Return of Sleepless Nights

With our fresh start with a new psychiatrist, my son has been off meds for a week now. He seems mostly happy these days, and is his old jovial self more often than not.

So we are glad about that.

Unfortunately, that is not the only thing that has changed back to how things were before we started the drugs.

Kai has returned to waking up in the middle of the night.

It is apparent now that the Risperidone and Seraquel had helped immensely with his sleep. Because without the drugs, for the past week, Kai wakes up in the middle of the night, gets out of bed, and knocks on our door.

The other night, he came by at about midnight. I walked him back to his bed and tucked him in. I’ve resumed sleeping in the extra bed in his room as he would keep coming out of bed otherwise. Sometimes he falls asleep quickly after I lie down. But on this night he did not.

“Dad, my lips are sore.”

I went over, put balm on his lips, and then returned to the spare bed.

“Dad, my leg hurts.”

I had no idea what the problem was. But after a minute or so of rubbing his leg, he seemed okay.

“Dad, can you scratch my back?”

This went on for about an hour. He was wide-awake. He wanted one thing after another.

Finally, at about 1 AM, I thought of giving him some melatonin. And after he ate it, he quieted down. He must have fallen asleep. Finally!

But at 4 AM, he was awake again.

“Dad, can I wake up now?”

Grumble, grumble. No, Kai, it’s too early.

“Dad, can I have some water?”

I got him a cup of water.

“Dad, I can’t sleep.”

Yes, Kai, I realize that. Close your eyes and try to stay quiet.

I was really irritated. But I knew he wasn’t doing this to irritate me. He just could not sleep. And that means he was miserable, too.

Over the past few months, I had gotten used to getting a full night’s sleep. So this change is really hard. And I’m sure it’s as hard for my son as it is for me.

At 6:30 AM, I finally told Kai that he could get out of bed. He started to cry. I asked him what was wrong but he did not answer.

The new doctor will soon recommend her approach for medication. Hopefully, it will include something to address Kai’s sleep issue. He * yawn * and I need it.