Daycare Busted For Drugging Tots; Charges On Stupidity Pending

Wow, this story almost made me drop my beloved coffee mug (don't worry, mommy's little enabler is just fine). A daycare in Cincinnati is being investigated for drugging kids in order to get them settled at nap time. There is an allegation that daycare employees put melatonin in candy which was then fed to some of the thirty-seven children in their care.They were doping the candy, people.

As far as I know melatonin is a hormone that helps maintain the body's circadian rhythm but, sadly, does not make you a better dancer. Like any natural supplement, this shit can harm you, but it also isn't something that works as well as... I dunno... vodka or Ambien. Take notes, people.

Which means, I'm guessing, that the daycare folk probably realized that vodka is illegal to feed to children (also: hard to get into candy) and didn't want to share their Ambien stash.

But putting the sleep-aid into a sugar-laden treat probably pretty much counteracts any of those sleep-aid effects, no? (Ed. note: isn't that a speedball?) (Ed. note: not that I know anything about those.) (Ed. note: **cough**) I mean, my child does one grain of sugar anywhere in the hour leading up to bedtime and she's more wired than Tony Montana after finding out that Gina has hooked up with Manny.

So let's review: a couple of idiotic daycare workers were too frazzled to do their job so they decided that shoving over-the-counter sleep aids into sugary treats was the answer to getting some down time. If they were overworked, they should have complained; if they were under-trained, they should have spoken up; if the ratio of children to adults was way off, they should have reported it; if they were desperate to keep their jobs in this economic climate and felt speaking up would have them canned, they really should reassess what they are doing and why. There is no excuse for this.

Even we have standards, people.

THAT SAID [calling in the devil's advocate here]: I'm sure there are more than a few parents out there who have, on occasion - and only on occasion - doled out some sleep-inducing Tylenol or equivalent to a sleep-resisting small person when desperation has set in. Am I right about that? The huge difference in this case is, it's a last resort. Also, it's not injected into candy to make a speedball (ed. note: A-HA!) Is this true? Have you ever - or never - used a little a Gravol/Tylenol/Benadryl/what-have-you to make bedtime run a little smoother or to chill out an anxious mini-flyer mid-flight? I'd love to hear your thoughts on this one people so... go:

source via boingboing

Comments

[Weirdbird]

An adult friend of mine says his mother used to make him and his sister red-wine-and-milk smoothies when they got home from school, so they'd take a nice looong nap. He cannot drink red wine to this day.

[Carrie]

The only time I've used tylenol to help with sleep is when my kid showed signs of teething (and then I'd continue for a few days longer even when it appeared the teething episode might be over...just in case) Mama likes her sleep you know ;)

[Kelly]

I have used benadryl a couple of times out of sheer desperation, but the last time I did it I got my comeuppance. You know how they warn you that all those antihistamines can sometimes cause jitteryness, etc.? Well, I got a super overtired kid who had a bad case of the jimmy-legs and couldn't stay still, let alone sleep. Mama will NEVER do that again.

[Michelle]

That's ridiculous!!! I would be LIVID if my kid's babysitter drugged them to get them to sleep.

[katie]

@Weirdbird - the moment I read your comment I was like - OMG, my parents used to give me a small dish of vanilla ice cream smothered in liqueur on what I will assume was really bad parenting nights. HOLY CROW. On the good side tho' I still like liqueur. Red wine milk smoothies kinda sound gross.

@Carrie - been there, done that, this momma likes her sleep too.

@Kelly - Taking notes, good to know about the Benedryl Jimmy Legs. I met a woman who did the gravol for travelling and had the same results. Four hour flight across the country with a hopped up kid - GRAND.

@Michelle - One time I hired a hotel babysitter to take care of my kid and when she told me she got her to sleep 30 mins after I left, and then I proceeded to have my child sleep a full twelve hours, I was convinced she drugged my kid. Never found any evidence and my kid was fine the next day but I was freaked out. How she got these results from my child blew my mind.

[Kimmad]

OK, we give my kids melatonin, but for very good reason. One child in particular has Sensory Processing Disorder, and literally cannot relax enough to rest. Without the melatonin, he is WIRED (yes, all caps) and would take hours to get to sleep. And we tried Benadryl with this kid, and it made him worse. Also, my youngest has sleep issues and has trouble as well.

That being said, this is something I do, at home, at night when they can sleep for 10 hours. Never something we give during the day, and I certainly wouldn't want the day care giving it to them!

[katie]

@Kimmad - Exactly - the thought of someone administering something to my kid (essentially to knock them out) makes my head spin!

[Jessi]

Not to get all preachy, here, but... Well... sometimes I can't help myself. I think this is the problem with the childcare crisis in America. Workers are uneducated, overworked, and do stupid stuff. We demand that the daycare is run by someone with an education, and then allow them to hire 92 high school dropouts and 17 year olds to deal with the kids while they lock themselves in their office and congratulate themselves on that degree. And then, the cost of childcare is so high that parents have no choice but to lose their own job or leave their kid in the care of Misty and Kristol, the 1 year old room teachers who are wearing slutty clothes and texting their boyfriends during drop offs. /Rant

[CJ]

Personally, I have NEVER gave my kids meds unless they were SICK and needed it...although the urge was strong at times! However, I'm the mom. I can make that decision for my child. These are DAY CARE WORKERS and meds are not to be given to kids without WRITTEN CONSENT from a parent. State law. I used to work in day care. That's just wrong.

[ladybughugs]

I prefer to go the homeopathic route with Hyland's Calms Forté for Kids (I take the adult version) and then only when they've tried falling asleep and it's not happening for them. No side effects and we wake refreshed, not feeling drugged or foggy.

[mamatulip]

I give my kids Benadryl and they're dancing on the ceiling. What's up with THAT?

[Heather]

Sure... every so often,I joke that it's "Pork chops and benadryl for dinner, bubba!" - but definitely not very often. But like previous posters said, I'm the mom, that's my call - I would flip if someone was, without my prior authorization, giving any kind of meds to my kid.