Valerian for Toddler?

Valerian in young age can cause predisposition to varicose veins in adulthood. Try not to consult MD who does not have extensive knowledge of herbs. Find out first how long the doc in question was studying herbology (not pharmacology of herbs). Somebody with Herbology School education will serve you better.
Good Luck
V.

Hi GJ,

Valerian is by far the safest sleep aid there is. There have been peer reviewed studies (2 if my memory serves me) that show that valerian is safe in children 3 and older that have insomnia. It doesn't really sound like your little one has insomnia but is just having trouble winding down to relax enough to sleep. The valerian will relax him and it will probably help but it is most effective when used long term. SH recommended the "Warm Milk" by Animal Parade (a recognized brand in good health stores). Check that out and see if that might be a short term fix before you decide to begin a long term regimen.

If you're willing to try something else before supplementation, my first recommendation for you is to see what is winding him up to the point that he can't get to sleep. I find that kids like that are usually highly stimulated by their environment. I removed all the chemicals (a complete detox) from my home and my youngest actually had her diagnosis of ADHD removed. If you're interested and would like more information, get back to me. I've seen it help in every situation that I have come in contact with. It's really quite simple and inexpensive the way I did it.

God bless,

M.

A safer thing would be, the kids vitamin brand "Animal Parade." They have something called "Warm Milk."
You can find it at Whole Foods or natural food stores or online like at Amazon.

Like Mimi, I've seen kids get really hyper because of chemicals in their environments. I'm chemically sensitive, and get too tense and jazzed up to sleep for up to two or three days if I've gotten a big exposure to someone's perfume, common air "fresheners," fabric softeners and many household cleaning products.

Also, try to keep your son away from TV or computer screens within 2 hours of bedtime. Much of the light they give off is in the blue end of the spectrum, which prevents the brain from producing melatonin, the natural hormone that promotes sleep. Lots of activity outdoors during the day, on the other hand, tends to help the brain set normal sleep patterns.

Valerian should be safe, starting with small doses. Be aware that children often have a contradictory response to stimulant or sedative medications and herbs (the opposite effect an adult would get).

Are you serious? I am amazed at how easy people make decisions to use medications in children and in ourselves. Valerian is a drug! There is no such thing as a SAFE drug! How is druging him going to teach him how to fall asleep on his own?

My daughter was great at settling down for bedtime when she was about six months old. Because of our teen son's athletic schedule we threw her off schedule around 9 months and she was a bear to settle down every since. She is now almost 4 and we believe we have finally tamed the bear. It is not perfect but MUCH better than before. Here is what we did:

Her new daycare is more challenging than her old one (loved the old one but there was no curriculm and I believe she was BORED!) so we think she is more mentally tired when she comes home. We insure that she has her bath before that very fine window of opportunity (you know, when she is tired and may lay down but before she is over tired and can't settle down). For us, that time is bath by 8 pm so she will be asleep by 8:30 pm. If we miss this, she is still wired when we go to bed.

She has always been a night owl but will then sleep through the night. If we don't have her asleep by 9 pm she is a bear in the am. I know it sounds late but if she goes down any earlier, she is awake WAY too early.

Another thing we did just before the daycare switch was we removed all the toxic chemicals in our home...we swithched to non-toxic cleaning products, shampoos, toothpaste, laundry detergent...everything.

I don't personally agree with giving kids something to sleep (unless there is a medical reason) because then they become dependant on it. I do know that friends of my sister have given their kids Melatonin. My sister's doctor said it was safe and she did research it...supposed to be a vitamin that is safe. I don't have any first hand knowledge but was told to be sure they have at least 8 hours to sleep if you give it (sister said more like 10 hours). I would think if you were going to give something a vitamin would be better than regular medication but either way use caution.

We use a teaspoon to a tablespoon of liquid Calcium/Magnesium from Bluebonnett or Lifetime (blueberry flavor) at night, which is a natural muscle relaxant and nervous system relaxant AND kids need more of it during growth spurts or they can become restless. We use the CalMag and sometimes give them Calms Forte 4 Kids for the younger ones and my son who just turned 8 uses a product called Baldrian+ from Vitaminerals. We don't use Melatonin since if there is no pineal issue, the Melatonin can jack it up. We had a couple of friends who used the Melatonin with their kids, 3 of them slept worse after they had taken the Melatonin and another did well....so it appears that only 1 of them needed Melatonin.

You might want to try the CalMag at dinner before adding Valerian.

Oh, we also use Cortisol Manager from Integrative Therapuetics for our older one.

Be careful with herbal remedies. They are not studied or approved by the FDA so they don't know the long term affects. Some kids sleep better than others. My first born is an excellent sleeper. My second born is not. If your son is still taking naps make sure that he stops naps, this will help getting him to sleep at night. Give calcium before bed, make sure room is dark and cool and vents in the ceiling aren't shooting air on his face. Try a sound machine too. Good luck!

I have not used valerian but have used the liquid melatonin to help my baby sleep when he was having sleep issues. I used an eighth of the dosage recommended children for only a week to get his sleep patterns established. It worked like a charm. I just put the stated amount in his bottle so it was easy to give to him too.

Do you know why he isn't going to sleep? I agree with the electronics being eliminated and doing quiet things at night. What else helps is an Epson Salts bath - warm /hot water (however you like it) and for the little ones, about 1/2 cup of the salts in the water with a dash of baking soda to balance the ph.

Melatonin, 1 mg, is what my daughter takes and has for awhile. Valerian is like a muscle relaxer, so know that if you use this and your child starts to wet the bed or having accidents during the day, this could be the cause.

I would say no. I personally think 3 years old is awfully young to start your child on the reliance of anything.

Every kid is different and maybe you're expecting your child to go to sleep too early. With my oldest, she would lay in there for ages before she'd fall asleep. We started extending her bedtime until she fell asleep in a reasonable amount of time. She was pretty young with a 9pm bedtime. But it worked for her. My other two, had 8pm bedtimes and thought it completely unfair. But they were asleep by the time their heads hit the pillow! LOL

Good luck.

How long is it taking for your son to go to bed? My 2 year old was getting into bed and still staying awake for one to one and a half hours, and this did not include our relaxing reading/bathing/etc time. Some people just have a hard time falling asleep (I still often do, so I just figure my son is like me). Once we started turning the lights down low about 30 minutes before bed, playing music for him, and talking/singing for 15 or 20 minutes each night after he gets in bed, he goes to sleep so much better and faster (maybe 10 minutes now). I think you should try to fix the problem naturally, rather than with drugs. If that doesn't work, then rethink the valerian or whatever.

I've not heard of valerian being used to help with sleep onset, but I know a number of parents who use Melatonin to good effect. You may want to look into that as an option.

stick to a routine. 15 mins before its time for bed draw him a warm bath with the lavender baby bath in it. then give him a lotion rub down massage. i have a lavender airwick oil burner light in my daughters room too. i also read her a story (just 1) then i turn the lights out and sing a few songs and cuddle her then i turn her lady bug on (it shows stars on her walls and turns off by herself). i aslo let her pick 2-3 quiet toys to play with when i go out. my daughter is 3 and has sleep issues with getting to sleep due to "bedroom fears" and this is what works for us :)

I would not suggest giving melatonin to children of any age because it makes it so they cant make there own natural melatonin. by the time we are adults some of us dont make melatonin thats why we cant sleep. VALERIAN there are side effects look on line and reed up VALERIAN IS NOT A DRUG ITS A HERB AND YOU SHULD UNDERSTAND THEM BEFORE USE. RESHURCH THEM. shugal is very important i know sometime its hard. dont do herbs long term for kids