phenobarbital =anger?

[Aggie23]

hello
my now 10month old is on phenobarbital and in the past week he has been throwing what seems like FITS he has never done this before but now he throws himself down and tries to slam his head around....and its not because something is not going his way........its is out of the blue....he can all nice and content.and the wam bam hes in a fit and it takes about 20minutes each time to calm him down...can this be from the phenobarb

also one more question.......since his fits have started he has been grabbing the left side of his head and screaming like an in pain screaming this comes after his fits.....any idea on this..........

i am calling his nuero later today.....its 1:53am and i just got him to sleep an hour ago..........i did have him going to sleep at 6pm but since all this has started he has not wanted to sleep...(not that abnormal for him tho he is not a sleeper)

please help me figure out what this can be

[epileric]

I can't say for sure what's happening with your son but I know that when I was 11 or 12 years old I was put on phenobarb briefly because I got very angry & upset if I didn't get my way. I even started to bully my brother & we normally got along excellently (still do).

If you need to try another medication (you may just need to lower the dose) I know that mysoline (primidone) is metabolized into phenobarb but the side-effects were different (at least on me).

[brain]

It's difficult to determine considering
your child is only 10 months, but I
have provided you a link:

PHENOBARBITAL

and if you scroll down near bottom
of the list - you will see the side effects
and I cannot help but wonder if the 10
month old child may be experiencing
what I put in the quote below in the
emphasis ... (for the assumptions are
mine) as the 10 month old is unable
to speak for oneself:

Side Effects of This Medicine

Along with its needed effects, a medicine may cause some unwanted effects. Although not all of these side effects may occur, if they do occur they may need medical attention.

Check with your doctor immediately if any of the following side effects occur:

Rare

Bleeding sores on lips; chest pain; fever; muscle or joint pain; red, thickened, or scaly skin; skin rash or hives; sores, ulcers, or white spots in mouth (painful); sore throat and/or fever; swelling of eyelids, face, or lips; wheezing or tightness in chest

Also, check with your doctor as soon as possible if any of the following side effects occur:

Less common

Confusion; mental depression; unusual excitement

Rare

Hallucinations (seeing, hearing, or feeling things that are not there); unusual bleeding or bruising; unusual tiredness or weakness

With long-term or chronic use

Bone pain, tenderness, or aching; loss of appetite; muscle weakness; weight loss (unusual); yellow eyes or skin

Symptoms of overdose

Confusion (severe); decrease in or loss of reflexes; drowsiness (severe); fever; irritability (continuing); low body temperature; poor judgment; shortness of breath or slow or troubled breathing; slow heartbeat; slurred speech; staggering; trouble in sleeping; unusual movements of the eyes; weakness (severe)

Other side effects may occur that usually do not need medical attention. These side effects may go away during treatment as your body adjusts to the medicine. However, check with your doctor if any of the following side effects continue or are bothersome:

More common

Clumsiness or unsteadiness; dizziness or lightheadedness; drowsiness; "hangover'' effect

Less common

Anxiety or nervousness; constipation; feeling faint; headache; irritability; nausea or vomiting; nightmares or trouble in sleeping

For very ill patients:

* Confusion, mental depression, and unusual excitement may be more likely to occur in very ill patients

After you stop using this medicine, your body may need time to adjust. If you took this medicine in high doses or for a long time, this may take up to about 15 days. During this period of time check with your doctor if any of the following side effects occur (usually occur within 8 to 16 hours after medicine is stopped):

Anxiety or restlessness; convulsions (seizures); dizziness or lightheadedness; feeling faint; hallucinations (seeing, hearing, or feeling things that are not there); muscle twitching; nausea or vomiting; trembling of hands; trouble in sleeping, increased dreaming, or nightmares; vision problems; weakness

Other side effects not listed above may also occur in some patients. If you notice any other effects, check with your doctor.

Hope this information is of assistance.

When I was on this medication, it always
made me "sleepy and zoned out" not long
after taking it; but once after getting used
to it - it was not so bad. Unfortunately,
having been on and off of it like a child
playing with a light switch; it created a
severe allergic reaction to it where it's
on my allergy list. I must also add I had
experienced very bad side effects with
it later on.

I was also on Mysoline / Primidone as
Epileric posted, I have no trouble with it,
however, the Doctors will not have me
on it due to the reasons that it belongs
to the Barbiturate family and to the fact
that I am allergic to Phenobarbital.

[Aggie23]

Thank you for the help much appreciated

[Rose]

Hi Aggie,
When I was on a combination of Dilantin and Phenobarb, I had what were told to me by my then neurologist was classed as "rage seizures" in other words, I would go completely medieval for no apparent reason. I ended up being diagnosed with severe depression and anxiety disorder on top of being agoraphobic. I was weaned off that combination and now take Tegretol

Peaceful Hugs,
Rose

[Aggie23]

some help his nuero was his office says that cant tell me over the fone that they have to see him.............

[hawke86]

Seizures = ANGER.

[stilldancing_98]

That was the first med that they put me on as a 10 year old. I had anger issues.The docs had to change the meds.

[RobinN]

poor baby...You might look at this and see if there is anything familiar

Yeast can also cause cause red ring around the anus, "spaciness", anger and aggression, headache, head banging, sound sensitivity [holding the hands over the ears], climbing on furniture and jumping off, vestibular sensory issues, and other similar issues.
For bacteria overgrowth or "bad" bacteria, parents report their child had poor eye contact, tantrums, hand flapping and stimming, frequent [5-10 per day] and nasty bowel movements ranging from real soft to liquid. For my son, his bacteria bms looked like diluted cottage cheese. Bacteria behaviors are commonly aggression and "being mean".

http://www.danasview.net/sensory.htm

Some typical symptoms indicating your child may have a phenol problem are [not all of these need be present]: dark circles under the eyes, red face/ears, diarrhea, hyperactivity, aggression, headache, head banging or other self-injury, inappropriate laughter, difficulty falling asleep at night, and night waking for several hours. The typical adult symptom of phenol intolerance is chronic fatigue syndrome, which is the opposite symptom that most children have, altho some children do present as always tired/lethargic, instead of hyper with sleep and other issues.

http://www.danasview.net/phenol.htm

Stereotyped and repetitive motor mannerisms (e.g. hand or finger flapping, or twisting, or complex whole body movements).

This is generally called self-stimulatory activity, or "stims". However, about 85% of "stims" are actually self-CALMING, not self-STIMULATING. Some children rock, which is generally for focus, to block out overwhelming external stimuli, it is very helpful to rock, or flap hands, or other repetitive motion.

For head banging, hand biting, or other similar injurious type of behavior, that is generally for pain avoidance. Yes it sounds strange to be pain "avoidance" when the behavior looks as if it is causing pain. But if there is overwhelming physical pain in the head or somewhere else in the body, or overwhelming confusion or frustration or serious mistreatment by others, it is very helpful to focus the pain on some localized area. This helps for two reasons. First that localized pain where you know the cause, is much easier mentally to understand and cope. Second, this sort of pain does release, so you have a lot of pain which gradually declines, so the other pain where you have no control and it seems to never stop, is easier to cope when you can create pain under your control which will eventually subside. It allows focus and makes it easier to block out the overwhelming pain and/or confusion, to focus on something understandable and which subsides.

http://www.danasview.net/dxnotes.htm