Not ADD? then it could be ODD!

I think it was the APA website that listed all the possible mental health issues that an individual can have, and well shucks it seems that there's one for everybody. Do you wake up in the morning, eat some cereal, go to work, come home, make love to your husband, wife, or lover and go to bed? You could be experiencing Chronic Normal Syndrome or CNS. Here's a pill. It'll cure that problem but it'll also make you impotent, panicky, sweaty, stunt your growth and make you bleed out the ears. Hey guess what? we have pills for all those too! Cause we're the FDA and fuck if people never get sick with anything we'll all be out of a job!

I love Lewis Black

[Katidyd]

This site hold some numbers to go with the over prescribed quick fix for ADD from a DEA official's report.

http://www.add-adhd.org/ritalin.html

And here is a quote from the site that has relavence to what I mean to say.

"I do want to emphasize that medical authorities do believe that ADHD (ADD/ADHD, Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder) is a distinct health problem affecting some children who can be helped by these drugs when prescribed after careful diagnosis. In those cases, parents should work closely with their children, the family physician and school authorities to insure proper administration and control of the drug. But on the other hand, when we see that in some localities as many as 15 to 20 percent of the children have been put on Ritalin or a similar stimulant, there is good reason to conclude that this is "quick-fix." bogus medical practice which is nevertheless producing large profits. This far exceeds any professional estimates of actual need."

[Cyrinne]

If your original argument was that there are cases in which these conditions are diagnosed too quickly, or 'pocket' areas where there are a grossly dissproportionate amount of children diagnosed with ADHD or ODD and thus given stimulant medications you likely would have received fewer arguments. I certainly wouldn't have argued.

As for the DEA's involvement, they have an entirely different concern, that being that many of the drugs used to treat these conditions are highly abusable. More up to date information than that provided at Mr. Kane's website, or than at the add-adhd.org website (a website which is actually part of the optometrists network, and lists several articles about how ADHD is often really a vision problem, amusingly enough) can be found at the DEA's goverment website, including the most recent congressional testimony on the topic. Prescription stimulant abuse is definitely a growing problem in our country, and does become more so as more people, particularly teenagers, are diagnosed with ADHD and given amphetamines.

[Isaviel]

I thought this might interest some of you. I learned alot in an interview in Health by him. Real interesting. I wish I could check out this show but I'll probably be at work Anyhow his office emailed me this info:

Dr. Hallowell to be interviewed on the Today Show

Dr. Hallowell will be interviewed on the Today Show on Wednesday, September 21st. Dr. Hallowell will discuss a recent study indicating that more adults are being medicated for ADHD. Please check your local listings for when the Today Show airs in your area.

DOH! I just realized that is today! *Sigh* I missed it!!!

[Ellamere]

I’m a psychologist working in early intervention/prevention with kids diagnosed with, and at risk of developing serious and persistent behaviour difficulties such as ADHD, ODD or even CD (conduct disorder). These are not your average ‘garden variety’ child behaviour problems. Kids with these disorders have very serious and persistent behaviour difficulties over and beyond what is expected from their same age peers.

With respect to causality, current research indicates that there are multiple factors that may place a child at risk of developing behaviour difficulties, not just poor parenting.

First, biological factors such as high emotional arousal have been associated with a high rate of behavioural problems in both children and adults.

Second, child factors may include difficult temperament, poor emotional regulation and social problem-solving skills, difficulty reading social and emotional cues in others, misattributions for things that happen – perceive things as a threat, and poor communication and language skills.

So the best way to think about this (and how I explain it to parents and teachers) is that kids with serious and persistent behaviour difficulties are simply taking longer to learn some of those basic life skills that kids their age tend to learn more easily. Just as kids having serious reading difficulties may require formal reading instruction, kids with behaviour difficulties may require formal instruction to acquire and practice these social and emotional life skills.

Third, there are also many parent and family factors implicated in the development and maintenance of kids behaviour difficulties. Some of which include; high stress in family, poor communication, parent mental health issues, marital relationship difficulties, lack of good role models, how adults react to the child’s difficulties (if parent’s are struggling to manage difficult behaviours, they may accidentally reinforce behaviours), and harsh parenting strategies to deal with difficult behaviour.

Fourth, broader social factors (e.g., low SES, lack of supports, poor access to professional support, school support, adequate funding for support etc) will then impact on parent and family functioning.

As you can see it is not possible to identify any one factor (i.e., poor parenting skills) as the cause of a child’s behaviour difficulties. Any thorough assessment process by a qualified professional would involve an examination of all precipitating, predisposing, and perpetuating factors that may help to explain why a child is presenting with behaviour difficulties. The results of the assessment process will give you clues about the best way to provide support to the child, their parents, and any others (school system) involved with the child.

Current best practice suggests that behavioural treatments are most effective in improving children’s social and behavioural outcomes. For example, in our program, we work with (a) the child to provide formal instruction in basic social, emotional and problem-solving kills, (b) parents to assist them to build on their children’s strengths and to manage difficult behaviour appropriately, and (c) school teachers to assist them to generalize and reinforce the child’s appropriate behaviour, manage difficult behaviour and to teach and prompt the kids to use social and emotional skills.

Some children are on stimulant medication and it is certainly necessary IN ADDITION to the other aspects of intervention mentioned above. Stimulant medication is necessary for those kids for which there is a biological bases for their behaviour difficulties.

Finally, with respect to poor parenting skills as a cause of child’s behaviour difficulties - so what! Kids don’t come with manuals!! There are so many parenting challenges to frazzle parents, not to mention the normal challenges of life (i.e., stress, relationship problems, and financial difficulties) that can impact on a parent’s ability to parent. There is absolutely no shame in needing support for parenting issues.

I haven’t provided any references for my information, but if anyone wants more information, just let me know. I have stacks of research literature on this stuff

[Isaviel]

*hugs Ellamere tight*

Thank you for helping me and spending so much time talking to me on this subject. I really appreciate it and you helped settle my mind greatly!

I will continue the fight with the school systems to assure he is getting taught the way he needs to.


It's kind of funny now that I think about it. I am currently taking an Organizational Behavior class and learning about personalities and learning styles. Perhaps my son's biggest problem is "how" he learns. I know with me I hate to read. Hate it with a passion unless it really catches my mind. I am a much much more of a "doing" learner with a bit of aural as well.

I never thought about how a person learns before until I started taking this class. Now I will see things in a different light especially when it comes to my son.