medication Archives - Foster2Forever

12:01 pm by Penelope

Mini Diaper Bag and Purse Essentials for New Mom

As a foster mom, babies can come into your life in a moment’s notice. And just like that, we have a baby in our home! It’s hard to believe that it’s been three years since we’ve had an infant in our home and so I had to start from scratch with baby items. (we only thought we were out of the baby business)

Here’s a list of essentials for a new mom’s purse (along with a “mini” diaper bag).

Purse Essentials for the New Mom

In my purse, from top clockwise:

Change purse/tiny makeup bag – Now with so many stores giving perks for using reward cards, I began to amass so many that my wallet was impossible to close. I use this tiny makeup bag/change purse and put all my reward cards, coupons, and gift cards in this. It really frees up space in my wallet.

Phone Wallet – I love my Sakroots cross-body phone wallet! If I need to run into a store (when baby is in the car with dad), I can just grab my wallet and go without lugging in my entire purse.

Mints/Vitamins – How many times have you been out and then remember that you forgot to take your vitamins? And since mints are a purse essential too, Pfizer combined the two with Centrum Vitamints that are adult multivitamins with a refreshingly minty taste you can take/enjoy any time of day with or without food or water. (note to self: keep Centrum Vitamints in the car to trick my adult son into taking vitamins)

Hand sanitizer – Anytime I am out & about touching doorknobs, chairs or anywhere else germs can spread, I make sure to use hand sanitizer before I touch the baby.

Cell phone – Do I really need to explain? I like that I can stick it in my Sakroots cross-body phone wallet too!

Advil Tablet Vial – Carrying baby in the car seat or even alone can be murder on your back! Compound that with the bending, lifting and twisting of putting the baby and car seat in and out of the car, I was really sore after my son arrived. You can use Advil tablets for headaches, minor arthritis and other joint pain, muscle aches and pains of the common cold.

Cologne – I always carry a small vial of my favorite cologne in my purse because spit-up happens.

Tinted lip balm – After a restless night with baby, a little color on the lips makes me feel a little less like “Walking Dead” plus I like the added moisture and protection of a lip balm.

Mini-Diaper Bag – A few diaper bag essentials can be a lifesaver to carry in your purse for those quick trips, instead of lugging a huge diaper bag around.

Mini Diaper Bag Essentials List:

Diaper
Diaper wipes
Baby powder.
Pacifier
Rattler/teething ring
Infants’ Advil to quickly soothe teething pain and fever
Bottle with measured dry formula (just add water)

It’s easy to find the supplies for your mini diaper bag essentials. Infants’ Advil can be found in both the Baby section and in Health & Beauty at Walmart.

Look in the Health & Beauty section of Walmart for travel size items for your purse or mini diaper bag, including baby powder, baby wipes, hand sanitizer, Advil Tablet Vial, etc.

Be sure and check all these other great ideas on how to be healthy for every part of your life.

Disclosure: This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #BeHealthyForEveryPartofLife #CollectiveBias

10:08 am by Penelope

My Struggle to Get My Son to Take Medicine

Earlier this week, my kindergartner woke up with a HORRIBLE hacking dry cough and no voice. I was surprised since the temperature outside is still in the 90s here in Texas.

“Cold season” generally runs from September to April!

I didn’t realize that colds begin this early in the school year, but, of course, those are the months the kids are in school spreading their germs with all the other kids.

Although my kindergartner will eat just about anything – if you say the word “medicine” – he will start whining, crying, begging, and hiding. Isn’t that weird? Giving this child medicine can become an incredible struggle! Many times, before it’s over, we’ve had to resort to putting the medicine in a syringe, holding him down, and slowly squirting it in his mouth, just to get the medicine in him!!! And then he will just spit it out if we don’t watch…. How many of you can relate to this scenario???

In a new national survey of U.S. parents of school-aged children (ages 4-13), 40% say that they find it isn’t always easy to give their children over-the-counter liquid cough and cold medicine.

Dr. Cocoa™ for Children had sent me their products to try so I thought we’d try the Dr. Cocoa™ products that are made with 10% real cocoa — maybe my son might be more willing to take this medicine if it was flavored with “CHOC-WAT” (my son’s cute way of saying “chocolate“).

