IS A.D.D. a real disease ? Or just a lack of discipline ?

[tcripp]

I'm with Ruff - I'd like to hear your thoughts as well. But, for my two cents...

I have an 11yo cousin. He's been diagnosed with the disorder. I've seen him both on his meds and off. He is very much more well "controlled" on them. If you ask him, he doesn't like them, but he takes them anyway.

When he was first diagnosed, he was asked to simply color a picture. (He was much younger then.) The coloring job was less than stellar, even for his age. After the dosing (not sure if this was immediate or after some period of time...just after), well...the boy found the lines. The difference between the two pictures was amazing.

Now, if you were to ask me if I thought that maybe too many were on the meds or if looking for a diagnosis is too easy when other options are out there, then I would have to say yes.

My own daughter, at the age of 10/11, was suspected to be ADHD. The teacher at the time said that she fidgeted too much. So, we went the route of ruling out ADD/ADHD. Come to find out, the kid was just getting bored and the teacher was not challenging her enough. (We also had her tested at the local Sylvan office and she was testing at or above her grade level.) Hmmm. Maybe if our classrooms weren't so overloaded the teacher could have focused on her needs a bit more instead of looking for an easy out. But, that's another topic.

Toni

[ERDoc]

As crothity's biggest supporter, on this topic I do have to say I agree with him to some degree. ADD/ADHD is over diagnosed. That is about where the agreement ends. ADD/ADHD are absolutely real and kids that truly have it need medication. It baffles my mind the amount of psych meds that some kids are on these days. I have a 7y/o who was on 5 meds, including trazodone. WTF? I had a 10y/o girl who came in with serotonin syndrome from her meds. I think part of it may be regional culture. When I was in NY, there were never this many kids on meds. Here in the midwest it is a whole other story. I see more kids on meds than kids that aren't. If they don't have ADD/ADHD then they have reflux and are on meds for that.

I read a good book by Leonard Sax, an ADD/ADHD specialist. It is quite an eye opener. As tcripp alluded to, most kids that are dx with ADD are just bored because of the classroom setting. Every kid learns differently, especially boys. Some schools have forced kids to take meds before they will allow them back in school. It's pretty scary and I'm glad none of my kids have been "accused" of having ADD/ADHD yet.

[hatelilpeepees]

Crotchity must be a fan of the Neal Boortz Radio show, he is one of the loudest people on the subject that it is all a scam. I am with ER Doc, I think it is real, but I think some are just "bored" at school (versus their home environment with constant stimulation from video games, TV, music), and then are labeled hyper by teachers so they can get them on meds and get them to sit still for 50 minutes.

[Just Plain Ruff]

There was a doctor in Kansas city mo about 10 years ago that was considered the go to doctor to get your kids on the add/adhd drugs.

He prescribed supposedly 45% of all of the medications for the disorders. He was the top doctor in the USA in prescribing those drugs. Over 10,000 kids were prescribed drugs by this doctor.

If this didn't get such a huge attention in the media and schools this would not be as out there as it is now.

Consider Autism, prior to it becoming a disorder you rarely heard about it. Parents and children suffered in silence. Same with this disorder.

Kids in schools prior to it being medicalized were just put in special classrooms and labeled trouble makers or lost causes.

Now that we have a identified disorder/disease it gets more attention. Kids in schools are not considered trouble makers any more(well they are though), but they are now treated with medication and that keeps them "in line".

I do partially give credit to the education system for forcing this identification of the diseases. They have been in the forefront of the battle to corral these children and provide a way to treat them.

But have we gone too far in the medications? I seem to think just like ERDoc.

[ERDoc]

The name of the book I mentioned above is Boys Adrift by Leonard Sax. Great book for anyone that has a kid with ADD but it touches on more than ADD and is a great read for anyone with sons.

[CPhT]

When he was first diagnosed, he was asked to simply color a picture. (He was much younger then.) The coloring job was less than stellar, even for his age. After the dosing (not sure if this was immediate or after some period of time...just after), well...the boy found the lines. The difference between the two pictures was amazing.

Now, if you were to ask me if I thought that maybe too many were on the meds or if looking for a diagnosis is too easy when other options are out there, then I would have to say yes.

My own daughter, at the age of 10/11, was suspected to be ADHD. The teacher at the time said that she fidgeted too much. So, we went the route of ruling out ADD/ADHD. Come to find out, the kid was just getting bored and the teacher was not challenging her enough. (We also had her tested at the local Sylvan office and she was testing at or above her grade level.) Hmmm. Maybe if our classrooms weren't so overloaded the teacher could have focused on her needs a bit more instead of looking for an easy out. But, that's another topic.

