Uncontrollable Tantrums

sounds like night terrors. not much you can do about them (at least not that I'm aware of!) my daughter got them really bad around 2 yrs old. I would just have to try and get her to wake up by turning on the lights, moving her to a different room, talking to her in a soothing voice, giving her a drink. After all that she would usually wake up and look around like she had no idea what was going on (they often look awake while they are having these terrors, so it's hard as a mom to understand they have no clue what they are doing). At that point, I'd take her back to bed and sing her a song to soothe her and tell her to go back to sleep and she would

If they are happening in her sleep, they are most likely night terrors. She probably has no idea what's happening (kind of like sleepwalking). I don't think that you can actually wake them from these and I don't know what to do about them, other than let them run their course. I would talk to her pediatrician about the episodes and see what they have to say. If it is the medication, you're going to have to pay very close attention to when she has them and when you gave her the medication to be sure it is, in fact, a side effect.

If they are happening when she's awake, then you just have to continue to walk away. Try to move her to the middle of the room away from any furniture or anything and let her throw her fit. If she doesn't have an audience, she should quit eventually because they aren't having the desired effect. If she is still doing this after a month of consistently walking away and getting no attention, you may want to take her to her doctor and let them see if they can find a medical reason for it. Good luck!

Hi A.-

I agree that it sounds like night terrors. Google it and see if it sounds right to you. If so talk to your pediatrician but mine said that there really is nothing you can do during the terror to stop it and in fact trying to wake them can actually causes it to take longer to pass because your interference actually freaks them out more. My pediatrician said that if they continued and my son wasn't settling back to sleep on his own within a reasonable amount of time that we should try to wake him up before the night terrors starts. So in his case it always seemed to happen around 12:00 or 12:30 so she suggested we go in and wake him at 11:45 or so to alter his sleep pattern. We never had to do it because he got over it fairly quickly on his own.

Good Luck,
K.

my 8 year old used to wake up 'wild' like that. but he was sleeping. i would literally have to shake him (not hard)and call his name several times, take a wet rag and put it to his face, just to try to wake him up enough to realize it was ok and that i was there. sorry but at night they are not tantrums, i really believe they are night terrors, just make sure she does not hurt herself and try to wake her up enough so that she can realize your there and its ok to go back to sleep.

by the way my 8 year old has not had an episode like that in a long time, so i think they do grow out of it.

You need to take her to see your family doctor and get a referral to see a neurologist.

Sounds like some sort of panic/anxiety attack.

Good Luck. I know, how frustrating this can be. She can't tell you what's she's actually feeling.

P.S. Does she get upset with transitions or change in her schedule? If so, she may be showing some signs of autism. I am not a professional, but have worked 15 years with children who are diagnosed with autism and other disorders.

My daughter also would wake up screaming and angry at times and it was the most overwhelming thing ever. I was convinced the neighbors thought we were doing horrible things her screaming was so awful. There was no way around it but just being there through it, I found getting angry myself didn't help at all. I did start giving homeopathic tablets to her and that seemed to help, Hyland's Calms Forte and Bach's Rescue Rememdy. Good luck. Not fun at all, just don't get mad while it's happening because the child isn't doing it on purpose obviously and is sort of stuck in it while it's happening. She has thankfully outgrown them.

When my son went through bouts of uncontrollable anger it was often illness and fatigue. Ear infections were common culprit. Once, I took him in for an MRI because I was certain he had brain damage he was acting so horrible. Turned out that he had a very severe sinus infection. I pray you find your answer!

A., I so feel your pain. My 21month old has been doing the exact same thing since he was about 13 months old. We have taken him to every doctor imaginable and they really cant figure out what he has or what is going on. We have even done a sleep study where they did notice that he has obstructive sleep apnea and is taken in more CO2 than he really should. They had reccommended he have a tonsillectomy and adnoidectomy to help with this. After seeing the ENT to schedule this surgery, he did not think that was the issue and because of the high risk involved in doing this type of surgery so early in life, he decided to see if allergies were not playing a role in this. He put my son on Nasonex and Allegra and we have seen a slight improvement, He is still having episodes at night but not as severe and I am able to calm him down within a few minutes verses 45 minutes or an hour. I know that I am not telling you anything that will help you but I wanted you to know that there are other children out there doing the same thing and if we ever figure out what is going on, then I will definately try to reach out to you and I hope that you will do the same for me if you find a solution for your daughter. We have considered seeing a neurologist, but most of these Drs. require you to pay upfront and it is anywhere from 1600 to 2,000 dollars and the wait is as long as 6-7 months out before you can get an appt. My husband and I are still trying to figure out if we want to do this or not because the sleep study said that there was no abnormal EEG readings but the ENT said that does not always mean anything. Anyway, I wish you the best of luck and I will pray for you and if you ever want to talk or if you have any questions, email me and I will give you my information.

I had a friend whose daughter was on Sinuclair and also had nighttime terror attacks. It isn't a real common symptom, but it is definitely listed as a side effect. In fact, the doctor didn't even know that it was a listed side effect and was unable to link her reaction to the medication. Get a printout online or from the pharmacist about the side effects of any meds she is on. Call you dr. and discuss this with her/him immediately. Good Luck!

I wouldn't discount night terrors, but I'd also be wondering if it's something spiritual. My sister's two year old started having a lot of problems and then they found out (after months of this) that there was a 'ghost' or demon in their home bothering her at night. I know you cosleep but sometimes a person may experience this when no one else does. With my sister, she didn't see or hear anything for months after this started. Then all of a sudden they started seeing things move, hearing voices, ect. It was pretty intense and they finally had to break their lease and move.

S.

I agree with the others about the incidents possibly being about night terrors/adjusting to the new daycare, but I would check with the doctor just in case (? the need for testing??). Esp since you said that the tantrums at night are differnt than in the daytime. Better safe than sorry. Good luck!

The new day care may have some effect on your child, but not to the degree that you described, I wouldn't think. I do have a question for you that you may not have considered: what is your child allowed to watch on TV? Even some of the cartoons today are very evil and can be frightening to small children. Just a thought.