I got a phone call today. It was the school nurse and Johnny wanted Tylenol. He banged his leg on the playground and the ice was cutting it for him. I gave written consent to the school but told them I still wanted to give oral consent on a case by case basis. The nurse told me that he banged his leg over the weekend and the playground hit made it hurt more then ice can handle. I told her no. I spoke to Johnny for a moment and asked him if he’d expect Tylenol if he were home. He said no.
The last week of summer vacation the boys slept over my MIL’s and Johnny came down with a headache. We got a phone call about something silly at 11 pm and was informed they went to the store and got him Tylenol and gave it to him. It bothered me that we weren’t even asked.
Is it just me? I just don’t think a kid needs Tylenol. I give it for a fever and that’s about it. I don’t really take pills myself and try to get through the pain most of the time without medicating and I feel the same way with my kids. Plus, there have been more then a handful of Tylenol recalls over the years and I’m really not interested in my children being apart of one.
Am I over reacting?
Do you give your kids Tylenol?
The only times our kids get medication is for cold/flu or if it’s prescribed. Well, I take that back, they get Tylenol after shots too because those get pretty darn sore.
No, I don’t think you are over-reacting. My answer to the nurse would have been the same as yours.
Giving Tylenol makes me a little itchy. We give it after shots & my husband convinced me to give a little dose to Baby C (7 months old) because she is cutting her 1st tooth and is miserable. But we’ve only ever given it to her those 4 occasions. My husband thinks I’m being overly careful, but I don’t know. It just makes me a little ‘eh’.
It’s scary giving children medication. I agree with you that it’s best to avoid whenever possible.
I’m not one for taking medicine myself. I gave the boys Tylenol for fevers or after shots. They’re not used to having it at all. Heck when Zander had his tonsils and adenoids removed he refused to take pain meds because he felt he was ok!! My MIL on the other hand feel the need to medicate them for looking at her funny so we put a no meds rule out to her.
I’m very cautious of when I give my child Tylenol. I also don’t want her to be miserable. So I use it only when necessary. But I never make her suffer through the pain.
I have for teething pain and fever. I wouldn’t give it for an everyday bump and bruise. It’s just sad however, that this could once again make mommies judge each other. I think you wrote a really nice, educated post :).
Honestly, I think you’re right on the money with this one-As a society, we are so over-medicated!
I’m not a pill person myself and will only take medicine if my pain is to the point of unbearable. Other then that, I’m a firm believer in giving the body tools (water, vitamins, minerals, etc) so it can repair itself!
I also caution on medication. I think you are not over reacting and do have the right to be asked prior to any medication, over the counter or not, to be given to your children.
I don’t think you did the wrong thing at all.. some studies show that Tylenol use can cause serious liver problems! I VERY rarely give my kids pain meds. only if the problem requires calling a Dr for advice because it is so serious and he recommends Tylenol and even then I rarely listen. I usually try to find another way to ease their pain with ice or ??
Medication is scary! And to think that someone could be giving it to our children without knowing whether or not they have had some already recently is really scary! Recent studies are showing the the Flu outbreak at the beginning of the last century that they say killed so many people were actually aspirin overdoses.. aspirin was a new “miracle” drug, and people were taking it like crazy for minor problems… now we know somewhat better..but we still rely on these drugs way too much as a whole. America is known as the most “drugged” country in the world.
I agree with you. I don’t give my kids medication for just anything. They don’t need it! The only time I ever gave my kids medication for “nothing” was when the dr told me to give the baby some when getting immunizations. That was only because she had had a slight reaction from one before. I don’t even give out Band-aids for fake boo-boos! (I know I’m a mean momma, but those things cost money! hehe)
I don’t do Tylenol. I will give ibuprofen for a fever but that’s probably about it. I would not feel comfortable giving any child (whether a niece or nephew or family friend) any type of medication or even a vitamin supplement without consulting the parents.