Trazadone and prozac

My daughter is 9 yrs old and taking trazadone and now prozac has been prescribed. I have not given her the prozac yet because I am worried about what all these meds are going to do to her mental growth. She is diagnosed with OCD, Mood disorder, Asperger syndrome also ODD. But is very high functioning.Will adding prozac really make a difference? I am worried about everything I am hearing on the news about children on anti depressents getting suicidal thoughts. She has none now and she really doesn't need any other problems. Are there any other alternatives to medication for OCD which is why she is being prescribed the Prozac. The trazadone is for night time to help her sleep. (because she doesn't)

[Roger Gould, M.D.]

The first thing I would do is make sure she had a consultation with a good child therapist or psychiatrist because there are non medication ways of dealing with this, and that should be a first choice.

[Laura Gail]

I'd suggest looking for as many solutions as possible before putting your daughter on more meds.

My stepdaughter came to live with us at 13, and had been on meds for several years already for sleep, anxiety, and depression. She's now almost 17, and has been able to come off her meds (working with a therapists and doctor). It's not always easy--but she's committed to not being on meds, and as long as the doctors we work with agree, we will support her.  

I have to be honest, she's a teenager.  There are days when I want to just give her prozac so she'll be easier for me to deal with. The medication made her "managable" and much easier--but she wasn't herself, and she really didn't need to be on meds.  Today she's a beautiful, hard working teenager--it's all her. And while I may have my moments of wishing I could medicate her into being a "good" girl, I won't.

Good luck. And if you need to doctor/therapist shop, do it. Good support people are hard to find, but once you find them they are life saving.

laura gail