Yea, whatever you do, don't give him amphetamines!

I know you know that, but isn't it wierd that that actually needs to be said to some parents?

"Don't give your kid speed!" duuuhhhh!

Western medicine can be a very powerful healing tool, but sometimes gets on these kicks that are very harmful.

So have you found it works well?

Hi Laura ! Well done for taking your childs health in your own hands. After all, many who are called hyperactive, are just sensitive and energetic.. and don't need strong medications. I have seen how kids who have been on Ritalin and similar drugs for years, and now as young adults cannot function without medications, but there are no suitable meds left to top up the dose.. also there is strong evidence that suppressing so much of the childs development ther are strong neuroses present..
I'd say treat these strong meds with strikt caution!

As to Valerian,- its also a very powerful sedative, and I would avoid using regularly. A young body will also adjust its own chemical household and may never learn to produce its own well functioning tuning mechanisms..
So my advice is to use it intermixed with other methods, and/or go without as and when you can.

My daughter is diagnoses AS, which can have ADD symptoms as far as concentration and focus is concerned.. also hypertension was a problem for my girl. She is 18 now, and has never had any drug treatment ever.

We have gone through many treatments to be able to avoid the medics:

-when she was very young (3-5), she had cranial sacral therapy. This was very calmng for her, and I noticed she was sleeping much better/more. (She had a lot of trouble getting to sleep)

-She was on a gluten free diet, as she was also diagnosed "False Coeliak". There is much evidence to suggest that Wheat or Gluten should be avoided if on an autistic spectrum. (We stopped when she was about 10).

-We had massage at bedtime with essential oils,- would always sneak in some Lavender, and she liked Amber and still today she likes Cinnamon as a comforter. Also we used Mandarin if she suffered from anxiety and/or nightmares.

-She had a year of Chinese Acupressure called Shen Tao, but normal TCM Tuina massage would probably also be ok. Works a bit like Acupuncture, only without the needles. (Since my daughter is very sensitive to touch, she preferred Shen Tao, as it just involves two fingertips, not like massage as we imagine it).

-For both my children I am very strict with sugars, and keep an estimated count each day as to what they have had. With my AS daughter it wasnt so bad,- but we did not have Cane/Beet sugar for a couple of years. At that time (she was 5-7) we did not have any sugars, except rarely rice syrup and molasses, very occasionally. This would include buying sugar free ketchup, mustard, no ready made cakes, buscuits etc.. This diet was very hard to keep up,- and is quite anti-social, as any social occasions inevitably involve sharing some treats.

So, although from a health point of view I would still advocate this diet,- it is pretty severe. So nowadays I just watch the daily amounts, including pieces of fruit, white breads or processed foods like salad dressings etc, which often contain sugar.
My older one is 18 now, and I cant really control her diet anymore.. but for my younger one there is a srict count of sugars still, including Fructose, Dextrose, Honey.

-Avoid stimulant foods like chocolate, food colourings (especially in gummy bears and chewy sweets, or fruit squash, particularly the colours orange, blue, green), and dont forget Vitamin C. Also quite a stimulant for a child sensitive in that area.
These things I do not exclude totally, but dont buy regularly. Instead of chocolate drops in a cake I use fruit peel, or raisins etc (ther are ways to get kids to like them!), instead of chocolate muffins we buy fruity ones etc,- but still sparing, as they have high sugar.

Always give your child sugary things after the stomach is already full with good stuff, and then the body cannot absorb so much. Definitely avoid chocolate and food colourings before an important visit where you want to make a good impression with your offspring (like to the school medical!), and no Vit C after 5 p.m. to help with sleep later.

-With my 18 year old we have started to use Melatonin occasionally, to help shift her go-to-sleep time back to the desired time after the hilidays for examples, but this I think is only ok because late teens have a dramatic drop in Melatonin naturally (thats why teens like to stay up so late),- but I'd be cautious about using Melatonin regularly on a 7 yr old.

I noticed you give your son a liquid vitamin complex, please read the label carfully as to sugars, Vit C and colourings.. perhaps you want to leave that off until things have stabilised. It is often these manufactured foods/food supplements which contain complex sugars, emulsifiers etc, which are not properly studied, and could cause hyperactivity as a raction. A good balanced natural diet of fruit and veg will supply your child wth all the vitamins he needs for at least seven years (as some of the more complex and rarre vitamins like K or some B's are only needed to the tiniest quantities and only run out after not having had them after 7 years.. I'll explain more to that and sources if you need them). I could never get my daughter to take brewers yeast, something often spread (very thinly) on toast in the UK. A lot of kids in the UK love it,- but sadly not mine. But I would highly recommend it, as it contains all the calming B Vitamins and none of the "Uppers". And of course has no additives whatsoever..

-I read quite abit about Macrobiotic diet, and had first hand experience of a whole nation which roughly eats accordingly in Japan, and was very impressed with their "Uppers" and "Downers" view of foods,- and have also wlways kept that in mind when trying to provide good calming/grounding food for my children mand myself. However I only used Macrobiotics as a guideline in that respect, as it has other aspects I did not find relevant to myself.

- TCM food guidance is also useful,- but needs adjusting a little as far as the herbs and little medicinal extras is concerned,- they taste strange to our tongue and are hard to follow through strictly, especially if children are involved. I'd still get some dietary advice though, it is a useful guide all the same.

-Which leads me to another point: I always had to make sure my daughter got grounded (as in: earthed). She was too much in the head, too yin, not balanced. As she is not at all sporty, our grounding was done by taking the shoes off as often as possible, especially on grass, deep breathing exercises at bedtime, foot massage, laying on grass/earth for cloud watching f.eg,- these were good quick methods for centering her.
Generally I felt she needed to do sports, and for us it was swimming. But I'd definitely look into doing regular sports with him, better still if it is something he can do at home as well..
(If he gets hyper at one time, it might be a venting tool to get him to shoot a few balls, or show off his kung fu, or do 111 skips on the skipping rope.., doing it barefoot on the lawn- and yu will probably see his mood change quite swiftly).

ok, enough for now. I hope this helps you a bit. As you can see, I have had many experiences in that area..so please dont hesitate to ask if you have more questions.

weed.... lots of weed.... you might not want that for your 7 year old though.....

Peace,
-Mike

I don't have a link handy but I remember a story a while back which suggested one of the better "treatments" for hyperactivity is regular outdoor play time.

natural remedies for hyperactivity:

sex (adults only)*
being in love (for children, this can mean a latest friend or newfound interest)
meditation
music
a hypnotic project
water activities (works great for adults AND kids, especially with lotsa slides, toys, balls, etc.) - diving over and over and over is especially calming

*the substitute i have used for this with my own child
is an abundance of fresh air and outdoor activities
that involve a lot of body movement, raising of the voice,
and interaction with lotsa other kids, coupled with healthy eating
(leaning into as much raw vegan as possible)

and i diffuse essential oils continually in the house
if i run out, i will fill the bathtub with hot water and natural fragrance (sea salts, rosemary, etc.) and put a simmering pot of water on the stove with vanilla in it