Dr. Cocoa™ Long-Acting Cough Relief is so chocolate-y that my son licked it up! (because it’s that thick) He even said “Yummy!” That’s the first time that’s happened!

To be honest, I was skeptical about chocolate-flavored cough medicine, but since trying it, I have been telling my family and friends about the Dr. Cocoa™ products that really is chocolate-flavored. Now I want Dr. Cocoa™ to make a children’s pain reliever! How about it, Dr. Cocoa™?

Like the Dr. Cocoa™ Facebook page to win a Dr. Cocoa™ hand puppet.

Here is a $2.00 off coupon so you can try Dr. Cocoa™ for Children yourself. You can buy Dr. Cocoa™ for Children at these locations.

Disclaimer: This is a product-provided, sponsored conversation that contains affiliate links. But this is my true experience with Dr. Cocoa™ for Children products.

Visit www.drcocoa.com for a $2-off coupon offer.

2:50 pm by Penelope

We Take a Dozen Prescriptions and Need Walgreens Mobile App #WalgreensApp

I am a member of the Collective Bias® Social Fabric® Community. This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper amplification for Collective Bias and its advertiser.

I have openly shared my struggles with medicating my young son for his ADHD. Managing his prescriptions, along with my asthma and other medications has become a nightmare. My family currently has TWELVE prescriptions!!! My frustration has also been finding my son’s ADHD stimulant in stock. (Walgreens has been the ONLY pharmacy to have it in stock) I’m constantly on the phone refilling prescriptions and visiting the pharmacy. I was excited to try the Walgreens mobile app since my current pharmacy does not have a mobile app that works.

The Walgreens Mobile app has a number of options to manage your prescriptions directly from your phone.

I had a prescription to transfer so, using Walgreens Mobile app, I simply took a photo of the bottle showing the prescription information.

I then just completed my patient information and pharmacy phone number into the Walgreens Mobile app.

The Walgreens Mobile app then showed that the prescription transfer had been submitted at 3:25pm.

At 4:14pm, less than an hour after using the Walgreens Mobile App to transfer the prescription, it was READY FOR PICKUP!

Four minutes later, I also received an email notifying me that my prescription was ready.

Prescription pick up was hassle-free with no waiting at all! (and the medication was in stock!)

4 Quick Tips to Manage Your Prescriptions

Create a dosing schedule listing the time, medication and dose.

Set an alarm. You can use the alarm on the Walgreens Mobile app.

Keep a medication diary. As a foster parent, I am required to do this and it is quite helpful.

Use a pill organizer. This is helpful since my son has morning, afternoon, and bedtime medicines.

How do you manage your family’s prescriptions? Do you use a mobile app?

1:00 pm by Penelope

The Craziness of Medicaid and Flu Shots

My 3-year-old was burning up with fever this morning. 101 degrees! “Oh no!” I thought. “He has had a cough and runny nose for a week now. Please God, don’t let it be pneumonia again!”

A fever in either of my boys adopted from foster care puts me into high alert. Both boys were born premature (one in Mexico) and have had numerous hospitalizations for respiratory issues. But this morning, my biggest concern was the flu.

The Center for Disease Control (CDC) reports:

“Significant increases in flu activity in the United States have occurred in the last two weeks, indicating that an early flu season is upon us. 48 states and Puerto Rico have already reported cases of laboratory-confirmed influenza and, nationally, the percentage of specimens testing positive for influenza is rising fast. Influenza-like-illness (ILI) activity levels in parts of the country are already higher than all of last season. 5 states are already reporting the highest level of activity possible.“

Last week, I took Stinkpot to the doctor regarding my suspicion that he might have hypoglycemia. I requested a flu vaccination, careful not to say the word “shot” in front of my 5-year-old.

The doctor left for a few minutes and then returned, refusing to give my little boy the flu shot.

Apparently, since he is now receiving health insurance coverage under Medicaid, the doctor said that their office cannot give flu vaccinations under Medicaid!!! What???

