Singulair
Eric has had allergies and asthma all his life and, by all accounts, it was really bad when he was young. His doc focused on treating the allergies with the assumption that the asthma would tame as a result, and he never really improved until he found a doctor who aggressively treated the asthma. Jump forward in time and location: Saint Louis. Saint Louis is one of the worst cities for allergies and asthma but Eric keeps both under control by taking Singulair and regularly using his inhaler.
We've monitored the girls because both asthma and allergies have a family link. It was no surprise, then, when Lola started showing symptoms a year ago. This March was really bad for her. As soon as she laid down to sleep, she immediately began coughing and she never really stopped until she got up the next morning. She coughed so much that she cried in her sleep. It was terrible, and we knew it was time to have her re-evaluated. As a result, we upgraded her Qvar inhaler and added a chewable Singulair to the mix.
Lola loved taking the Singulair. It must be coated in sugar or something, because she happily popped it in her mouth everytime we said, "Lola, medicine!" Approximately five minutes later, the terror started. She went absolutely zany. She ran circles around the house, stuck her tongue out and babbled, jumped up and down, and darted from one activity to the next. She also went completely aggressive: repeatedly smacking people (without provocation), throwing items at people, etc. She spent an entire day at daycare walking up to her friends, putting her hands in their faces, and shoving them down to the ground. It was like she was on an upper that completely eliminated her impulse control so she just did whatever she wanted. She also had strange mood swings; she'd be completely bouncy and happy and then would dissolve into hysterics at the drop of a hat.
So we experimented. We gave the pill at different times of day. If she took it right before bed, then she stayed up an extra two hours. If she took it with dinner, she spent the 2 hours before bed going crazy and hitting her family members. Taking it in the morning caused her to be in time-out all day at school. She only returned to her true self when off the meds for a full 24 hours.
Upon further review of the Singulair materials, we learned that possible side effects include mood swings, aggression, and hostility. Yep, we saw that first hand. Lola's been off the Singulair for a few days now and she's returned to her happy, stable self. Thank goodness.
We've monitored the girls because both asthma and allergies have a family link. It was no surprise, then, when Lola started showing symptoms a year ago. This March was really bad for her. As soon as she laid down to sleep, she immediately began coughing and she never really stopped until she got up the next morning. She coughed so much that she cried in her sleep. It was terrible, and we knew it was time to have her re-evaluated. As a result, we upgraded her Qvar inhaler and added a chewable Singulair to the mix.
Lola loved taking the Singulair. It must be coated in sugar or something, because she happily popped it in her mouth everytime we said, "Lola, medicine!" Approximately five minutes later, the terror started. She went absolutely zany. She ran circles around the house, stuck her tongue out and babbled, jumped up and down, and darted from one activity to the next. She also went completely aggressive: repeatedly smacking people (without provocation), throwing items at people, etc. She spent an entire day at daycare walking up to her friends, putting her hands in their faces, and shoving them down to the ground. It was like she was on an upper that completely eliminated her impulse control so she just did whatever she wanted. She also had strange mood swings; she'd be completely bouncy and happy and then would dissolve into hysterics at the drop of a hat.
So we experimented. We gave the pill at different times of day. If she took it right before bed, then she stayed up an extra two hours. If she took it with dinner, she spent the 2 hours before bed going crazy and hitting her family members. Taking it in the morning caused her to be in time-out all day at school. She only returned to her true self when off the meds for a full 24 hours.
Upon further review of the Singulair materials, we learned that possible side effects include mood swings, aggression, and hostility. Yep, we saw that first hand. Lola's been off the Singulair for a few days now and she's returned to her happy, stable self. Thank goodness.
Comments