Toni

You bring up two points here that are usually the cornerstones of my arguments. The first, the coloring; I have witnessed a "test" like this before, where a child was given a pack of crayons and a picture to color. The child scribbled and drew random lines and went all over the page. The parent said "See? He can't even focus enough to color a picture". The doctor then asked the child "Why did you color the page like that?" and the child replied "I liked the way it looked, and I didn't want to color that picture". What the parent was mistaking for ADD was, in this case, just the child "expressing his self artistically". When the doctor asked the child to color within the lines and make a nice picture for his mom, this child was able to do so, without issue.

Children express themselves in varying means and to varying degrees. A child who constantly asks "why" isn't starving for attention or trying to "embarrass mommy", the child is merely trying to express an interest in his/ her surroundings and is vocalizing that interest in the only way possible. The problem comes in with parents who can't be arsed to teach their kids things, or to answer the "why" question because they're too busy texting their friends and trying to hold on to the last desperate piece of youth.

Second point: the public school syndrome. In this day and age of "no child left behind" teachers are faulted for the poor performance of students, even if the poor performers are in the minority. Teachers are forced to cater to the lowest common denominator, and the kids who understood the concept on the first or second go-round are left to fend for themselves while the "slow learners" (I'm using this term loosely, because EVERYONE has a subject which takes a little more time to learn; I'm not singling out "stupid" people, I'm talking about the kid who just doesn't seem to grasp the concept) get the individual help from the teacher. Now-a-days, teachers fear having to send a child away to a learning specialist, because the child will usually go home with the story of how Miss So-and-So wouldn't help me learn, and now you have a furious parent to deal with.

No... teachers don't want to hear you complain about how they refused to help your child understand fractions, so they help the slower learner, leaving the ones who caught on to fidget, talk, and drift away from the conscious learning environment. Then, when Parent-teacher conferences come along, Miss So-and-so has to explain why little Brian "is a bright student and extremely smart when he applies himself, but has a hard time focusing". Little Brian's parents want to know if something is wrong, take him to the doctor, describe the "symptoms", and of course, Little Brian has ADD. Have some Ritalin and it'll be all good. Multiply scenario by 30 kids per class, 2 classes per grade, 6 grades per school, and 5 schools per city... "As of 2007, 2.7 million youth ages 4-17 years (66.3% of those with a current diagnosis) were receiving medication treatment for the disorder." http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm5944a3.htm?s_cid=mm5944a3_w

That's not to say the condition does not exist; it most certainly does. I'm not quite sure how to classify it, in terms of where the disorder manifests itself (psychological, physiological?), or if we're really just lumping several disorders under one umbrella (similar to Autism, as recent as 10 years ago). The true-to-life cases need to be observed and treated. The not-so-clear-cut cases need to be weeded out and given help. The parents who would rather medicate their children then answer "why"... well, I'll leave my opinion of them to your imagination.

[Lone Star]

I was diagnosed as ADD/ADHD as a kid. I was put on meds (Ritalin). I don't know if the dosage was incorrect, or if I was being overdosed, but 30 years later, I met with my aunt who was amazed at how far I'd progressed with my 'problem'. When querried about what 'problem' she was referring to, I was informed that most of my extended family thought I was mentally retarded.

I know that drugs like Ritalin are actually psychostimulants; and in people who have ADD/ADHD, it actually has a sedative type effect....it slows these people down to help them concentrate.

In those who do not have ADD/ADHD, Ritalin is a big-time upper and will have them bouncing off walls in no time.

I don't remember a lot of my childhood (is it from the drugs or is it because it was a really bad time for me and I've blocked it out?), but I do remember being 'bored' in classes most days. I qualified for programs for 'gifted students' on several occasions, and remember failing in certain projects (like book reports) because I was a victim of trying to make things grander than necessary. I think to a degree that I still suffer from this, and tend to make things harder than they need to be, simply by rying to learn all I can about a subject.

I'm pretty much a 'coffeeholic' and find that on days where I don't get my usual 'dosage'....I feel like I'm running 800 miles per hour and getting nothing done. When I have access to all the caffiene I normally take in, I'm calmer and much more mellower (I usually have a cup of coffee in my hand all day long).

I think that ADD/ADHD is overdiagnosed, but I do not discount that it is a true disorder.

[HERBIE1]

I was diagnosed as ADD/ADHD as a kid. I was put on meds (Ritalin). I don't know if the dosage was incorrect, or if I was being overdosed, but 30 years later, I met with my aunt who was amazed at how far I'd progressed with my 'problem'. When querried about what 'problem' she was referring to, I was informed that most of my extended family thought I was mentally retarded.