I now have to take my children covered under Medicaid to the county health department to get them immunized for the flu!!! You cannot be serious!!!

RANT: In my opinion, the government should make it easy for everyone to receive a flu shot – not dictate where someone, especially the poor, would have travel to get vaccinated!!!

The irony is that the CDC, which receives 85% of its funding from the Federal government, has designated the first week in December as National Influenza Vaccination Week!

I will be taking my children to the county health clinic as soon as Lil Bit is able. However, because I had an allergic reaction to the flu shot, I cannot take it without allergy testing first. However, because of my asthma, I will!

Have you had your children had their flu shots? Do you have to deal with the same Medicaid craziness?

If you have a blog, use these banner and web tools to spread the word and promote flu vaccinations!

9:00 am by Penelope

Why Am I Thrilled About Medicaid?

Because Stinkpot didn’t have Medicaid coverage!

We adopted our foster son, Stinkpot, at 2 years old in 2009. He wasn’t eligible for adoption subsidies as a healthy (relatively), Caucasian foster child under the age of 5.

And we didn’t care! We were thrilled for Stinkpot to officially be our son after a year and a half of him being a part of our family.

However, at age 3, our precious Stinkpot began having uncontrollable rages! So much so that he got kicked out of THREE daycares for injuring other children and staff! We even began medicating our explosive child after visiting a psychiatrist. One diagnosis, in a list of many, was Reactive Attachment Disorder.

However, Stinkpot’s psychiatric care was getting expensive — We were becoming increasingly frustrated with what the health care facility was charging and what my insurance wouldn’t cover. For example, the psychiatrist is a specialist requiring a $40 co-pay – but since his office is located in an outlying building on the hospital grounds, any office visit was billed as an outpatient hospital visit that required us to pay $60 out-of-pocket until our deductible was met! Geez! $100 a visit!

We could see that these were long-term issues we were dealing with. Our Stinkpot would need Medicaid assistance. But we had already adopted him as a healthy child.

We discovered that we had the option to “appeal” the State’s decision to deny Medicaid subsidies for our adopted child through a “Fair Hearing” process.

We began the process in January. Yesterday, we signed and delivered our Adoption Assistance Agreement to the State office!

The process is long (and bumpy)! First, there was the long wait in the queue before the Austin attorneys even looked at Stinkpot’s file. Then we were requested to obtain documentation from a physician about Stinkpot’s condition. The psychiatrist had to write a letter explaining that Stinkpot had these serious issues at the time of adoption, but the disorders couldn’t be diagnosed since he was too young. That was May 10th.

The letter was sent to the State’s attorneys, and then we were denied. The letter had to have EXACT wording (Legalese). Another $100 visit on August 9th to the psychiatrist to request the letter – again – this time with the EXACT words the State attorneys required!

The State attorneys reviewed the second letter and sent their letter of finding that Stinkpot would be eligible for foster care adoption subsidies last month. The adoption assistance negotiator called last Thursday so I could detail all the costs associated with Stinkpot’s care. We received the Adoption Assistance Agreement this weekend.

Our Stinkpot will now have Medicaid coverage! First on the list is a tonsillectomy, then food allergy testing…

7:00 am by Penelope

How a Drug Made My World More Colorful

Our 3-1/2-year-old was out-of-control. He had been kicked out of THREE daycares for explosive behavior. I had to take family leave from my career to stay at home with my emotional disturbed little boy.

My heart was breaking! We finally made the difficult decision to see a pediatric psychiatrist. Maybe this is the help we need. On the day of his appointment, he was running through waiting room in his underwear – just screaming.

The doctor prescribed Tenex to help calm him down. His explanation is that it was the most conservative treatment to begin with.

Our son adjusted well to new medication after a period of adjustment; however, after nearly two years, and with the beginning of all-day Kindergarten last month, the doctor decided it was time to try a stimulant for his ADHD behavior.

I was hesitant to begin giving my 5-year-old little boy a psychotropic medication. However, after a month on the ADHD stimulant, Vyvanse, it appears that he sees the world in a whole new way.

Check out the top photo of Spiderman – brown scribbles is how our little boy colored before.

