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Kids and antidepressants

kmom2014

kmom2014

Well-Known Member
So we saw a psychologist last weekend who diagnosed our son with Aspergers. He was also has GAD and ADHD. And depression. So rather than put him on ADHD meds which she said can make the GAD and depression worse, she said to give him a small amount of antidepressants. I have always thought it was extreme to give young children meds like that so it makes me uncomfortable however she made it make sense that it would help calm his anxiety which will help him be less restless and upset and help him focus.

Do any of you have young kids on an antidepressant? He's going to be 11 in July and since having that talk I've worried about the increase in suicidal thoughts that kids can have. So I will talk to his psychiatrist about it of course.

I don't necessarily want to hear people tell me what's wrong with doing it if it's based on their opinion because it will make me feel like a bad parent but facts to consider are welcome. I am mainly looking for parents with kids in the same boat.
 
That has to be tough making such decisions on behalf of a child. Drug therapy is hard enough to parse as an adult between what medications actually work versus their side effects and what your doctor has to say. Not an easy thing to navigate under the best of circumstances. Hope your son finds the care he needs with the best results.
 
Judge said:
That has to be tough making such decisions on behalf of a child. Drug therapy is hard enough to parse as an adult between what medications actually work versus their side effects and what your doctor has to say. Not an easy thing to navigate under the best of circumstances. Hope your son finds the care he needs with the best results.
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Actually just now I read in this book about kids with mixed disorders that anxiety and OCD often gets prescribed SSRIs to kids to help them make strategies from things such as CBT work a lot better which, being an Aspie, is the kind of therapy we'd be looking for.
 
While I am not in the same situation and cannot provide specific input, I assure you that no one who reads your posts would ever think you're a bad parent. You're trying to understand how best to help your son. If my parents posted here, they could probably tell you what it's like to have a child on antidepressants. I've been taking them since my teenage years. I only found out about my ASD a few years ago, but thinking about it now, it's possible that my antidepressants may have helped me cope with anxiety and stress that would have otherwise revealed my status much earlier.

I must consider this.
 
Ereth said:
I only found out about my ASD a few years ago, but thinking about it now, it's possible that my antidepressants may have helped me cope with anxiety and stress that would have otherwise revealed my status much earlier.

I must consider this.
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Good, although somewhat disturbing question. Could the right medication "eclipse" other symptoms relative to another undetected issue? Hmmmm.

At least you were eventually diagnosed. The doctors went right past me even though my parents knew there was something different about me. Sign of the times....<sigh>
 
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Yeah I am just hoping to do the right thing. For some reason it's not letting me quote correctly and even when it does most of the time it leaves the app and I have to go back and redo it.

I just don't want to deal with any problems but when I read more about it in the book I was reading it sounds like a good 2/3 of kids benefit from medication.
 
It's a tough decision. Even doctors cannot predict which antidepressants will work for each individual. From my experience (was prescribed Paxil at 30mg at 12 omg... then Zoloft, Cipralex, Ativan etc etc...) I would say: 1. get a second or third opinion, both on the treatment approach (meds to treat the ADHD or the depression), and on the specific medication (for example, I would never put my child on Paxil, but in a desperate situation I would consider trying some of the milder ones) 2. Ask about all side effects, and withdrawal symptoms and process--then research them independently as well (I find a lot of doctors like to say things like "oh, no, there's not many side effects and they're mild" instead of just providing the actual information and allowing you to be informed). 3. Inform your child about the potential benefits and side effects and allow them to offer their input if they can.

"I have always thought it was extreme to give young children meds like that "

I have an aversion to meds. But it's because I was placed on a god awful one without any proper monitoring and without being informed as a child. But still I disagree with this statement. Why? Because kids feel just as deeply and profoundly as adults do. So on a case-by-case basis there are definitely situations where a child should not be denied treatment with meds just because we as adults are uncomfortable with the idea of it. I do not want to see children undergoing chemotherapy or surgery, no child should have to, but if it can save a life or relieve their suffering then...
 
Kamellasmommy said:
So we saw a psychologist last weekend who diagnosed our son with Aspergers. He was also has GAD and ADHD. And depression. So rather than put him on ADHD meds which she said can make the GAD and depression worse, she said to give him a small amount of antidepressants. I have always thought it was extreme to give young children meds like that so it makes me uncomfortable however she made it make sense that it would help calm his anxiety which will help him be less restless and upset and help him focus.

