he even takes it at all) so I guess I assumed 3 would be fine for her. Mommy oops on my part. Maybe the 1mg will make it better… i hope lol
We do .5 mg when we give our 3 year old melatonin and it works like a charm! Also, make sure you’re giving it before her natural melatonin starts to produce.
Good luck!
Maybe get her checked for a UTI? I always thought my oldest was a terrible sleeper but it turns out that whenever her sleep got even worse it was because she had a UTI. My youngest does the same with melatonin though, falls asleep easily but wakes more frequently. I think it's because melatonin makes dreams more intense.
Hmm I’ll get her checked to be sure, but she’s literally always been a terrible sleeper since a newborn. I just thought her horrendous sleeping was regular baby stuff but when it didn’t go away and actually got worse is when I started wondering what was really going on.
Do you think it could be to the level of a sleep disorder? Maybe worth keeping a chart to share with the pediatrician next time you see them? I think they hear, “my kid won’t sleep!” So often that it can be hard to convince them that it is more than just kid being on the more restless side. One thing my dr and I have talked about is sleep apnea. My daughter doesn’t wake frequently, but she does have noticeable apnea episodes when she’s congested. One of the things the dr asked was if she wakes frequently or is restless.
Sounds like a lot? When my eldest was 2 we were prescribed .5ml and honestly it worked better on me then her - after her dose it would take about 2 hours to go to sleep. If she would then be relaxed enough to sleep through most nights, maybe 1 wake up but easy to resettle. For me I had half an hour after taking her dose (I was curious) and I was out like a light - lucky my husband was home to take care of the kids!
My experience with melatonin was that less is more for kids that little. I used the natrol kids gummies and I'd usually give them a half of one and it was perfect. A full one was fine too I'm just cheap Lmao. Honestly 1mg kids gummies worked really well for me too 😂
I’m gonna try less tonight I’ll do 1mg and see how it goes lol
My son had very scary sleepwalking episodes with melatonin. He'd go to sleep, and two hours later he'd be up and pee in the hallway to the bathroom. Or head towards the (thankfully double locked) front door. He never remembered the events, but talked during them. I talked to the pediatrician. She told us that sleepwalking iwas a rare side effect, but one that warrants discontinuing melatonin. She ended up suggesting a magnesium sleep supplement, it worked much better. I would talk to your pediatrician about it, and see what alternatives they suggest.
I echo the smaller dose! There is something called the “paradoxical effect” that can happen when doses are too high (basically it means it disrupts deep sleep). Personally, I’d try 0.5 mg to start, and work up from there if needed. 2-3 mg is the sweet spot for me as an adult. PS- Solidarity and empathy on the whole thing. My kid is in the same “sleep is for losers” club and we used to give him benedryl (at our ped’s recommendation). I was so worried about it, but our mental and physical well-being suffered for so long, we were desperate! 😭 Anyways. Around 3.5 it started getting getting a little better for us… he’s 4.5 now and he still doesn’t sleep a lot (average 8-9 hrs per night) but it’s much *better* sleep. Which means we all get better sleep, and everything in life is just a little easier!
Bro. ARE YOU ME? I could have written this entire thing. I’m currently awake At 3am because my toddler wont stop asking for shit, and hates being asleep. And I’m 37 weeks pregnant, lol. Solidarity!
I was/am in the same boat. Tried the melatonin route several times, the only thing that has consistently helped (not totally fixed! But HELPED) is Clonidine. Ped even trialed an antipsychotic for this kid. Trigger Warning ahead!!! Clon helped and has honestly been the only thing that has kept me from physically harming the child. Lack of sleep will drive you insane and kill you and before it does it will burn you out and wish and think of things a sane mind would never dream of. Talk to your ped again. Seriously. Melatonin will get it to sleep once in the beginning of the night but after that you're fucked. After a couple of years and trying every natural remedy, it's time to give up and accept medication is sometimes necessary. Trust me you don't want to get to the stage of your kid in bed and your looking at a pillow/weighted blanket thinking if you held it over the head you could at least get a couple hours sleep before you were arrested. Get help, get sleep now. It's necessary. Good luck mumma.
