Ok parents of children with Autism... I need some suggestionss.

I have three kids all with ADD/ADHD and my son is autistic as well. I gotta tell you without the night medicines all three of the kids are taking I would never get to sleep. One daughter is takihng Abilify, the other daughter is takig Clonidine and my son is taking Risperdal. Trazadone is also a good one.

Does he take naps? If so, cut the naps out all the way & on top of that tire him out with activity work. Also stop all sugar items & use sugar free stuff. We also have a child who is Autistic & has a sleeping disorder. It has took us hard work to get him half back on track... he gets tired during the day, but we have kept him from naps so he will sleep more at night. What I did was, the one night my son refused to sleep & stay up until 3AM is, I let him stay up, when he finally fell asleep, as much as I hated to do it, we woke him back up at 7AM & kept him awake all day until 7:30-8:00PM & he crashed & slept normal because he was really tired. So this helped get him back on track, but we still at times have him wake up at 1AM but he usually falls right back to sleep... So I suggest on your day off, because you will be tired is try to stay up with him, let him stay up one last time & turn around & wake him back up at 7Am & if you have a partner, take turns keeping the little man awake... it sooo hard & I feel for you... Good luck!

My autistic kiddos are 8 and 4. My daughter (8) has a very, very hard time falling asleep. We use a strict bedtime routine utilizing a lot of sensory integration techniques and she takes 3mg melatonin. My son only needs the routine. For the most part our routine is: Son- gets home from preschool at 11:30 and has lunch. He takes his asthma meds if needed and watches "My Life as a Teenage Robot." From 12-1 he plays with Play Doh. From 1-2 we go outside if weather is nice. If it's not nice out, he goes on his platform swing, indoor trampoline, and ball pit (that we use as a crash pad). From 2-3:45 he gets to pick any activity. If it's nice, we may stay at the park longer. At 3:45 my daughter home. Both: My daughter sits on the toilet until 4 and my son will play with his cars or trains. At 4, my daughter does her homework and I start dinner. If homework is done by 4:30, they play in the yard or indoor "park." At 5 they set the table and wash up for dinner. 5:45, my son gets in the bath and my daughter draws or colors. At 6, my daughter takes her meds (melatonin and singulair) and takes a shower. My son takes his night time asthma meds and plays on the computer. At 6:30 I read them a book while they color or play quietly with trains. At 7 they both get "brushed" (Wilbarger brushing) and by 7:15 both are in bed. My son is out by 7:30 and my daughter plays her DS until she falls asleep no later than 8. Without the melatonin, my daughter is still up by midnight, so the meds are a must. You have to get him doing the "right" activities. Running around is great, but he probably needs some physical help calming down. I'd suggest planning a Sensory Diet with his occupation therapist. The OT can help you get him "regulated" and ready for bed. I wouldn't use a non-consistent med. I think it would mess him up more. I'd see a pulmonologist for a sleep work-up, and discuss possible meds. Mine have had sleep studies so I know how long it takes them to fall asleep, how long they're in each sleep stage, how many times they wake up, etc. Both have mild sleep apnea and have had their tonsils and adenoids removed. Neither needs CPAP therapy yet. Melatonin for my daughter, nothing for my son.

my child gets 3 mg of melatonin and works like a god send. She used to sleep only 2 hrs every night and that was it. Since she is seizure prone because of an abnormal eeg they say when she doesnt get sleep her seizure threshold is terrible and that's why we would see her stare off, behavior etc. The neuro didnt want to put my child on clonidine because she felt as though it would make my child a zombie and actually make her worse, I'm soo glad we didnt go that route.

Children with austim are very different in their sensory issues. What will wear one child out, will only wind another up. I would suggest that getting ready for bed begin a good 3 hours before. Meaning, make sure the house is quiet. Turn off the tv and put on some soft classical music. Also do a sensory activity with him. Playdough or just kneading bread dough is a wonderful sensory. It works things out for them when they manipulate it in their hands. I understand about the lights being off. I had to put a night light and a light by the bed and actually unscrew the bulbs out of the ceiling so it reflected a nice soft light instead of this blinding one. My daughter finally told me this year she was scared. She was afraid of the dark so she wanted all the lights on when it got dark outside. Here again, the soft lights in her room and her work table is in her room. She did her coming down at night sensory activity there because it calms her and she also felt comfort in her room - thus she was less afraid because that was her area. I don't know if you have ever or would ever try medication, but Respital is wonderful here because it makes her tired after she takes it. I think the main thing here is making their bedroom a comfortable place so they aren't afraid in it. No at night time, she gets into bed and asks me to turn the lights off. She has the lamp on her night stand on and a night light and she's sleeping through the night. I made the big mistake years ago of just pop in a movie to watch and that had the reverse effect on her. Now after supper, we clean up and put our pj's on. She will watch alittle tv (in her room) then shut it off, play with blocks and do a puzzle then it's off to bed - no more hassels. I in all honesty think he needs to work with his hands. It just destresses them and relaxes them. Also when we've had a bad day at school. I might sit on her bed with her and just rub her legs and arms with lotion. Again it is a deep pressure excercise that helps them self calm. I might have talked in circles here, but sounds like he needs more sensory and deep pressure excercizes so he can calm himself. I hope this helps.

I'm with you, mine was up until 3:00am. My son will be 8 in May. When he started school we started meds. Our docctor gave him "Clonidine 0.1mg" (I cut them in half) at night. He is now asleep in 30 mins. He has been on it since he was 3 & we've had no problems. Good Luck!! We all need it.