And then all of a sudden, as if Dorothy opened the door from her home into the colorful land of Oz:

Our son’s mind has now been opened to the world of color. Even monkeys and mice are a RAINBOW OF COLOR!!!

AND…

our son has had twelve days of perfect behavior at school!!!

I am giddy, happy, thrilled with the transformation of my little boy!!!

Vyvanse is a stimulant – amphetamine – so it is highly regulated. Every month, we have to travel to the psychiatrist to pick up a written prescription to be filled within seven days.

The best quality of the Vyvanse: slow time-release – it doesn’t give the feeling of euphoria that other stimulants do so it doesn’t have the same addictive effect.

Noticeable Side Effects (besides a colorful world):

Our son doesn’t take naps anymore. Good in that there is no more naptime for Kindergarteners; however, sometimes he can get quite grumpy in the late afternoon without a nap. (But when I say: “Oh, it looks like you’re grumpy since you didn’t have a nap” – he straightens up immediately, afraid he will have to take a nap)
Our son has a severely decreased appetite. He won’t eat breakfast, and will eat only 2 bites of his lunch. He will eat during school snack time (but that’s not enough of the food we want him to eat). He will then eat a late lunch after school but then won’t be hungry for supper. Frustrating!!!

But even given these side effects, we are thrilled with Vyvanse (so far) and the transformation of our little boy!

Disclaimer: This is our personal experience with Vyvanse, and you should not take our experience as advice from a physician. I am not a doctor, and haven’t even played one on TV! I was not compensated for this review because the makers of Vyvanse don’t know we exist, and we paid the out-of-pocket deductible for the prescription Vyvanse ourselves.

What has been your experience with Vyvanse or other stimulants as treatment for ADHD?

6:00 am by Penelope

Free Online Foster Care Training!

Studies have shown that children in foster care are more than 13 times more likely to be prescribed psychotropic medications than the general population.

Regulations in the State of Texas require that before foster parents can give psychotropic medications to children in care, they must receive training on:

Identification of psychotropic medications;
Basic pharmacology including the actions and side effects of, and possible reactions to various psychotropic medications;
Policies and procedures on administering medication;
Who may legally consent to using psychotropic medications for children in foster care.

This foster parent training is required annually.

As you probably know, getting to a training class can be a challenge when you have a houseful of kids.

I’m excited that the State of Texas removed that issue by offering online free training on psychotropic medications!!!

This online training meets the expectations of the regulations for the safe and effective use of psychotropic medications by children in foster care.

In order to receive credit for the online training, you must:

Complete the whole training.
Make at least a 70% on the post-test.
Print the Certificate of Completion of Psychotropic Medication Training at the end of the training. (or screenshot if on mobile)
Provide a copy of the Certificate of Completion of Psychotropic Medication Training to your child-placing agency or residential operation.

This free online training is expected to take 2 hours – ug! – but at least you can complete the course on your schedule.

Difficult Behaviors Training

Are you a foster parent struggling with difficult behaviors caused by trauma? Not sure how to handle defiance, tantrums, lying, stealing, food hoarding? Foster parents will get practical tools in managing behaviors in this free online foster parent training.

Free Online Adoption Conference

This is an online conference for foster and adoptive parents with a focus on Healing Trauma And Responding to Trauma (HEART). The conference sessions are free to watch during the conference dates.

If you are a temporary parent to traumatized children, and are trying to provide stability and make a difference in children’s lives, if only for a short time. You are in the trenches of parenting trauma. This event will help you in developing strategies to effectively parent through trauma!

10:00 am by Penelope

Do You Drug Your Foster Kids?

Last week on 20/20, Diane Sawyer reported on medicating foster children.

Their report stated that foster kids are more than 13 times more likely to be prescribed psychotropic medications than the general population.

Psychotropic medications are scary to me, especially when young children are involved. In the story, the doctor in question sees a child for about 5 minutes before prescribing a mind-altering medication. How can a doctor really know what’s going on with a child in a short visit?

