Managing Your Child's Medications: A Lay-Parent's Guide

We're on drugs. Yep, you name it (duh, legally prescribed drugs), we've probably tried it. I can't say I'm as drug-savvy as Nancy Botwin, and we certainly don't grow or sell them, but we do manage them. Doses, prescriptions, times, counter-effects, interactions, half-lives - it's a lot to take in when you're just trying to keep a kid from scratching your eyes out.

This post is NOT about the pros and cons of medicating children. It's a highly personal, emotional issue for many of us, and I don't wish to debate that here. Obviously, medications are not always the answer. Medications alone rarely are the answer. And unfortunately identifying the RIGHT medications and dosages often can feel like chasing a carrot: just when you think you've nailed it -bam! - the kid has a growth spurt; or completely new symptoms; or they stop making THAT pill in THAT dose; or something else.

Nonetheless, I chose to add medications to our treatment plans, and any reservations I had quickly dissipated after witnessing undeniable, SIGNIFICANT results.

Of course, that doesn't mean I love doling out psychotropic medications any more than I like my kid's melatonin habit. However, I defer to the age-old wisdom: if your child needs a wheelchair, you provide the wheelchair. Yes, you also offer therapy, rehab, counseling, sporn flushing, and so on, but you must provide the wheelchair.

Anyhoo, I've become somewhat of a preachy busybody on this topic because I screw up a lot, and it makes me feel much better to pretend I've learned something from it. So, as much as I support the use of  psychiatric medications when needed, I am militant about the following pointers. If you have others, please share them below, because I'm pretty sure we will continue to be a poster household for Big Pharma for many years to come.