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Why is my daugther so tired?

Sun, 10/22/2006 - 22:38
I am wondering if anyone else's child with epilepsy seems tired a lot. My 5 year old (soon to be six in November) takes 15 mg of Topomax at night. She seems tired so often. The minute she gets off the kingergarten bus the thumb goes in the mouth. I am not sure if it is from E, her meds or totally unrelated. Any thoughts?

Comments

From my understanding it

Submitted by Michtom on Tue, 2006-10-24 - 00:54
From my understanding it could be one or a mixture of three things. Kids sometimes go through stages when they need more sleep, simply because they have busy lives at school etc and they are physically and intellectually growing. Medication can cause tiredenss, especially if it is new or the dosage has recently been increased. The other point to consider is whether she is tired because she is not getting good quality sleep at night because of undedected seizure activity. If maybe giving her an earlier bedtime or more downtime doesn't improve things, I think I'd talk to the dr.

Re: From my understanding it

Submitted by ekoorb on Tue, 2006-10-24 - 23:08
Hi. Thanks for your response. I think you are right and I have already put a call into her doc. Take care.

Re: Why is my daugther so tired?

Submitted by angel_lts on Wed, 2006-10-25 - 08:00
DOnt know her body weight, but possible the meds are too high. I would talk with your doctor about it. And make sure she is getting enough sleep at night. If it is not that, look into her thyroid that can cause tireness too. But most likely it is her meds that she is on now. What are the effects on children? Available medicationsClonazepam Clobazam Carbamazepine Carbatrol Depakene Depakote Depakote ER Diastat Dilantin Felbatol Frisium Gabapentin Gabitril Keppra Klonopin Lamictal Lyrica Mysoline Neurontin Phenobarbital Phenytek Phenytoin Sabril Tegretol Topamax Tegretol XR Trileptal Valproic Acid Zarontin Zonegran Zonisamide Topamax is used in addition to other seizure medicines to treat children with partial seizures, children with Lennox-Gastaut syndrome, and children with primary generalized tonic-clonic seizures. Doctors figure out how much medicine to give to young children based mostly on their weight. To keep side effects at a minimum, the doctor probably will prescribe a low dose to start with and increase it slowly. Children usually start with a dose of 15 to 25 milligrams (mg) or less per day, based on a range of 1 to 3 mg per kilogram (kg, about 2.2 pounds) of body weight per day. This dose is given every night for the first week. The dose is usually then increased every week or two by adding 1 to 3 mg per kg per day (given in two divided doses) to achieve the best response. Most children do best at about 5 to 9 mg per kg per day. If the dosage is increased slowly and carefully monitored, side effects should not be a problem for most children. The most common side effects involve problems with thinking or behavior, such as difficulty with concentration and attention or memory difficulty. These side effects may be less frequent in children than in adults. Headache, sleepiness, fatigue, and weight loss are other common side effects. Children are also less like to get the rare eye problem (glaucoma) – still, call the doctor immediately if the child experiences vision problems or eye pain. One advantage of using Topamax for children is that it comes in the form of a sprinkle capsule, which can be swallowed whole or given by carefully opening the capsule and sprinkling the entire contents on a small amount (teaspoon) of soft food. This mixture should be swallowed immediately and not chewed. See How to take and store Topamax (part of the Introduction) for details. Children should be monitored in hot weather to be sure they sweat appropriately. Topamax impairs sweating in a few children, leading to high body temperatures. take care Lisa http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/epilepsyapproach/

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