Guest guest Posted August 17, 2003 Report Share Posted August 17, 2003 My daughter Amber (age 15) is deeply grateful for the meds (60 mg. Prozac) that took away the " bad thoughts " and horrible guilty feelings about nothing-at-all issues (her OCD type is scrupulosity). She takes her meds very responsibly. (When we first started the medication, we had a couple of mix-ups about dosage - my fault! - but solved that by putting the pills in a Mon./Tues./Wed. container that she uses to keep it straight.) However, she is very often soooo tired during the day and complains a lot about it. " Mom, I am sooo tired! " She sleeps well at night - since taking the meds - and has no more nightmares keeping her up with fears or worries. I don't understand why she is so tired now, as she has been a very high-energy child most of her life. Is it just being a teen? I've had her checked out at the doctor's - found nothing. We are still waiting on a thyroid test. It is mysterious to me why she has this low energy. If something interesting is happening, she musters energy and can go, go, go, but off and on through the day she will sort of " wilt. " At the onset of her OCD (before we knew what it was, and after we got the diagnosis, before she started meds) she was worn out from worrying, so I understood some tiredness, but now that the meds have brought her 95% back to her own personal " normal " in life functioning, she seems even more tired. I am worried about that. Her mood is excellent, though - she is very happy and full of life, looking forward to attending high school (she has been home schooled for nine years). She eats regularly (a huuuuge amount, though she is still quite thin) and is able to muster energy for swim team practice and so on, but can hardly stay awake by 9 p.m. She sleeps about nine hours at night if our schedule allows, which seems like a lot. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 17, 2003 Report Share Posted August 17, 2003 Hi , I've read repeatedly where teens actually need 9 hours or more of sleep a night, which is tough for them to get given their activities and the early hour that school starts each morning. But I agree that feeling drowsy through the day is an awful thing. Have you noticed if she gets a certain amount of sleep each night, even if it seems a lot, that she's less bothered with the drowsiness the following day? If so she may need to make regular bedtime a priority for awhile in order to be functional the next day. How long has Amber been taking Prozac? If this sleepiness started around the time she began taking it, you are probably right to suspect this is a med side effect. If she's only been taking Prozac for a couple months or so, the sleepiness may yet go away as she acclimates to the med. When my daughter took Prozac, it energized her beyond belief. I have no idea if this side effect would have passed because we took her off Prozac after three months--all we could stand. :-) It is so surprising to me the wide difference of responses the different kids have to the individual SSRIs. A different SSRI made my child draggy and low energy through each day regardless of the amount of sleep she got at night. Since she has such a spectacular response to Prozac symptomwise, I hope something can be found to help with her drowsiness. For example, changing the time of day when she takes the med may minimize the drowsiness. Kathy R. in Indiana ----- Original Message ----- From: chriswxtrm@... My daughter Amber (age 15) is deeply grateful for the meds (60 mg. Prozac) that took away the " bad thoughts " and horrible guilty feelings about nothing-at-all issues (her OCD type is scrupulosity). She takes her meds very responsibly. (When we first started the medication, we had a couple of mix-ups about dosage - my fault! - but solved that by putting the pills in a Mon./Tues./Wed. container that she uses to keep it straight.) However, she is very often soooo tired during the day and complains a lot about it. " Mom, I am sooo tired! " She sleeps well at night - since taking the meds - and has no more nightmares keeping her up with fears or worries. I don't understand why she is so tired now, as she has been a very high-energy child most of her life. Is it just being a teen? I've had her checked out at the doctor's - found nothing. We are still waiting on a thyroid test. It is mysterious to me why she has this low energy. If something interesting is happening, she musters energy and can go, go, go, but off and on through the day she will sort of " wilt. " At the onset of her OCD (before we knew what it was, and after we got the diagnosis, before she started meds) she was worn out from worrying, so I understood some tiredness, but now that the meds have brought her 95% back to her own personal " normal " in life functioning, she seems even more tired. I am worried about that. Her mood is excellent, though - she is very happy and full of life, looking forward to attending high school (she has been home schooled for nine years). She eats regularly (a huuuuge amount, though she is still quite thin) and is able to muster energy for swim team practice and so on, but can hardly stay awake by 9 p.m. She sleeps about nine hours at night if our schedule allows, which seems like a lot. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 17, 2003 Report Share Posted August 17, 2003 HI : Good for Amber taking her meds so regularly, some OC symptoms can be transferable life skills :-) We had some luck with meds that were sedating in moving around the time of day they were taken. Steve found taking them in the evening helped with energy during the day. Some meds he just complained about and so he switched. It can be frustrating but each person seems to have their own way of responding. We also find that regular exercise and a schedule seem to help Steve keep up his energy level. During growth spurts he can get pretty tired though. He is 16 and still growing according to his pediatrician. We noticed our other son who does not have any DSM-IV dx also can sleep a lot. I think teens often have poor sleep hygiene so 9 hours a night is evidence your daughter is listening and paying attention to the messages her body sends. This is such an important skill for our kids, you can be so proud of Amber. Take care, aloha, Kathy (h) kathy.hi@... Re: Tiredness WITH meds My daughter Amber (age 15) is deeply grateful for the meds (60 mg. Prozac) that took away the " bad thoughts " and horrible guilty feelings about nothing-at-all issues (her OCD type is scrupulosity). She takes her meds very responsibly. (When we first started the medication, we had a couple of mix-ups about dosage - my fault! - but solved that by putting the pills in a Mon./Tues./Wed. container that she uses to keep it straight.) However, she is very often soooo tired during the day and complains a lot about it. " Mom, I am sooo tired! " She sleeps well at night - since taking the meds - and has no more nightmares keeping her up with fears or worries. I don't understand why she is so tired now, as she has been a very high-energy child most of her life. Is it just being a teen? I've had her checked out at the doctor's - found nothing. We are still waiting on a thyroid test. It is mysterious to me why she has this low energy. If something interesting is happening, she musters energy and can go, go, go, but off and on through the day she will sort of " wilt. " At the onset of her OCD (before we knew what it was, and after we got the diagnosis, before she started meds) she was worn out from worrying, so I understood some tiredness, but now that the meds have brought her 95% back to her own personal " normal " in life functioning, she seems even more tired. I am worried about that. Her mood is excellent, though - she is very happy and full of life, looking forward to attending high school (she has been home schooled for nine years). She eats regularly (a huuuuge amount, though she is still quite thin) and is able to muster energy for swim team practice and so on, but can hardly stay awake by 9 p.m. She sleeps about nine hours at night if our schedule allows, which seems like a lot. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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