66
votes
Accepted
How to help my 2.5-year-old daughter take her medicine when she refuses to?
I don't like using strength or force to do things, and I am afraid to cause fear or trauma on my little one
This dislike of using force speaks for you. However, in this case, it might be the only ...
31
votes
Accepted
How to teach a child to swallow pills?
Try a two-pronged approach:
Teach proper technique. Many of us were taught to tilt the face upward when swallowing, but recent research see here shows, that this actually makes it harder to swallow. ...
31
votes
How to help my 2.5-year-old daughter take her medicine when she refuses to?
Let her moan, cry, and delay the inevitable, showing respect for her feelings, but set a timer for these activities. When the timer goes off, it's time to take the medicine.
Refusing medicine ...
21
votes
How to teach a child to swallow pills?
There's technique as @Stephie detailed (+1 btw), but don't forget the psychology. No one wants to swallow a pill, especially young ones (rather ironic since they don't always want to chew their food ...
11
votes
How to teach a child to swallow pills?
Here are a few things I've recommended. I know this might gross some people out.
Some pills (some antibiotics and others) are notoriously bitter/ bad tasting. As soon as they hit the tongue, they ...
11
votes
In case of swallowed medicine, call poison control or 911?
How you should react will depend on what your child has gotten into and how they are currently acting.
First, lets clarify what each option will get you.
Poison Control (U.S.: 1-800-222-1222)
See ...
10
votes
Accepted
How to give a medicine with really bad taste
I'm lacking a bit of information, so I'l write an extended answer.
When a child has trouble with a really bad tasting liquid medicine you could try various approaches:
1. Avoidance
Of course you ...
8
votes
Accepted
How to convince a young child with ASD to begin ADHD medicine?
We couldn't wait any longer. Our daughter confronted us about why we wanted her to make her take "happy pills" and that it was silly to expect someone to be happy all the time. I told her that whoever ...
7
votes
How to get a 2-year old to take prednisolone
I know I am late to this discussion but really wanted to pass this tip along. I has worked for anyone I have told that has tried it and a nurse on a pediatric ward of a hospital. Follow with peanut ...
7
votes
How to help my 2.5-year-old daughter take her medicine when she refuses to?
Parent: "It's time to take your medicine."
Kid: "Charlie should not take medicine."
Parent: "No it's time to take medicine. First we'll take the medicine, then we can go do < fun activity>."
Kid:...
6
votes
In case of swallowed medicine, call poison control or 911?
According to the US Dept. of Health and Human Services Poison Help website and the Mayo Clinic, you should first call Poison Control, unless the victim is unconscious, having trouble breathing, having ...
6
votes
How to teach a child to swallow pills?
As a kid, I learned by putting the pill in a dab of yogurt on a teaspoon. It was the old-fashion thick yogurt with lots of sugar. Unlike a pill (or even a piece of small candy) swallowing a blob of ...
5
votes
How to get a 2-year old to take prednisolone
My son has severe asthma, the first time his pulmonologist prescribed prednisolone my son vomited it up due to the awful taste, this happened several times... We tried adding juice, even chocolate ...
5
votes
How to convince a young child with ASD to begin ADHD medicine?
I was ADHD inattentive and did not receive medication for it (story for another time, but I am passed that now). My wife is ADHD inattentive and she may be mild ASD, and she started her medication as ...
5
votes
Is my 4-year-old too dependent on over-the-counter medication?
I think that @threetimes is definitely on the right track here, but I wanted to add something else as well.
I have a distinct memory as a kid of taking medicine for something and then being very ...
4
votes
How to get a 2-year old to take prednisolone
Just passing along an idea for anyone having to use the worst tasting med ever. I cut a little piece of gummy candy in half (mine is Starkist ? gummy). Then split it again and pushed the pill inside. ...
4
votes
How to teach a child to swallow pills?
I always hated taking pills. Here are some things that helped me:
Practice swallowing with soft and slimy food objects first. I recommend standard (cooked) cheesy noodles made with elbow or shell ...
4
votes
Accepted
Is my 4-year-old too dependent on over-the-counter medication?
Children can be odd in how they respond to illness. When one of my children was not even two he caught a stomach bug. We all did. But everyone got better within short order, then the toddler became ...
4
votes
How to help my 2.5-year-old daughter take her medicine when she refuses to?
I had similar with 2 sons... and yes I am 110kg...
Around 5 &3 they had to have injections at the docs. Oldest refused, hating needles while youngest sat and was so easy - they were in the room ...
4
votes
How to help my 2.5-year-old daughter take her medicine when she refuses to?
When my daughter was four years old she refused to take her antibiotics. As it happened, I also had to take antibiotics, so we would take our pills together. It has never been so easy to give a child ...
4
votes
How to help my 2.5-year-old daughter take her medicine when she refuses to?
My eldest has a chronic medical condition (cerebral palsy), for which we have given her literally thousands of doses of medicine (through a tube directly into her stomach), not to mention some much ...
3
votes
How to give a medicine with really bad taste
Mary Poppins has some good advice for this scenario: "Just a spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down."
While sugar itself might not be the best option, try mixing the medicine into something ...
3
votes
How to teach a child to swallow pills?
I was terrible at swallowing pills for years. My inability to swallow tablets and capsules was a contributing factor to simply lying down in bed when I had a headache instead of taking some Tylenol, ...
3
votes
How to teach a child to swallow pills?
I used to have the worst problems both with taste and with it sticking to my tongue, and this technique solved both issues for me. I'm the only one I know who does this, and I'm not sure how I came ...
3
votes
How to teach a child to swallow pills?
While some pills you can't really do much about, many medicines (such as pain relievers, antihistamines, etc.) come in several different forms, and some are easier to swallow than others.
In the ...
3
votes
How to teach a child to swallow pills?
The technique that worked for me was to gently hold the pill between my back teeth, take a big gulp of water and let release the pill as I swallow the water. That way, the pill isn't sitting on your ...
3
votes
Should we always ask to have urine tested when we go to urgent care?
I would alert the doctor to the past UTI, but then I would trust the doctor. Needless tests that aren't warranted based on the presented symptoms are a cause for concern in our health system with ...
3
votes
Accepted
Why do vitamins & minerals recommendations for babies vary per country
I suspect it varies by country for a multitude of reasons. The first being that each country is run by a different government. Each government is run by different people who probably made up these ...
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