These aren't real diseases. People have their brains wired differently and different personalities.
Take my sister: smart but has trouble sitting for long periods of time. But, then again, whenever it's something she loves and is interested in, she's the biggest particapent and can talk/learn about that subject forever.
ADD and ADHD are excuses to medicate kids who are different than the easy kids to teach. It's sick and if my mother ever medicates my sister as some of her teachers have suggested, I will no longer speak with her.
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what are you talking about, when you have ADD or ADHD you are missing a system in your brain to help you function, if it hasnt had it in the first place how is it suppose to "re learn" or "re grow" medication is really the only way. After awhile on the medication, maybe the brain will learn how to function on its own, but its unlikely.
I understand that ADD and ADHD are diseases, and know that not everyone are being properly treated. My health teacher, in which I had last year, has ADD, though you couldn't even tell that she has the disease because she knows how to get around the disease to be able to do well in her teaching and her personal life. The parents, doctors, and teachers shouldn't take the easy way out, by dianosing(sp?) the student with drugs, in which he/she may NOT even needs at such a young age. Drugs can be additted as well, which isn't even better for the student. Those of you who have posted in here before, are proofs and that students with ADD and ADHD shouldn't have to be on meds for the rest of their lives. For, you have succeeded in your life wonderfully. Keep it up!
Peace
In the End, we will remeber not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends. - MLK
I don't think you can actually force a kid to take the pills that you give them. Yeah, you can give them it but don't always expect them to take them just cause you hope to get your kid under control.
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it doesn't matter whether you buy a prescription for a kid, you can't FORCE them to take it. I have a friend with ADHD that doesn't take her meds half the time. And ADD and ADHD are supposedly the two most over-diagnosed disorders in children. But if a kid actually has it, and isn't just hyper because...he's a kid, I think the parents should be able to put him on it until he's old enough to make a conscious decision.
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I think they are real, otherwise when my borhter takes his meds you wouldnt see such a big change in the way he acts.My mom doesnt give my bro a choice cause if he doesnt take it then he cant focus and do "his best" at school. And he likes to take them cause he knows that they help him
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The reason why the disorders have gotten such a bad rap is because, since they were discovered, many have tried to pin them to kids who don't truly have the disorder as an excuse for their behavior.
I know! When I was trying to find a new psychologist (the last one I had was a social worker, and this one was an actual psychologist), it was awful. After I said a couple of things, she was like, "I think you might have ADD."
I'm sitting here thinking, "How the hell do I have ADD? I can sit still and concentrate on one thing for HOURS. Even things I don't like doing."
Let's just say I never went back to her. But it's people like her who just label anyone who has problems as ADD or ADHD.
But I agree with what you were saying WWF, and the rest of you on this board. Meds should be avoided unless there is a real need for them. Right now they just call the lazy kids or excitable kids ADD, when in reality they're just lazy or they're just being a typical energy-full kid. There are some kids with real problems, but the whole population does not have ADD.
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ADHD and ADD were cosidered disorders in the past. Recent developments have proven that they are closer to being a disease and not a disorder. Note that we are not addicted or have a personally created habit it is automatic.
I think it depends on the case whether the child has the option to say yes or no to drugs. I have a borderline case of ADHD and I chose not to be medicated. I'm not a disturbance to anyone really and my grades are still high. The only thing is that I have all this extra energy that gets to go into other things, such as doodling and sports. (I've worked with my doctor on channeling the energy, so it's taken awhile but I'm alright without medication.) I did notice while I was on Vicadin for shoulder surgery that I was much, much calmer and it would be nice to be that way sometime but I decided I would not want to be on medication every day of my life. If the child is causing serious problems for themselves, classmates, teachers, etc. I think they should be required to take medicine. Not like such a high does they are strung out but you know, an amount good enough to fix it without making them go to the other extreme.
