The Narcoleptic Parent - Dangerously In Love

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Can someone with Narcolepsy really be a good parent?

My husband and I have one child. We adore her, dote on her, and watch the sun rise and set on her. She is a precious, genius child - and I say this with absolutely no bias at all of course. She is 3 years old. Because we have planned for just one child, ours is a very relaxed family in which she is the centerpiece. She's like the playing card that makes that cool sound as the bike's spokes turn 'round.

Notice that I said that we adore her.

I know that my husband loves our daughter. I'm also proud to say that he's a very good dad. He's never hesitant to get down on her level to play with her, read with her, or make up silly songs. I like seeing them together. As any mom would understand, it does my heart good. When Narcolepsy takes over, he struggles to treat her with love and kindness, even when he's tired or irritable. Sometimes he fails at this, but then again, sometimes I do too.

But I've never left medication within her reach.

This is a recurring problem for us that started about a year ago. When my husband was taking Provigil, this never happened. It was when he was switched to Adderall that the issues began. One evening, I was washing dishes when my then 2-year-old walked into the room chewing something. Immediately, I opened her mouth and wiped out tiny pieces of something orange and chalky. The color looked familiar, but I just couldn't place it. I investigated - checking each room, looking under furniture, going through her toy box... nothing looked even close to what had been in her mouth. I saved the fragments in a napkin and considered calling Poison Control. Because she was acting completely normal, instead I called my mother. Hours later, my daughter was still acting normal - except... she seemed a little hyper, she refused to eat or nap all night, and then she started to move her mouth in a weird way. It was barely noticeable, but eventually I realized that she was grinding her teeth! Then I knew. She had eaten one of my husband's Adderall pills.

That night was terrifying, but it could have been so much worse. Because I had wiped most of the pill out of her mouth, it was determined that a hospital visit wasn't necessary unless she started exhibiting certain symptoms that would indicate she was having an adverse or allergic reaction. I was instructed not to leave her unattended, and when she did fall asleep, to watch her breathing for several hours. Suffice it to say it was a long night. My daughter wasn't able to fall asleep until the next day. By then, my whole family was exhausted but relieved. She was OK.

Although I was initially furious with my husband, I got over it. It was an accident. He dropped a pill on the floor and didn't notice. Our daughter was fine, he would be more careful, life would go on. I let it go.

Until it happened again.

This time I found several pills on the floor of the car and got to them before our daughter did. The next time they were in-between the cushions of the couch. The next time the bottle was on the living room table. The next time I found a pill on the floor of the bathroom. Most recently, the bottle was on the sofa in the living room. Because no pill bottle is truly, absolutely child-proof, I consider leaving a bottle of prescription medicine within her reach just as dangerous as leaving a single pill.

We've had several discussions about my husband's carelessness. I know that he doesn't mean to put our daughter in danger, but that isn't the point. He resists any suggestions I make to keep his medication in one particular place because he prefers to keep it on his person. This also means that he sometimes leaves his medicine at other places and then doesn't have it when he needs it. Narcolepsy makes my husband incredibly forgetful. Believe me, if you aren't familiar with narcolepsy, you can't imagine. He literally forgets things all the time. It drives him nuts. Lists and nagging don't help - so his frustration with his memory is hard to watch. That's why he prefers to keep his medicine with him at all times. Otherwise, he might forget to take it. I'm sure there's a solution that will work for our family - we have yet to find it but I know it's out there.

As for my question - can a Narcoleptic really be a good parent? I think the tone of that question is a little inflammatory. Would I ask, can someone with cancer be a good parent? Can someone suffering from depression be a good parent? Can someone with any kind of chronic illness be a good parent? How about, Can someone out-of-shape, undereducated, poor, or ______________(Fill-in-the-blank) be a good parent? To me the answer is obvious. My husband knows that he can do better keeping our daughter safe. And he's willing to try. So no, maybe not everyone with a chronic illness is a good parent. Maybe they simply can't be because their illness is too debilitating. For others, maybe they do the best they can and are willing to try. To me, that's a good parent no matter what sort of health they're in - that willingness to try.