granddaughter's reaction to Miralax

[Guest guest]

My four-year-old granddaughter was put on a daily dose of Miralax because she had become impacted and it was causing bladder issues. Within a few days, she had her first "fit," displaying behaviors we had never seen. As the weeks went by, the "fits" became regular occurrences. She would grimace and clench her fists, throw her toys, knock books off her shelves, yell at her parents, scratch her mother or herself, pull out chunks of her hair, sometimes scream and cry, laugh a maniacal laugh...really, she just became a little person we didn't recognize (like she was possessed.) She also did some babblings and a sort of repetitive spitting motion, almost like a tick. Being a retired teacher, I have seen similar behaviors from children who have been through major traumas like abuse, but our little one had never experienced anything but love.

My daughter is a hairdresser, and she mentioned these episodes to a nurse who works at a hospital with pediatric psychologists and psychiatrists. When my daughter told her about Miralax, the nurse immediately told about a current study regarding the ill effects of Miralax on children. What my daughter described was no surprise to the nurse who advised us to get my granddaughter off the Miralax immediately.

It's been a few days, and she is still having meltdowns, though not as frequently. I wonder if she will ever be our sweet little girl again. During this time, she became extremely oppositional, refusing to follow the simplest of instructions--and she would be very verbal about it--NO, I'm not going to...I'm just going to do this or that....You can't make me--I will do it if I want to...and so on. She just opens the fridge and says, I want a snack--and she starts to help herself. She wants her demands met "right now." Also, if we refused anything, this would trigger the meltdowns. Today, she did a little better when I refused to let her get her way, but I'm worried. We spend every day on pins and needles just waiting for the next major tantrum. We never know what will start it or how long it will last. We have had to carry her countless times to her

room kicking and screaming--totally out of control. We tell her to stay there until she can be nice to everyone and she sometimes emerges after a few minutes like the episode never happened. Sometimes, she doesn't realize how she has been.

Will some of these effects be permanent? Is there any other internal damage that might have been done to her while she was on Miralax for several months? Can we expect her behavior to return to normal? How long will it take? I'm so upset that this could be happening when we were told by her pediatrician that the Miralax would not harm her and that it was safe for her to be on it long term. Why don't doctors know about these side effects? How many children have had similar effects? I feel so angry. Is the company that makes this medicine aware of the problem with kids, if so, why haven't they sent out mass warnings to pediatricians throughout the country. THIS IS NEGLIGENCE!

I would appreciate any and all information I can get on this subject.

Kay (Texas grandmother)

[Guest guest]

I just can't get over this story..............it's EXACTLY what happened to our 3.5 year old, 10 years ago. If i didn't know better, I'd swear I wrote this. I'm glad you found us and that her behavior improved. For us, we still see this behavior and it wasn't until just recently that it started to improve. This is why I've been so diligent about this chemical. Hang in there............and thanks for sharingI don't, however, think we're out of the woods....................just yet----- Forwarded Message ----To: miralax Sent: Thu, February 23, 2012 11:53:08 AMSubject: granddaughter's reaction to Miralax

My four-year-old granddaughter was put on a daily dose of Miralax because she had become impacted and it was causing bladder issues. Within a few days, she had her first "fit," displaying behaviors we had never seen. As the weeks went by, the "fits" became regular occurrences. She would grimace and clench her fists, throw her toys, knock books off her shelves, yell at her parents, scratch her mother or herself, pull out chunks of her hair, sometimes scream and cry, laugh a maniacal laugh...really, she just became a little person we didn't recognize (like she was possessed.) She also did some babblings and a sort of repetitive spitting motion, almost like a tick. Being a retired teacher, I have seen similar behaviors from children who have been through major traumas like abuse, but our little one had never experienced anything but love.

My daughter is a hairdresser, and she mentioned these episodes to a nurse who works at a hospital with pediatric psychologists and psychiatrists. When my daughter told her about Miralax, the nurse immediately told about a current study regarding the ill effects of Miralax on children. What my daughter described was no surprise to the nurse who advised us to get my granddaughter off the Miralax immediately.

It's been a few days, and she is still having meltdowns, though not as frequently. I wonder if she will ever be our sweet little girl again. During this time, she became extremely oppositional, refusing to follow the simplest of instructions--and she would be very verbal about it--NO, I'm not going to...I'm just going to do this or that....You can't make me--I will do it if I want to...and so on. She just opens the fridge and says, I want a snack--and she starts to help herself. She wants her demands met "right now." Also, if we refused anything, this would trigger the meltdowns. Today, she did a little better when I refused to let her get her way, but I'm worried. We spend every day on pins and needles just waiting for the next major tantrum. We never know what will start it or how long it will last. We have had to carry her countless times to her

room kicking and screaming--totally out of control. We tell her to stay there until she can be nice to everyone and she sometimes emerges after a few minutes like the episode never happened. Sometimes, she doesn't realize how she has been.

Will some of these effects be permanent? Is there any other internal damage that might have been done to her while she was on Miralax for several months? Can we expect her behavior to return to normal? How long will it take? I'm so upset that this could be happening when we were told by her pediatrician that the Miralax would not harm her and that it was safe for her to be on it long term. Why don't doctors know about these side effects? How many children have had similar effects? I feel so angry. Is the company that makes this medicine aware of the problem with kids, if so, why haven't they sent out mass warnings to pediatricians throughout the country. THIS IS NEGLIGENCE!

I would appreciate any and all information I can get on this subject.

Kay (Texas grandmother)