Asperger's

[mall13]

My son is 22 and is taking 7.5 mg abilify in the mornings for past 8 months. He feels sleepy throughout the day on some days. Other days, he is completely fine. Is this possibly caused by abilify? Thanks.

[mall13]

That's really great! This is what the road I am looking for in my son. How do I succeed in making him understand the benefits of meditation/yoga, mindful eating? We are vegetarians. Any inputs in this getting him to accept the pluses of these are welcome.

[exfulgere]

my son, now 19, was on a similar medication with similar results.  he just didn't like the way it made him feel overall, and he didn't like the side effects on the warning, he personally experience nausea, fatigue, heightened anxiety, headaches and weight gain.

we opted to go off all medication.  after years of fighting for him in 'acceptable' ways, we decided on a different approach.  we've gone to a mostly vegan diet, eliminating pretty much all processed foods (sounds weird, i know, but i now think it's less radical than life-long meds), and we've started meditating.  we sought out a local meditation group and, although it was slow- and rough-going at first, it has proven the most beneficial of all.  he's able to be quiet internally now, and it reflects externally.  his focus and drive are there, his anxiety and irritability are nearly gone and no melt downs in a long time.  also, it's given him such a sense of personal accomplishment and has really built up his self-esteem.  he's a much happier person.  there are books and research out there showing the benefit to the autistic brain... but i will say i've also benefited a great deal internally from the practice.