by Jude Coyle

Created on: November 05, 2011   Last Updated: November 10, 2011

If it were only possible to live a life free of regrets. And yes, I do have a few, but only a few. I write this now, as I hope it will help me put one situation into perspective and set it aside forever. 

A very long time ago my husband and I packed up the kids and took them out of State to a family reunion. We traveled with his brothers and their families, caravan style. Along the way, my one year old daughter developed a fever. When we made it into our hotel that night, my daughter and I spent the evening resting while the family gathered at a local restaurant. I wasn't at all happy about being so far from home with a sick baby.

The next morning she seemed fine. So we moved on to the reunion grounds with every intention of enjoying ourselves. 

My eldest was seven at the time, and had recently been diagnosed with ADHD. He was prescribed Ritalin, which he took three times a day. We were fairly new to this and not sure what to expect in any given situation. I kept on eye on him, making sure he behaved, and watching as he interacted with the cousins he knew and the cousins he was meeting for the first time. He was fine. So was his little brother, who always just seemed to fit in no matter where he went. We ate, the kids played, and the adults got reacquainted. 

Then at about 3PM, my daughter's fever reasserted itself. My husband and I took her to the hospital, leaving the boys in the charge of a favored sister-in-law. The emergency room was fairly empty and we were done in no time. She was diagnosed with an ear infection. The doctor wrote a script and we took it to a local pharmacy to have it filled. 

We returned to the party within about three hours. My daughter felt better and I was relieved to know she didn't have some fatal rare disease. We returned though, a different script to be dealt with. It hadn't occurred to me to either leave the Ritalin with my sister-in-law, nor had it occurred to me to give him one before we left. 

Ritalin is possibly one of the most predictable medications a child can take. When the dosage is right, the child remains calm and attentive for about four hours. As the medicine leaves his system, his behavior deteriorates. He acts erratically and can become grossly over stimulated.

While we were gone, a dance band arrived. As they played and the adults danced, my son ran between the dancers, kicking people who got in his way. My sister-in-law was astounded, saying she

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