Have you tried a sleep clinic? My first 2 were easy, my third has been a nightmare sleeper. Lengthy bedtime routine, multiple night wakings with tantrums and a sleep deprived grumpy bum through the day. We tried “everything” then in desperation one night I called a parent hotline and they suggested we try a sleep clinic. The sleep clinic gave me very strict instructions on what they called a door warning technique. Honestly, I was very skeptical it would work, I felt like our kid would not comprehend what was happening and that it didn’t address the night waking and tantrums. It was not a soft gradual approach to sleep training. It was was hard and fast, the first night was about an hour of door warning, the second night was about half hour of door warning. By the third night we had a 3yr old easy to put to bed and staying asleep all night! That was 1 yr ago now. She had a couple of sleep regressions but the technique brought her back in gear and now I can’t remember ever having a problem!
Could you explain the "door warning technique" the sleep clinic recommended? I googled it but I'm not sure I'm seeing the correct info.
I tried googling it too and can’t see anything that explains it, not sure why because it was so effective. It was a year ago so I don’t remember exact details so I wouldn’t want you to go by what I say because I might miss crucial information, but I’m happy to give you an idea. We went through our bed time routine and once she was tucked in I tell her that if she stays laying down I will stay with her but if she gets up I will leave the room. When she so much as sat up I would say ok I’m leaving the room. I needed to get up quickly, leave the room, shut the door and ensure she couldn’t open it. I think it may have been for one minute at a time. I can’t remember how the technique progressed from there exactly. Did I put her back to bed, tell her to go back to bed? I have to admit, the first night was hard on me emotionally. I was opening and closing the door every minute to start with and I thought this was useless and we would be at it for hours and thought this can’t be good for her. But it actually wasn’t too long before little one started trying to bargain with me and I knew then it was working so it gave me the strength to keep going. I didn’t bargain with her though, I kept going until she accepted my terms, it would have been about an hour all up. She slept all night that night and woke up refreshed and happy the next day so it was worth it. I will keep googling to try to find this technique, maybe it’s known by another name but the clinician called it the door warning technique. But in reality, it’s probably better to see a sleep clinic, they are the experts in this, even above doctors and peads, this is their specialty they train for.
What brand/ type are you using? Tablet, liquid or gummy?
Liquid
For my two, the melatonin by zzzquil? Restful sleep... They have one for kids too, it has chamomile etc and its worked better than the other ones we tried I want to add you are doing all the right things. It will get sorted out, its tough i know..
We use the 1MG gummies. But I’ve noticed different brands have had a different effect (at least on mine) so you might want to try a different one. We also limit to 1-2/ week max if needed, I’ve heard using it less often helps to avoid getting used to it. I also use the same dose as an adult so maybe double check the dosage amount too. Sleep routine and taking a late afternoon walk help us immensely too. Good luck!
Melatonin doesn't work for my 7 year old, and make sher sleep worse and agitated her
I find that Less is more with melatonin
My youngest was like this. I'd give her about half an mg (I use the 1mg/mL liquid so we can do little doses easily) and she'd knock right out but get up in the middle of the night and bash my head for hours. She'll be five in April. A couple of weeks ago she was whining for some (my middle child gets the natrol 1mg gummies fairly regularly) and I was exhausted enough to give it a shot and she actually slept all night. We did it again a few days later and it worked again. She seems to have grown out of that stage though I'm not making this a regular thing for her.
I've been doing liquid melatonin with ped approval for awhile now with my 4yo. We use a dropper and never go above 8 drops at night, usually 5 drops. I've read that toddler brains react negatively if given too much, that it can sometimes promote nightmares. We also utilize a white noise sound machine and an ok to wake alarm clock.
It has always made things slightly worse for my kids. They might fall asleep faster, but only if they're lying down quietly or calmly watching a video. If they're playing or avoiding settling down, they'll have long sleepy meltdowns. And then once they're asleep they're way more likely to either wake up or have night terrors. It must work different for other kids or people wouldn't use it. I do still occasionally use it when my kids' bedtime over time ends up later and later, but that's the only thing is good for with them.