I know that drugs like Ritalin are actually psychostimulants; and in people who have ADD/ADHD, it actually has a sedative type effect....it slows these people down to help them concentrate.

In those who do not have ADD/ADHD, Ritalin is a big-time upper and will have them bouncing off walls in no time.

I don't remember a lot of my childhood (is it from the drugs or is it because it was a really bad time for me and I've blocked it out?), but I do remember being 'bored' in classes most days. I qualified for programs for 'gifted students' on several occasions, and remember failing in certain projects (like book reports) because I was a victim of trying to make things grander than necessary. I think to a degree that I still suffer from this, and tend to make things harder than they need to be, simply by rying to learn all I can about a subject.

I'm pretty much a 'coffeeholic' and find that on days where I don't get my usual 'dosage'....I feel like I'm running 800 miles per hour and getting nothing done. When I have access to all the caffiene I normally take in, I'm calmer and much more mellower (I usually have a cup of coffee in my hand all day long).

I think that ADD/ADHD is overdiagnosed, but I do not discount that it is a true disorder.

I find it interesting what you say about caffeine. You react the opposite of what one would think, so is that because of ADD, or simply an addiction to the stimulant and you are essentially itching for your fix? Who knows? I "need" my coffee too, but I get the pounding headache, cranky, and I'm dragging my arse if I am subtherapeutic with my levels. LOL

As for these disorders, I agree with above that they are over diagnosed because of convenience. We all want a quick ,one size fits all fix to our problems. The kids have a sniffle- give 'em a pill. Have a head ache- take a pill. As was mentioned, I think too often a kid may simply be bored in school, and it's much easier to hang a diagnosis on the kid versus getting to his individual needs.

I was diagnosed as ADD/ADHD as a kid. I was put on meds (Ritalin). I don't know if the dosage was incorrect, or if I was being overdosed, but 30 years later, I met with my aunt who was amazed at how far I'd progressed with my 'problem'. When querried about what 'problem' she was referring to, I was informed that most of my extended family thought I was mentally retarded.

I know that drugs like Ritalin are actually psychostimulants; and in people who have ADD/ADHD, it actually has a sedative type effect....it slows these people down to help them concentrate.

In those who do not have ADD/ADHD, Ritalin is a big-time upper and will have them bouncing off walls in no time.

I don't remember a lot of my childhood (is it from the drugs or is it because it was a really bad time for me and I've blocked it out?), but I do remember being 'bored' in classes most days. I qualified for programs for 'gifted students' on several occasions, and remember failing in certain projects (like book reports) because I was a victim of trying to make things grander than necessary. I think to a degree that I still suffer from this, and tend to make things harder than they need to be, simply by rying to learn all I can about a subject.

I'm pretty much a 'coffeeholic' and find that on days where I don't get my usual 'dosage'....I feel like I'm running 800 miles per hour and getting nothing done. When I have access to all the caffiene I normally take in, I'm calmer and much more mellower (I usually have a cup of coffee in my hand all day long).

I think that ADD/ADHD is overdiagnosed, but I do not discount that it is a true disorder.

I find it interesting what you say about caffeine. You react the opposite of what one would think, so is that because of ADD, or simply an addiction to the stimulant and you are essentially itching for your fix? Who knows? I "need" my coffee too, but I get the pounding headache, cranky, and I'm dragging my arse if I am subtherapeutic with my levels. LOL

As for these disorders, I agree with above that they are over diagnosed because of convenience. We all want a quick ,one size fits all fix to our problems. The kids have a sniffle- give 'em a pill. Have a head ache- take a pill. As was mentioned, I think too often a kid may simply be bored in school, and it's much easier to hang a diagnosis on the kid versus getting to his individual needs.

I was diagnosed as ADD/ADHD as a kid. I was put on meds (Ritalin). I don't know if the dosage was incorrect, or if I was being overdosed, but 30 years later, I met with my aunt who was amazed at how far I'd progressed with my 'problem'. When querried about what 'problem' she was referring to, I was informed that most of my extended family thought I was mentally retarded.

I know that drugs like Ritalin are actually psychostimulants; and in people who have ADD/ADHD, it actually has a sedative type effect....it slows these people down to help them concentrate.

In those who do not have ADD/ADHD, Ritalin is a big-time upper and will have them bouncing off walls in no time.

I don't remember a lot of my childhood (is it from the drugs or is it because it was a really bad time for me and I've blocked it out?), but I do remember being 'bored' in classes most days. I qualified for programs for 'gifted students' on several occasions, and remember failing in certain projects (like book reports) because I was a victim of trying to make things grander than necessary. I think to a degree that I still suffer from this, and tend to make things harder than they need to be, simply by rying to learn all I can about a subject.

