There is a brochure I love regarding Summer Heat and Sun Risks. I think I like that one best because it's easy to read and has a little box about Lithium. In the Summertime people on that med are at a higher risk for toxicity. Crazy Meds is a controversial website that goes into the good, the bad and the ugly about many different psych meds.
Here is a list of Honeybunches' current meds and any side effects he experiences:
Lithium: Can cause toxicity especially in the Summer when levels are known to spike up because of sweating (Which releases the salt in the body which Lithium works with). A few Summers ago he had symptoms of diarrhea and a rash. His level was 1.4 so we lowered his dose. That's why in the Summer we keep a closer eye on his levels. I request lab slips to check it as the seasons change, if he begins a new med or other times when I feel it to be necessary.
Abilify: In the past caused Tardive Dyskinesia (Which in Honeybunches showed up as lip puckering/smacking like he was blowing kisses in the air and tongue slithering where his tongue would go in and out like a snake) and Akathesia (Internal restlessness). He takes Cogentin to help with both those side effects. We also lowered his dosage down. We tried replacing Abilify with Geodon and Seroquel, neither of which worked for him and caused even more side effects.
Cogentin aka Benztropine: None known.
Clonidine: This is the med he's been on the longest. He can only take it at night time. In 2008 during a rough patch we tried him on it during the day. It caused him to be very tired and irritable. With the night dose it helps him sleep, but doesn't cause any issues. He does pee every single night, but it's hard to know if that's med induced because he was not potty trained at all until 4 1/2 and already on medications. He's had issues with "Nocturnal Enuresis" as the docs call it his whole life.
Tenex: Honeybunches doesn't currently have any side effects to this med. In the very beginning he got headaches for a couple weeks and seemed dizzy when he first got up in the mornings, but that went away in a couple weeks.
His other meds are Qvar and Albuterol for his Asthma, Prilosec for his Reflux and Metformin to help with weight gain. The Metformin seems to cause diarrhea and upset stomach when it's at 1000 mg 2x day. We recently tried giving him that dose which is how we came to know about those side effects. The Endocrinologist told us that's a common reaction and if it happened to lower it back down, which is what we did.
PAST MEDS AND THEIR SIDE EFFECTS:
Ritalin: This was Honeybunches 1st med ever, which he was on for one day at age three. It caused him to have a 5 hour nonstop rage, which was his worst and longest one ever. We only gave him one dose of this medication.
Risperdal: Honeybunches was on this med from ages 4-6. He gained 65 lbs in those two years going from a skinny 35 lbs at age four to being 99 lbs at age six. He had health problems because of it. He looked very unhealthy and had no energy. He could not even walk up a flight of stairs without being out of breath. Back in those days I trusted the doctors to know what was best. If only I knew what I know now I would have never let things get that bad. IMO this was the worst med for him and the one with the most side effects health wise. I have suspicions based on hospital reports when he was inpatient in a child psych ward where they took him off this med, that this is the one that began causing his liver issues because notes state he had elevated liver enzymes back then too.
Trileptal: He was tried on this med back in 2008. It caused increased agitation and instability.
Vistaril: He was also on this back in 2008. It caused excessive daytime sleepiness, irritability and possibly a mixed state. (He was on so many other meds at the time which also caused side effects so it was hard to know what was what).
Paxil: This was back in Fall 2008. It caused him to be in a mixed state with increased aggression, hyperness, rages, irritability and deep depression.
Celexa: Also caused him to be in a mixed state, but also suicidal at age six in the beginning of 2009.
Fish Oil: Caused a rash from head to toe (But he can eat fish sticks w/o issues).
Geodon: 2013 caused disrupted sleep cycle where he was excessively sleepy during the day, but could not sleep at night as well as increased aggression.
Seroquel: 2013 caused a Dystonic reaction.
So there we have it. His list of medications past and present as well as their side effects.
As for Summer, my biggest concern is his Lithium because that one can easily become toxic if fluid intake is not adequate. Since Lithium works off the salt in the body, I usually try to get him to drink Powerade or Gatorade on hot days. Popsicles and jello are other ways to get increased fluid without drinking since they are water based. (Honeybunches just began liking pops and ice cream. In the past he'd say they were too cold and only liked foods room temperature.) Honeybunches (Nor anyone in my family for that matter) doesn't like drinking plain water, but will drink Crystal Lite, Sugar Free Kool Aid, Propel and other flavored waters. I try to change up the flavors every so often when I notice he's not drinking as much as usual. Thankfully, most days he just drinks on his own and will ask for drinks. In the past when he did not like to drink so much, the more we'd push it the less he'd want to drink. Like many other things in life, it became a power battle. He always loves to be in control. We tried role modeling the adults drinking, for example his teacher would have her water bottle telling him how refreshing it was on a hot day or other things like that. Sometimes they'd have contests to see who could drink the most in a day. They put lines on his bottle in the past with times, which was a visual thing for him to drink a certain amount each hour.
Honeybunches doesn't sweat any more on meds than he did as an infant. For some reason, his temperature regulation system never seemed quite right. For example, in the winter he'd be happy wearing shorts and a t-shirt, while in the Summer he used to want to wear sweaters and boots. Since he's gotten older he's gotten a little better with picking more season appropriate clothing. He doesn't seem to sweat any more than I do though. I never liked the heat. We rub his head and neck down with a cool wet washcloth when it's hot. Now-a-days he seems happy staying outside for most of the day in the heat. For example, today it was 90 degrees, but there was no keeping him in. We reapplied sunscreen a few times and gave him a water bottle to take outside with him. He's always gotten his hot and cold words mixed up. For example he might say "I'm hot. I need another blanket." when he means he is cold and might say "No blanket. I'm too cold..." instead of saying he's hot. So, no he doesn't complain about the heat much at all actually.
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