*This post is not intended to be medical advice, just my own experience. Please check with your doctor about supplements if you have questions. Thanks!
I noticed when my son was around 5 that he had developed a certain tic. Especially in stressful situations or when he was low on sleep, he would blink his eyes…forcefully. At first it wasn’t so noticeable, but then I realized it was becoming a bit of a focus. Some of my family was asking about it.
Like the experts tell you NOT to do, we asked him to stop. We told him to stop, but he didn’t because he couldn’t. He wasn’t doing it on purpose. He felt the impulse like he “had” to do it.
I get it. I had some funny tics as a kid (like I opened my mouth as wide as it would go-??) and probably still do, if I’m honest. They just look more adult-ish now!
Anyway, I had recently started taking magnesium supplements to help with the breast tenderness that I was having around my periods (this was a new thing after having kids) and I had a hunch that this might help my son too. (I’m pretty sure the hunch was from God since I’m not really that clever about this kind of stuff on my own.)
So I researched it. I mean, I’m not just going to jump off a cliff over a hunch, right?
Lo and behold, studies have been done on the effects of magnesium for children with ADHD. Those that took it for a certain number of weeks showed increased ability to focus and less hyperactivity. It did not cure it, but it helped some of the symptoms (without any side effects). Amazing!
Magnesium helps the nervous system which influences the tics. Once my son started taking the magnesium powder, the tics were gone within a week.
And there were other benefits too. He was much more able to sit calmly (I mean, within reason. He was a 5-year-old boy who is very energetic, but there was an improvement!) He was less likely to have major meltdowns (sleep is also ESSENTIAL for him to maintain a positive outlook on life.) And the magnesium helped to maintain regular bowel movements so that he was no longer chronically constipated.
We have come to love magnesium. I am not a medical professional. Talk to your doctor before you start taking supplements, and some people recommend that you take magnesium with calcium, but overall, we’ve found it to help with a variety of ailments. One of my family members takes it now for Restless Leg Syndrome as well.
We were using Natural Calm Magnesium Powder (now we do the gummies) but however your child will take it is the best. You can also get magnesium naturally in foods like avocados, almonds, figs, spinach, and dark chocolate (yes, please!).
It’s not a magic-cure-all, but it could be worth a try. It helped us!
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(This post may contain affiliate links! As an affiliate, I get a small commission if you buy one of the products that I’m recommending <at no charge to you>, but I would only recommend products that I trust.)