I'm pretty much a 'coffeeholic' and find that on days where I don't get my usual 'dosage'....I feel like I'm running 800 miles per hour and getting nothing done. When I have access to all the caffiene I normally take in, I'm calmer and much more mellower (I usually have a cup of coffee in my hand all day long).

I think that ADD/ADHD is overdiagnosed, but I do not discount that it is a true disorder.

I find it interesting what you say about caffeine. You react the opposite of what one would think, so is that because of ADD, or simply an addiction to the stimulant and you are essentially itching for your fix? Who knows? I "need" my coffee too, but I get the pounding headache, cranky, and I'm dragging my arse if I am subtherapeutic with my levels. LOL

As for these disorders, I agree with above that they are over diagnosed because of convenience. We all want a quick ,one size fits all fix to our problems. The kids have a sniffle- give 'em a pill. Have a head ache- take a pill. As was mentioned, I think too often a kid may simply be bored in school, and it's much easier to hang a diagnosis on the kid versus getting to his individual needs.

I was diagnosed as ADD/ADHD as a kid. I was put on meds (Ritalin). I don't know if the dosage was incorrect, or if I was being overdosed, but 30 years later, I met with my aunt who was amazed at how far I'd progressed with my 'problem'. When querried about what 'problem' she was referring to, I was informed that most of my extended family thought I was mentally retarded.

I know that drugs like Ritalin are actually psychostimulants; and in people who have ADD/ADHD, it actually has a sedative type effect....it slows these people down to help them concentrate.

In those who do not have ADD/ADHD, Ritalin is a big-time upper and will have them bouncing off walls in no time.

I don't remember a lot of my childhood (is it from the drugs or is it because it was a really bad time for me and I've blocked it out?), but I do remember being 'bored' in classes most days. I qualified for programs for 'gifted students' on several occasions, and remember failing in certain projects (like book reports) because I was a victim of trying to make things grander than necessary. I think to a degree that I still suffer from this, and tend to make things harder than they need to be, simply by rying to learn all I can about a subject.

I'm pretty much a 'coffeeholic' and find that on days where I don't get my usual 'dosage'....I feel like I'm running 800 miles per hour and getting nothing done. When I have access to all the caffiene I normally take in, I'm calmer and much more mellower (I usually have a cup of coffee in my hand all day long).

I think that ADD/ADHD is overdiagnosed, but I do not discount that it is a true disorder.

I find it interesting what you say about caffeine. You react the opposite of what one would think, so is that because of ADD, or simply an addiction to the stimulant and you are essentially itching for your fix? Who knows? I "need" my coffee too, but I get the pounding headache, cranky, and I'm dragging my arse if I am subtherapeutic with my levels. LOL

As for these disorders, I agree with above that they are over diagnosed because of convenience. We all want a quick ,one size fits all fix to our problems. The kids have a sniffle- give 'em a pill. Have a head ache- take a pill. As was mentioned, I think too often a kid may simply be bored in school, and it's much easier to hang a diagnosis on the kid versus getting to his individual needs.

[Asysin2leads]

ADD and ADHD truly are disorders. That doesn't mean everyone who is diagnosed with ADD and ADHD has such, and some indeed simply suffer from a lack of discipline. But I believe there is a middle ground between medicating everyone who got a C and simply screaming at every kid and telling him or her he's bad or stupid when they have difficulties. There is nothing tough nor macho about screaming at a child who is having trouble learning. I know there are a whole cast of conservative pundits who just think Johnny needs to be "Taken out back behind the woodshed" and all that but its not always the case.

ADD and ADHD truly are disorders. That doesn't mean everyone who is diagnosed with ADD and ADHD has such, and some indeed simply suffer from a lack of discipline. But I believe there is a middle ground between medicating everyone who got a C and simply screaming at every kid and telling him or her he's bad or stupid when they have difficulties. There is nothing tough nor macho about screaming at a child who is having trouble learning. I know there are a whole cast of conservative pundits who just think Johnny needs to be "Taken out back behind the woodshed" and all that but its not always the case.

[Lone Star]

I find it interesting what you say about caffeine. You react the opposite of what one would think, so is that because of ADD, or simply an addiction to the stimulant and you are essentially itching for your fix? Who knows? I "need" my coffee too, but I get the pounding headache, cranky, and I'm dragging my arse if I am subtherapeutic with my levels. LOL

Oh, I get the pounding headache and the 'grouchiness' as well, but my mind is just bouncing from one thing to the next with little getting done. I find on the days that I don't get my 'theraputic levels' of caffiene, I'm easily bored and on the prowl to find the next thing that catches my ......oh look! Shiny thing!

Edited September 16, 2011 by Lone Star