Effect of Anti-Depressants on a Child

At the age of 9, a close relative had to be hospitalized after a psychiatrist prescribed this child an anti-depressant — because he had been depressed for getting in trouble at church the night before. To say the Selective Serotonin Re-uptake Inhibitors (SSRIs) – a class of antidepressant – caused severe side effects would be an understatement. This child lost bladder control, eye movement, and basically went manic when he was medicated with an SSRI. Before that, he was simply hyperactive.

She then diagnosed him as bi-polar. What? That kid was not bi-polar! He went manic when medicated and simply pouted when he didn’t get his way. It took months to get the child stable again.

Would you believe, only 3 years later, this same psychiatrist again prescribed him an anti-depressant? — because he was feeling down after a parent moved out of town. He had spoken with this psychiatrist for 5 minutes where she basically told him if he didn’t take the anti-depressants, he would have to go back into the hospital. As she handed over the SSRI drug sample, I heard her say: “Now watch him closely because we don’t want him to go manic again.“

I wanted to say: “Quack, are you the one that’s nuts?“

Personal Experience with Anti-Depressants

My personal experience with psychotropic medications make me wary. Nearly 10 years ago, after losing a loved one, I was prescribed the anti-depressant, Lexapro. I didn’t sleep for 2 days and then became panicked when I had the dry heaves after attempting to eat. At the hospital, the nurse was very familiar with my symptoms from Lexapro. My anxiety doesn’t mix well with an SSRI like that.

A few years later, after discovering our infertility, my Ob-Gyn attempted to prescribe an anti-depressant for me; however, she gave me a blank look when I told her that I don’t handle SSRIs very well. She shouldn’t be prescribing psychotropic medicine that quickly anyway – she was the wrong type of doctor for that!

Then, when a psychiatrist prescribed a cyclic anti-depressant for me, I slept. When I called about the side effect, he increased my dosage. I didn’t wake up for 2 days! I made the choice to deal with my depression actively instead of with medication. By exercising and focusing on other things, I am the happiest ever!

Medicating Our Traumatized Child

Needless to say, our decision to allow a psychiatrist to prescribe medication for our Stinkpot’s hyperactivity was difficult for us. We were pleased that the doctor first opted for a more conservative alternative before prescribing stronger Ritalin or Adderall. However, I did cry as my Stinkpot adjusted. He did well for nearly a year.

He is now on a psychotropic medication to control his rages, and I watch him intently, constantly looking for side effects or problems. So far, his behavior is remarkably improved. Before, it would take him 45 minutes to cycle through his rages. Now his rages last between 2-3 minutes.

Our prayer is that as he matures and learns more self-control, he won’t need meds to help control his rages. We are also examining other avenues, such as play therapy, bonding, and allergies.

We have been fortunate in that he has been our only child prescribed psychotropic medications.

What has been your experience with psychotropic medications? Do you believe doctors are too quick to prescribe them?

1:00 pm by Penelope

Medicating Our Explosive Child

This breaks my heart. Our Stinkpot has now had two major out-of-control rages at preschool in the last two weeks. The preschool has informed us that they are not capable of handling a child that will punch their teacher in the face. And we understand. The school has to have an environment that is safe for everyone.

Last year, when Stinkpot got kicked out of his second daycare due to his rages, I took Family Medical Leave from my job and stayed with him more with him in Mothers Day Out part-time.

: Photo courtesy of Rodrigo Senna

We also took him to a child psychiatrist to evaluate him. As Stinkpot was literally climbing the walls, tables, and shelves, the doctor knew there was definitely some hyperactivity issues. He wanted to take a conservative approach toward medication. We like that!

The doctor prescribed a calming drug before moving onto psychotropic medications.

For the first two days our Stinkpot was on that medication, he slept. And I cried! I didn’t want my energetic baby turned into a zombie! FosterDad encouraged me to wait a few more days as Stinkpot adjusted to the medication.

Our Stinkpot did well all last spring and summer on that drug until a couple of weeks ago. Now we have to re-evaluate the effectiveness of the medication with the doctor today and examine alternatives.

I realize that every child and every situation is different, but have you had to medicate your child? What was the outcome?

Thank you for helping me feel less alone in this!
Hugs!