process of a five year old

Why would a doctor in their right mind prescribe CHEWABLE amoxicillin to a five-year-old??!! First of all - liquid amoxicillin is EVERY child's favorite medicine. They would drink it like a milkshake if they could. Not to mention a five-year-old is just not ready for the chewables if they don't taste like candy.

So Aiden, five year old, is prescribed chewable amoxicillin. He is not thrilled. Not at all. But the GREAT kid he is, how developed a process to take these pills. Of course, it is a process and it takes time. LOTS of it. And patience. LOTS of it. And he has to do it three times a day for 10 days. HUGE sigh. But he takes his pill. I can't complain.

How to give a five-year-old a chewable pill.

The set up:

1. He must be sitting on the countertop. Can't do it standing up or sitting anywhere else. 2. He must have a drink. What drink depends on what time of day and what day. He will let you know. 3. He must have a food to eat, two of that food. It must be something that sticks in his teeth and nothing sweet. Chips or gold fish often work, even in the morning. He may change his mind in the middle of the process so be prepared. 4. Set each item (drink, food and pill) on the counter next to him. He will arrange in the correct order, three or four times, himself.

The process:

1. He takes a drink. He may decide he needs a different drink at this point. Get a new drink or move to next step. 2. He takes a bite of his first piece of food. The smallest first. 3. He needs one more sip now. 4. Now he will eat the rest of his first piece of food. 5. He puts the pill in his mouth and chews while grabbing for his cup. 6. Takes a sip while shivering, shaking, squenching his eyes and turning red. 7. Now he shoves his second piece of food in his mouth, while still shaking, squenching and turning more red. 8. Swallows. 9. Takes one more drink. 10. Flies off the counter, down the hall and into full play mode in one full swoop.

This process usually takes about 15 minutes. During the 15 minutes, I could be showering, cleaning, sleeping or doing anything other than standing there monitoring the process. But at least he takes his medicine. It could be worse.

Amanda