Clonidine

At first the idea of “drugging” my child really scared me especially when cases like the one Dateline covered Monday Night.

Clonidine is a drug typically used to treat hypertension in adults but it has been found to effectively treat ADHD, tourettes, and even sleep disorders in children. Children with Fragile X Syndrome have been successfully treated with Clonidine and with Clonidine and CNS stimulants like Methylphenidate, or Ritalin. Because medication can be important in the treatment of behavior disorders we made the best decision we could…but it was hard.

When I realized that we had no other choice because of the amount of sleep he was getting and his severe aggression I was conflicted. Should I give my son a medication that will help him and that he needs or should I keep him drug free?

We chose to use Clonidine to help AJ sleep. The first night he used it was the first night in over a year that we and more importantly, HE, had a full night’s sleep.

But why would we even consider medication in the first place? Since adopting AJ he had not gotten a full nights sleep…and it had been almost 1 and a half years. It took him almost 3 hours to fall asleep and then he would have horrific night terrors that sometimes lasted up to an hour. Of course, he was not awake, but it meant that he was not passing over in to deep sleep properly, thus not getting good REM sleep.

Then, after his night terrors, he would wake 10-12 times a night sometimes for only a second to roll over, sometimes because of a wet diaper, and sometimes for hours.

We tried Benedryl on really tough nights and he would sleep for almost exactly 4 hours. We also used Melatonin but that effect had started to wear off and we could not increase the dosage because he would get insomnia at 2 in the morning. The next day he would then nap in the afternoon for two to three hours and I would as well…getting much needed sleep.

When we talked to his new pediatrician about his sleep issues and she noticed his aggression (due to both sleep deprivation and copper toxicity) she instantly thought of Clonidine. However, she did not want to prescribe it until he adjusted to his new school and home. When we saw her 2 months later and we were still in the same boat…she prescribed it.

Clonidine is in a group of medicines called alpha-agonists. By regulating brain activity, it has a calming effect in children with attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). It can also be used for other conditions, such as tics, aggression, or sleep problems.