anti-psyc drug affects in 2 yr old

[ttatina]

my son is 2 1/2 yrs old,diagnosed with global dev delay,he goes through these spells of screaming and constantly hurting himself and anyone around him,he has turned real mean,they have him on risperdal,lorazapham,clonazepam,and haldol,the only one that seemed to have a little effect was the clonazepam,but its still to early to know on that one since they just started it yesterday,.  since we admitted him on saturday,none of these others seem to  be working on him,it might put him to sleep for an hour then he will wake right back up in the same screaming condition.  hes only 2 can these strong drugs be hurting my little boy,now he cant stop moving and flapping and doing these different movements,,these spells started of minor and would seem to go away for months at a time where there is no screaming and he enjoys love and doing things,then when they  tend tocome back they seem to get worse,this time i feel like i have completely lost him ,his spells dont stop 24/7 all day and night long,i know theres something mentally going on in his brain,but i just dont understand why these spells would stop for months at a time and  he comes back a loving little boy again then out of the blue the spells come back,his neuroligist says in his 25 yrs he has never seen a 2 yr old with this kind of behavior,he had to do a special authorazation just to get the risperdal approved since they dont usually give it to kids under the age of 5.my son does not talk yet so its not like he can tell me,theres no tears when hes crying so i dont think it could be pain,do u have any explanation to why these spells seem to come and go.hes currently admitted in childrens hospital right now due to these behaviors and  docs are trying to get a metabolic specialist involved so they can run some tests.they have also ordered another mri today since its been a year since his last one.

[cindyo8]

hi, read your story,i feel there's something going on with your baby as in pain ,and he's acting the way he is because of the pain,i have 4 kids,i wouldn't have my 2 yr. old on physc meds, thinking it would make condition worse ,not knowing what is wronge,some meds., can cause other health related problems,unfortunatly,or what gregg had mentioned,also, since dr. are elevatuating your baby, i feel for them to properly see whats going on,he shouldn't be on anything right now,to see what provoke the (spells),just like if your having a certain pain in your back & you take a pain med(hide pain)& go to dr. for it at that time & it's hard for them to see whats wronge cause there's no pain,just remeber you have a say into what your baby is given,don't feel you always have to agree w/ dr's,if anything,dr's shloud give him a small dose of benagryl(allergy med.also a sedative),it also can be an allergic reaction,i seen a study done on kids were they had allergies & they acted exact way,i mentioned bendryl it has a sadative effect,i wish you luck,i also mentioned could be an allergy cause sometimes a health related problem may be something what you wouldn;t even think of or something just as simple as that,wishing you well & your baby, good luck,ask your dr.(baby's),if it could be a allergic reaction?(like mentioned it causes the same symptoms in baby;s),i would keep a food journal,

[claire000]

my son is 26 months and his speech is good, hes not behind on anything for his age! He can say over 50+ words and says stuff like, more juice, go outside, whats that, daddy bye bye, ect. He has his own little languge also he'll talk for ever but you not always sure what hes trying to say! The only thing that has me really worried now after reading into all these different things on the net is that when hes excited he twirls his hands, he kinda stiffens up when he does it too! His dad and his grandpa both have ADHD there whole lifes so i heard this hand twirling can come from having that! He does this when he flushes the toilet or sees something exciting on tv! he can go 5 or 6 hours without doing it but does it atleast  happens a couple times a day! i would love to hear what any one thinks on this! thanks clair

[ILADVOCATE]

Since they vary during the day the neurologist has to rule out some standard side effects such as the temporary movement disorders caused by antipsychotics such as akathesia. Those can be treated with a side effect pill. Klonopin as happens works in that capacity. Haldol is much more likely than Risperdal to cause those side effects though Risperdal can cause them as well.
  Autism however, being a developmental disability unlike a psychiatric disability doesn't generally respond to antipsychotics unless there is a co-existing psychotic disorder to treat in general. Some of the behavior such as the arm flapping does sound like autism. But it would be best to ask the neurologist what the antipsychotics are specifically treating and if (constructive) cognitive behavioral therapy might not work as well. Don't make any changes on your own but do speak to them about what's going on and ask what the medications are specifically there to treat.

[ttatina]

thank you gregg for your apply,your info was very interesting to me,i did read the side affects on the med haldol and i am no longer going to give it to him,as for the risperdal i am really thinking about weaning his way off that also,ive seen alot of extra flapping and hand movements with that and also i am not seeming to see  much of a change in his behavior,my sons behavior is so bad and uncontrollable all day with his biting me and constant scratching me and all you can do is constantly restrain him,my son has also held his head constantly since he has been about 1,my parents keep seeing this and they seem to think my son is always in constant pain,but the doctors dont think anything about it,i think it may be just due to his behavior,i am really going to try out the special baths,my son dosent sleep or eat much so that may be some of the problem,they prescribed some clonidine to help him sleep which will keep him asleep for 3 to 4 hours which is the longest he has ever stayed asleep.
Right now i am pretty much willing to give anything a try,i was just wondering if u know anything about celiac disease,and if you would think this could cause any of my sons symptoms and behavior probs,my doctor keeps on putting me off when i suggest it to him,but i read up on it and some of the symptoms seem alot like my sons.

[ggreg]

There's a chance your 2-yr-old has autism, and the metabolic testing they're doing is the correct way to go right now because autism is thought to be affected by (among other things) a problem with digestive absorption and some enzymes.  Your child's symptoms point to autism, with the arm flapping, lack of speech, screaming, agression and self-injury, plus children get it before the age of 3.  Your docs diagnosed developmental delay, and that's in keeping with autism, too.

As for the drugs your child is taking, there is much controversy over the use of some medicines.  In your case, the Respirdal and Haldol can carry some serious side effects, like muscle stiffening, and there is a vocal group that are against those.  But the docs have to make the decision; you can only bring it up.  The Lorazepam and Clonazepam are less problematic, and since you initially think the Clonazepam might be helping, and since the two he takes are cousins, perhaps just taking the one could be something you could ask about, since you are worried about all the drugs.  But the docs have to decide in the end, they're supposed to keep track of what helps in an orderly way, and none of the medicines should be stopped abruptly.  

Now, one philosophy (and there are many) about autism is that it may be caused by too many toxins and metals building up in the body because of absorption and breakdown problems (hence the metabolism testing), and there is a group of caregivers that think some "chelation baths" or pure bentonite clay baths from the health food store are good for a child, somehow the clay binds to toxins that come thru the skin in a warm bath, and some wash down the drain.  Also, children's vitamin-mineral complexes (to include magnesium) can be a help, with the exception of do not include copper.  A blood test would reveal what your child's possible deficiencies might be, but when they do the metabolic testing that will probably be done, plus they may uncover toxins, and they will have their own treatments for all that.

But aside from all this complicated info, the one basic thing that can help an autistic child to not have tantrems is enough sleep.  That may partly explain why some days your son does okay, and others not.  So, to improve sleep, your child simply needs more exercise daily.  In addition, music and art is supposed to help autistic children, so play music, sing, and let the child color and paint, keeps them happy and helps them with socialization a little bit.  You are going to need a home teacher who will work one-on-one with your child, who is expert in autism, to begin to get them to control their behavior and pay attention and speak.  If this is done before the age of 7, then in the long-run they will relax more, fit in better with the family and in society.

You can go to www.autism-society.org to find more info on autism, in case that is what the physicians determine is the problem with your child.  You will also probably need to eventually get in touch with a support group, because you cannot deal with this alone.  Now, what I am saying is most definitely not expertise in any way; rather it's to help you get an idea on what might be going on with your 2-yr-old.