Do any of you have young kids on an antidepressant? He's going to be 11 in July and since having that talk I've worried about the increase in suicidal thoughts that kids can have. So I will talk to his psychiatrist about it of course.

I don't necessarily want to hear people tell me what's wrong with doing it if it's based on their opinion because it will make me feel like a bad parent but facts to consider are welcome. I am mainly looking for parents with kids in the same boat.
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My son was just diagnosed also and he is 10. He also has Tourette Syndrome and was put on a medication for that. The doctor also put him on an antidepressant. The first one was four weeks ago. Zoloft 25mg. It made him worse. He would cry over anything and was very emotional. I felt so bad for him. We took him off of that and now for the past week he has been on Lexapro 5mg. So far he seems better. I was the same way you were about any medication. It took me years to let him take meds for the TS. It is so hard. You hear so many stories~ the good and bad. We started to really notice it was affecting his way of life and interfering with him day to day. Thats when we made the decision to let him take the medicine. Its a hard choice. I think my son is better off now with them. It does help him not have as many tics and also helps with self esteem so far. I wish you luck. I am here if you ever need to talk.


Our Aspergers Journey | understanding our child
 
kristen said:
My son was just diagnosed also and he is 10. He also has Tourette Syndrome and was put on a medication for that. The doctor also put him on an antidepressant. The first one was four weeks ago. Zoloft 25mg. It made him worse. He would cry over anything and was very emotional. I felt so bad for him. We took him off of that and now for the past week he has been on Lexapro 5mg. So far he seems better. I was the same way you were about any medication. It took me years to let him take meds for the TS. It is so hard. You hear so many stories~ the good and bad. We started to really notice it was affecting his way of life and interfering with him day to day. Thats when we made the decision to let him take the medicine. Its a hard choice. I think my son is better off now with them. It does help him not have as many tics and also helps with self esteem so far. I wish you luck. I am here if you ever need to talk.


Our Aspergers Journey | understanding our child
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Thank you Kristen. I will probably be putting him on Prozac which I think is the only one approved by the FDA for kids unless something changed. I had a bad experience with Zoloft too. We will have to see what happens I guess. First I want his testing done at school for an IEP then we will figure out the meds situation.
 
Kamellasmommy said:
Thank you Kristen. I will probably be putting him on Prozac which I think is the only one approved by the FDA for kids unless something changed. I had a bad experience with Zoloft too. We will have to see what happens I guess. First I want his testing done at school for an IEP then we will figure out the meds situation.
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oh boy test for school and an IEP! Exactly what we are doing as well. It is a mission, at least for us it is. The school doesn't seem to want to work with us. Thank god Tyler's doctors have taken it in their hands and are doing the testing. They will also go with me to the school if needed. I feel like the school looks at Tyler like he is a discipline problem and not see the aspergers side of him :(. Its so upsetting. He is having so much trouble in school.
I wish you luck with the Prozac. I hope it works. Every medication is different for everyone. Keep me posted on how it goes.
 
kristen said:
oh boy test for school and an IEP! Exactly what we are doing as well. It is a mission, at least for us it is. The school doesn't seem to want to work with us. Thank god Tyler's doctors have taken it in their hands and are doing the testing. They will also go with me to the school if needed. I feel like the school looks at Tyler like he is a discipline problem and not see the aspergers side of him :(. Its so upsetting. He is having so much trouble in school.
I wish you luck with the Prozac. I hope it works. Every medication is different for everyone. Keep me posted on how it goes.
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My son already has a 504 plan so I hope they take that into consideration when testing him for an IEP. His teacher just filled out the required forms and got them to the office and I will get the school the psychologists summary as soon as I get it from her. I keep hearing that it's really difficult to get an IEP because the schools don't want to do anything about it so I am hoping this school is different. The school psychologist didn't sound thrilled to be talking with me and kept interrupting me though so I am not sure how helpful she will be. I am going to be making a binder for all of his stuff like the summary, any therapy notes, psychiatrist notes and hopefully get a copy of what his teacher sent in. Not looking forward to battling for this.
 
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