My 8 year old can't sleep! He on Concerta

[MaryLynn1]

My 8 year old has ADD and is taking 36mg of concerta, it's helping with his attention problem but he can't fall asleep untill late at night which is driving us crazy!  School will be starting again and i worry how difficult it will be for him to start his day.  Does anyone  know of a natural product for kids to help with sleep. Or anything else we could do!!

[shellndek]

Hi there,

I have found a treatment called melatonin and this can be bought over the counter but i dont know where :) here is little of what it says about this and its completely natural aswell >

ADD ADHD children often have trouble falling asleep. This may be due to either the ADHD itself, a result of medically treating the ADHD, or both.

Parents of ADD ADHD children know that the medications used to treat their ADHD children have side effects. Most side effects of drugs like Ritalin or Concerta can be eliminated by proper medical management. However, one of the most difficult problems that these medications cause is sleep disturbances.

It is very common for an ADD ADHD child who is on medication to have difficulty falling asleep at night. Often parents find that their children, who may only be five or six, are wide awake at midnight or even later. One of the things parents of ADHD children might find helpful is Melatonin.

Melatonin is a naturally occurring hormone, which plays an important role in regulating sleep. Secreted by the pineal gland, a small endocrine gland located in the brain, Melatonin controls the circadian rhythm, the body's internal clock that controls when a person falls asleep and wakes up.


Since Melatonin is the master hormone that controls sleep patterns, many parents find that it will induce sleep in their ADHD children and help to alleviate the insomnia and sleep disturbances that go along with ADHD and ADHD treatment. Melatonin has been shown to reduce the amount of time it takes to fall asleep, lengthen the time one stays asleep, and increase daytime alertness.

For your ADHD child that means that Melatonin will help to have a more normal sleep patterns, sleep longer, which in turns helps your child to be more alert and function better during the day. Best of all, since Melatonin is the natural chemical your brain uses to regulate sleep, it enhances is normal sleeping patterns. Many drugs that induce sleep do not cause the body reproduce natural sleep patterns and as a result the child often does not feel rested, even though he slept.

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Best wishes
Shell

[MaryLynn1]

Thanks for the information!

[OCWhiteGirl]

My 9 year old son has been on Concerta for three years. I swear by it, I think it's great, but I have had him on 18mg. I tried him on 27mg but he was lethargic. Your son probably can't sleep because the dosage is extremly high. ADHD medications sre stimulants. If you drink energy drinks in the day time it helps get you thru the day, but if you drink them at bed time you'll toss and turn. Very similar type situation. Have you tried him on a low  dose?

[margypops]

There are Natural Remedies out there put it into the search Engine, I found an interesting Article which states, Food supplement treatment of ADHD may be of Equal efficacy to Ritalin treatment. All children and especially those with learning difficulties. benefit from a multi vitamin-mineral supplement with anti oxcidents ,BCompex and VitaminC. for further interesting information, regarding this and the overuse of stimulant Drugs, Put in' Breggin.com' Hope you find something :natural" for him .

[MaryLynn1]

He was on lower doses of meds but we weren't seeing any improvements, he's a big boy for his age so his Dr. feels this dose is suitable for him.

[808Dad]

Concerta has really helped my son, but he has lost his appetite and it causes him to lose weight periodically.  I like the idea of Melatonin and will try that for both him and myself.  Thanks for the info.

[woozy]

Get him off the concerta, he can't sleep because he's sensitive to the stimulants. Melatonin won't do a darn thing, I know because I took it when I was on Adderall (adderrall). Your pineal gland won't override the adrenal gland and your son won't be getting any sleep any time soon. Why not try coginitve therapy or read up on how to help your kid without putting them immediately on drugs?