My 3 year old has a terrible time sleeping!

[singerpurple]

My 3 year old has all the symptoms of ADD and probably some anxiety as well. These last few months, he will not stay in bed at night and freaks out if we close the door (he's usually up at least 3 times). I think there are several issues going on (afraid of the dark, his brain just won't shut off, he always has to use the potty in the night, bedtime routine is inconsistent at times). We have tried Melatonin, which seems to help him go to sleep, but does not help him stay asleep. We have a sound machine (but I'm not sure it makes a difference) and he has a night light, but nothing seems to consistently help him. We are exhausted and just want rest. Please comment if you have any suggestions!

[Eclecticentric77]

Hi there, I have Inattentive ADHD. I had and sometimes still have difficulty falling and staying asleep. The neurotransmitter Serotonin is a precursor to Melatonin. Those of us with ADHD have low levels of Serotonin which in return gives us low levels of Melatonin. The pineal gland secretes Melatonin as we sleep, but due to having low amounts of it, remaining in sleep, and a lot of the time acquiring deep sleep is rather difficult.

The sleep regimen I take and recommend for those with ADHD I work with is:

1. Taking a special type of Melatonin. Studies have indicated that Melatonin in lower dosages (ie. micrograms-mcg. as opposed to milligrams mg.) is more effective. The company Life Extensions offers Melatonin 300mcg that is 6hr timed release, meaning that it helps the pineal gland secrete Melatonin throughout the night as opposed to the 1st hour or 2 (It's about $9 on Amazon). This helps tremendously with deep sleep and helps the individual stay asleep.

2. Taking a L-Theanine supplement right after the Melatonin. L-Theanine is the calming agent found in green tea, and is also quite helpful with Serotonin. Anxiety can arrive a lot of the time due to lower levels of Serotonin.

By implementing these two supplements, it helps the brain with both Serotonin and Melatonin, which are essential for good quality sleep. Having a regular sleeping pattern is also very helpful. I hope this helps.

[singerpurple in reply to Eclecticentric77]

That's very helpful! Thank you! I'm still learning about ADD because my son is the first one in the family with these issues.

[ADHD_DAD in reply to Eclecticentric77]

This is a excellent and detailed response! Are you aware of any interaction between the L theanine and ADHD prescription medications. For example, can it make stimulant based meds less effective? Since L theanine seems to lower blood pressure, can it be taken (or does it interact) with ADHD meds that work by lowering blood pressure like guanfacine? Thank you.

[Eclecticentric77 in reply to ADHD_DAD]

Hi there, thanks. There's a few websites that can be used to check different medication interactions (drugs.com/interaction). I'd also recommend to speak with your healthcare professional. Stimulant medication works by helping the neurotransmitters Dopamine and Norepinephrine. Dopamine has a special relation to Serotonin in the sense that, if you keep raising one (and not the other), the other will start to drop and vice versa. This is one of the reasons why stimulant medication stops being affective for a good amount of people after a few months and why some negative side effects start occurring. Because of this I take a supplement (L-Tryptophan) to help with Serotonin to keep the levels balanced. I take L-Tryptophan which slightly raises blood pressure according to one study I found, but I also take the supplement coQ10 to keep my heart rate and blood pressure stable and stop them from rising (your body also makes coQ10 but makes less of it the older you get). If you're going to supplement with either L-Tryptophan or L-Theanine (for Serotonin purposes), I'd recommend to add the supplement coQ10 to help keep blood pressure/heart rate stable. I take L-Tryptophan (along with multiple other supplements) with my stimulant medication during the day, and use L-Theanine (with a few other supplements) to help me sleep at night. Hope this helps.

[ADHD_DAD in reply to Eclecticentric77]

Thanks for responding.

[ADHD_DAD in reply to Eclecticentric77]

Hi Eclectic. Based upon your post, I tried L'theanine and melatonin myself as a test (I found plenty of tests on L theanine with dogs- nice thing about dogs is no placebo effect). The melatonin helped me stay asleep for 3 hours at a time, then I could take another for another 3 hours (6 hours is enough), but I saw no difference with the l theanine. Have you found it to work better if taken earlier, later, etc? Don't mean to highjack this post but I found your response interesting.

[Eclecticentric77 in reply to ADHD_DAD]

Some individuals require different dosages for a supplement to work, and some supplements don't go well with certain individuals. I take 2 individual 100mg supplements of L-Theanine (200mg total) from the company Jarrow Formulas after I take Melatonin. This has worked best for me. Jarrow makes 200mg of L-Theanine but this for some reason makes my body feel itchy, so I take two 100mg instead with no issue.

My Sleeping regimen for the last 2 years:

1. Collagen Supplement, to relax the body throughout the night (helps stop me from waking up throughout the night due to body discomfort)

2. N-Acetyl Tyrosine: To keep my circadian rhythm on check, and help me fall asleep and get sleepy around the same time every night.

3. Melatonin

4. L-Theanine.

[ADHD_DAD in reply to Eclecticentric77]

Ok. Thanks.

[Onthemove1971]

Welcome to the group, we are happy you have joined us.

A few thoughts.. I would make sure that he is good and tired before he goes down for bed. You could also look into a weighted blanket. Some people really enjoy them.

I really think finding the right Melatonin ( some release in stages) is one of the answers.

This is also a great opportunity to start working on a simple reward system ( you will need this for a long time).

Start small, if he is getting up 3x reward him with his favoriate thing if he only gets up 1x. Stay firm in that he needs to sleep in his bed. Also ask him what would help him stay in bed.

A big part of parenting children with ADHD is involving them in the reward/ consequences.

Let us know how it goes, we are always here to support you..

Big hugs with this frustrating stage.

[singerpurple in reply to Onthemove1971]

Thank you for your kind words. I've been meaning to get a weighted blanket and keep forgetting. I'll try the reward system...I don't why I haven't thought of that for bedtime. 😊

[Nats2005]

We ended up getting a Door Monkey (doormonkey.com/) to clip on our son's door so he couldn't get out of his room. Before we got it he was literally popping out every five minutes and not finally settling down until an hour or more past his bedtime.

It does hold the door open an inch or so, maybe that will help with a kid who gets freaked out if their door is totally closed.

Our son does currently take guanfacine in the late afternoon. One of the reasons our psychiatrist suggested it was to help with him falling asleep.

[singerpurple in reply to Nats2005]

That may work. Thank you for telling me! I'll look into it.

[anirush]

I have had kids and grandchildren with night fears. For a period I had a sleeping bag on the floor next to our bed so my daughter could come in our room if she was scared but not get in our bed.

I still remember some night fears I had as a kid and I am old!

[Onthemove1971]

Just checking in to see if any of the suggestions helped?

Thanks