Me and you seem a lot alike. I also went to many a psychologist before being diagnosed. And I was diagnosed in 1996, before it became "trendy." You said it best when you said that all the fakers make it harder for us for really have the disorder.
i'm sick of parents trying to pass off their kids laziness as a disorder. at least half of the kids who say that have ADD are just lazy and don't want to take responsibility for their work, and parents can't believe their perfect little angel would do that so they figure it can be fixed with drugs.
i was diagnosed with ADD in 1998, before every kid in school had it. my parents took me to at least three different people to make sure we had the right diagnosis. first they talked to my teacher when she said she was noticing that i had trouble paying attention for a long time, then they looked through old records and found similar comments from past teachers, then they talked to the school pshychologist who recommened i get tested for ADD, so we went to my doctor and got tested, and when he confirmed that i had ADD he gave us a perscription for ritalin.
i KNOW for a fact that there is something in my brain chemistry that makes it difficult to pay attention. most kids just dont want to take responsibility for their work. parents just walk into the doctors office and say their kid cant pay attention and they get a perscription for some drug. if kids still had to go thru the testing process i did, most of them would be sent to summer school rather than the pharmacy.
and with all these kids pretending to have ADD, it's sometimes hard for me and other kids who really have the disorder to get the help we need (especially from teachers, who have so many fake "ADD kids" thrown at them they just start ignoring it). we're like the generation that cried ADD.
I'm ADD and I've never had to be medicated. My mom didn't want to medicate me when I was so young in the first place. But, as it turns out, it's a pretty easy disorder to learn to live with. Each ADD person has their own quirks (though many of the quirks are ones we all have in common). Once you learn these quirks about yourself, you learn how to deal with them or work around them so that it doesn't interfere with your every day life. Many people think that, since we have short-attention spans, ADD people don't do well in school or aren't smart. I am a straight A honor student. What I'm saying is that ADD is not an excuse and should never be used as one for any reason. All symptoms can be worked around and even are useful very often.
Medication is needed in some cases, however, like with my mom who is also ADD. She is somewhat more "severe" than I am and she has to be medicated to function in everyday life. If she doesn't take her medicine she can't concentrate or sit still or stay organized AT ALL. It's impossible. The more medicated children are ADHD---the ones with the hyperactiveness included. I am not a hyperactive person so this is not a problem for me. But those that are hyperactive seriously have trouble in school with their short attention span and concentrating and staying organized.
Children shouldn't be medicated too young and definitely shouldn't be medicated if it's not absolutely necessary. All children should be diagnosed by a credible psychologist before medication is even considered. People with ADD or ADHD are often mis-diagnosed because the parents want an excuse for the child's behavior. As mentioned before, ADD IS NOT and excuse. And they should have some say in it; if they think that they can do okay without medication or if a certain medication isn't working for them, they should speak up. But, ultimately, it is the parents' and doctors' responsibility. Doctors and parents and even teachers are able to determine better if the child needs to be medicated because they are on the outside looking in and they know what problems the disorder is causing in the child's life.
And for the record: ADD and ADHD are real DISORDERS. They are real. The reason why the disorders have gotten such a bad rap is because, since they were discovered, many have tried to pin them to kids who don't truly have the disorder as an excuse for their behavior. This is wrong and these kids are mis-diagnosed. Please do not say they aren't real disorders due to these completely idiotic cases. ADD and ADHD are real. If you meet an ADD person and meet someone who only THINKS they have ADD, you can definitely tell which is which. It always hurts me to see that people don't think what I have is real.
quote: Disease: 1. A pathological condition of a part, organ, or system of an organism resulting from various causes, such as infection, genetic defect, or environmental stress, and characterized by an identifiable group of signs or symptoms. 2. A condition or tendency, as of society, regarded as abnormal and harmful.
yah ADD and ADHD are 2. on that list because they CAN be harmful and ARE regarded as abnormal and harmful. and even if medication is not the answer it is important that all involved parties are notified and understand what this means. Wheather is is a disorder or a disease and wheather people even know the difference, Disease will be noticed much more then disorder, it will be taken more seriously, which in my opinon is the only important thing that it is taken seriously.
I think it's sick that people try to "fix" their childrens' problems with pills. Half the time it's not even a problem/ disease/ disorder that can be fixed with medication and the children have to suffer the side-effects!
I think that in most cases, if the parents would pay more attention to their children (hence the name attention deficit disorder) their children would be much better off.
If your child has problems, as a parent it is YOUR responsibility to help them and care for them, not just buy medications for them!
And I do understand the counterpoint to this that some children have genuine need for medication and that is the only exception to my argument.
Disease: 1. A pathological condition of a part, organ, or system of an organism resulting from various causes, such as infection, genetic defect, or environmental stress, and characterized by an identifiable group of signs or symptoms. 2. A condition or tendency, as of society, regarded as abnormal and harmful.
Disorder 3. An ailment that affects the function of mind or body: eating disorders and substance abuse.
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