Sleeping Disorder is a precursor to ADHD?

[mkh615]

Do any of your diagnosed children also have a sleep disorder that goes hand in hand WITH ADHD?

I have ADHD. I was diagnosed at 8 years old. I have it under control and have for almost 2 decades now. We have a 3.5 year old daughter who sees the same pedi I saw. We've talked to him about a few things she does that are a bit disconcerting and he said these were all symptoms my mom and dad mentioned to him when I was younger. My FIL has ADHD so, there is a really good chance she'll get a diagnosis at some point. I've got her on a pretty tight schedule right now and her teachers are super hands-on at school, so that's all fine and dandy for now. However, she doesn't sleep. I don't mean that in the normal way that 3 year olds "don't sleep." She falls right asleep and then only sleeps for 3-4 hours every single night. When she wakes up, she is fine. She is WELL RESTED after 3 hours of sleep. Then there are some nights where she sleeps 1-2 hours and then wakes up and she is basically manic. I had to take her to the hospital once. She had been up for 18 hours straight and didn't sit down once. The pedi suggested this stuff called Intuniv. We gave it to her for a week but it made her miserable and exhausted. She is a REALLY smart and pleasant girl (even though she's so SO active CONSTANTLY) and when she was on this medicine she was just not herself. It was devastating. We took her off  it right away. But...now she isn't sleeping again. No one is. My husband and I are beyond exhausted and we're really concerned about her not developing physically/cognitively the way she should. Anyone have similar experiences???

[Proce3]

 I definitely can relate to this. When DS was 4 going on 5, he would go right off to sleep at 8 pm. Midnight, all hell broke loose. To me, he had gotten just enough sleep to get his second wind. This is what sent us to the Dr when he was 6. SLEEP or the lack there of. DH & I were dying.

We started with guanfacine (generic for Intuniv) worked fairly well, But when ADHD was diagnosed and Concerta entered the picture....... finger & cuticle picking was yet another problem. Clonidine was DX next. It fixed the sleeping, UNBELIEVEABLE put the nail biting continues.

I have spaced the clonidine the last few nights, It I give it at 7:30..... 8:30 Boom out go the lights. Last few nights I've given it at 8:00 ish and hes up 2 or 3 times until 9pm. Serious good med, but probably not for your child's age. Mental note for your hard drive though. Later if needed. LOL  :)

FYI - Lack of sleep will made an ADHD childs symptoms 10x's worse...... if not more. Sleep is key!!

[mkh615]

Good to know. Thank you ! And I see your ds is in karate? Our dd is starting her first class at the end of this month! Has it helped him a lot????

Quoting Proce3:

 I definitely can relate to this. When DS was 4 going on 5, he would go right off to sleep at 8 pm. Midnight, all hell broke loose. To me, he had gotten just enough sleep to get his second wind. This is what sent us to the Dr when he was 6. SLEEP or the lack there of. DH & I were dying.

We started with guanfacine (generic for Intuniv) worked fairly well, But when ADHD was diagnosed and Concerta entered the picture....... finger & cuticle picking was yet another problem. Clonidine was DX next. It fixed the sleeping, UNBELIEVEABLE put the nail biting continues.

I have spaced the clonidine the last few nights, It I give it at 7:30..... 8:30 Boom out go the lights. Last few nights I've given it at 8:00 ish and hes up 2 or 3 times until 9pm. Serious good med, but probably not for your child's age. Mental note for your hard drive though. Later if needed. LOL  :)

FYI - Lack of sleep will made an ADHD childs symptoms 10x's worse...... if not more. Sleep is key!!

[Proce3]

My DS started Tae Kwon Do when he was 4-1/2. He will be 9 soon. He is a 3rd Star 1st degree Black Belt. How cool does that sound? LOL I am sooo very proud of him. Did it help? YES...... over time. It was extremely hard to watch when he started. I have to admit, I cried on a few occasions (it was that bad). I did it for him & had to look past my disappointment.

4 yrs later: He has rec'd an award 4 times for "Most Improved". He asked a couple months ago how many times he had to improve to be good. LOL Last Friday he had another rank testing and rec'd "Best Student" award. I cried again for a much better reason. We go 3x's a week and I LOVE watching him practice now. At her age effort, passion & determination is what you want. Not ability. I wish someone would have told me that 4 yrs ago.  :)

Tell the Master exactly why you are there, so they can help you & DD. Be open with the other parents, cuz chances are they are in the same boat. I have made some really close friends there.

Best of Luck!!

Quoting mkh615:

Good to know. Thank you ! And I see your ds is in karate? Our dd is starting her first class at the end of this month! Has it helped him a lot????

Quoting Proce3: