ADD, ADHD, OCD. Medicate or maintain?

Roland_Deschain

Roland_Deschain

Transcending what is, with what could be.
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Well the title is pretty self explaining.

World wide studies have depicted that about 10% of population has one of these mental illnesses, whether diagnosed or not, chances are that you may even have them, but just do not notice.

OCD (Obsesive compulsive disorder.) - Its the instinctual habit of obsessing over certain things, depending on where your intrests are brought. They could be as simple as housework, to as complicated as advanced mathmatics.

ADD ( Attention deficit disorder.) Self explanatory, its the imparative habit of remaining concentration upon one individual task for a long time.

ADHD (Attetion deficit, hyperactive disorder.) Same as ADD except it attributes the over hyper and energetic personality to boot.


Now the topic of this thread is to acknowledge if doctors and parents should really be medicating their children to solve this issues.

Certain drugs may include, Ritilin, Aderal, Paxil, Clonodine, or Respritol.

Now I was diagnosed with all three of these growing up and from personal experience I believe that taking the easy way out and drugging your kids is not the correct decision. The result of many of these pills will effectively tranquilize the child and they will miss out on much of the joy of childhood. In the end I cheated everyone by secretly not taking my medication, so that I could attempt to handle self corrections and problems of my own accord. This all took place 7th grade and below.

Now my arguement on this issue is that it is not only a medical and genetic disability, but attributes to your own personality as well, and I think its honestly bullshit for other people who have the power to medicate children, to do so. I do not think people can fully grasp the understanding of a child and that its a crutch and excuse that takes away from the understanding that life has problems, and attributes that drugs can be the answer.

Further more I think that if parents are to drug their kids through out their whole childhood, it takes away the ability for them to mentally handle and deal with these problems on their own accord. I think this could result in a even larger problem when kids turn into adults and have become used to medication calming themselves down. Once they are adults there will be nobody to enforce such drugs and their lack of personal control that they never had a chance to learn, can potentially be even more dangerous to the human mind than the alternative.

I will also add that many of these illnesses are blessings in in disguise. Micheal Phelps has extreme ADHD, and he attributes this to one of his abilitys to being as exceptional as he is. Personally having both OCD and ADD I find that these two balance each other out to having more exceptional effects then the average human. The OCD gives me the ability to maintain extreme focus on anything I do, and its balanced by the ADD that gives me the effect of being able to focus on more then one task at a time, resulting in a more focused mind. I think that if I were to take drugs my whole childhood and adult hood I would not have many of the experiences and abilities that I have, but rather I would be a zombie that believes I have a problem, and that I RELY on drugs to make me NORMAL? I think that normal is perception, and people who are different are just afraid of difference.

Everyone feel free to share your opinions on the subject matter. Should we be medicating our children with these illnesses, or letting them learn and grow from them, and into them.

Please be kind and make sure you at least have a brief idea of these disorders before commenting.
 
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I, personally, have mild OCD and slight ADD, so I kind of know how you feel. I, however, have never been medicated for either. In my option, children should, for the most part, not be medicated for these issue. In many cases, they do not even really exist- the child's parent most likely does not know how to handle their rowdy child. Now, in such cases, medicating, I believe, is morally wrong. It is essentially stealing and debasing an entire childhood, all because of an incompetent parent. I find it sad, to be honest.

However, this is not every case. When it is deemed that the issue is debilitating, and hinders the progress of the child, medication is okay, to an extent. The way I see it, as long as the kid can function and live a normal life, why bother toning them down with medication?

But that's just me ;):P
 
I have OCD - namely for some video games where stuff is highly customizable, i get obsessive. as well as when I get into my car, everything has to be in the right place before I can drive comfortably. It's not severe like those who have to flip a light switch twenty times. Unless it affects your life severely, medication shouldn't be the first go-to, is what I believe.
 
Thats the thing. Unlike obesity parents can not always stop their children from being naturally wild when they are at school or home. It really depends on the situation, and the disease I believe. If they have ADD then you could lecture them all you want but not be able to tell if they are even listening. On the other hand I think kids need to learn how to handle these problems with themselves otherwise they will be even worse when they are grown up and stop taking the medication. I think its possibly better for a child to be treated different, or even made fun of for these issues, because its the greatest way to inspire change, opposed to just tranqulizing them with pills and messing their heads up.
 
I totally agree with that. If we were to just medicate them as children, it won't necessarily make the problem go away when they are older. And then, when they stop the medication, they are faced with more problems than they know how to control. By not medicating them, they learn to deal with their issues, and I believe it to be the better decision in the long run.
 
I don't believe that ADD of ADHD really exist, it's just for parents that can't control their kids or for parents that want an excuse as to why their mediocre child isn't doing well in school. As for OCD it's one of those things which now everyone believes they have it because it has become so prevalent on TV shows, people must lift and put down the toilet seat three times before they can take a shit. It's the new Aspergers, or maybe Aspergers is the new OCD.
Also I don't see how people can be slightly OCD, it is not possible to be slightly obsessive or compulsive. In the words of the great philosopher Hugh Cornwell, "Get a grip".
As I think medicating for non-existant illnesses is at best a waste of time, I'd say that these children should be left alone. And they and their parents should be told to harden the fuck up.
 
Well I agreed with HALF of your post, Bez.

It is COMPLETELY possible to have OCD, and not just because its on TV. I know firsthand that in some cases, you just HAVE to do those things that many times. Its like... if you don't do it, it drives you crazy. Personally, if I don't wash or sanitize my hands three to four times an hour, or do certain things in a CERTAIN order, I can't focus on anything. It makes me literally sick to my stomach until it actually happens. And this is SLIGHT OCD, because it ISN'T crippling, and it DOESN'T apply to every little aspect of my life.

I'm sorry, I am definitely not trying to make this is to a what is and what isn't debate. I just get annoyed with these people who assume something doesn't exist and think its ridiculous just because they have never experienced it. Just sayin.

And I would also like to add, just to clarify, that while I don't really believe that ADD or ADHD or OCD exist in most children- parents just chalk hyperactivity up to it so they can medicate the problem- I DO believe that it can exist. :)
 
Bez said:
As I think medicating for non-existant illnesses is at best a waste of time, I'd say that these children should be left alone. And they and their parents should be told to harden the fuck up.
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This. The idea of "mental illnesses" has always been one that bothered me - it's just society's way of isolating things in people that it doesn't like, and nothing more. The concept is a flawed one. As far as I'm concerned, none of these things exist, it's just a part of someone's personality that society as a whole is either unwilling or unable to accept, and giving people medication for them if they're diagnosed as having them is absolutely ridiculous.

Nobody gives people medication for ignorance or arrogance or other thoroughly annoying personality traits, do they? Well, then why medicate someone who who is obssessive compulsive or whatever? It's exactly the same sort of thing. These traits - because that is what they are, they are not an illness or anything like that - are a part of someone's personality, and why should anyone have to change themselves to fit with society's expectations?

People are different. Children who have these things should be left alone; you can't diagnose someone as mentally ill for having a personality. The same goes for depression or anything else. It simply doesn't exist. If people believe they have these things and want to change themselves when they are older through whatever means they deem necessary, then that is absolutely fine, it is their choice, but I don't think children should be forced to change who they are just because their stuck-up, ignorant parents can't handle it. Stop treating them as though there is something wrong with them, accept that they are different, and deal with it. These ridiculous labels should never even have been created in the first place, in my opinion.
 
Kainé said:
This. The idea of "mental illnesses" has always been one that bothered me - it's just society's way of isolating things in people that it doesn't like, and nothing more. The concept is a flawed one. As far as I'm concerned, none of these things exist, it's just a part of someone's personality that society as a whole is either unwilling or unable to accept, and giving people medication for them if they're diagnosed as having them is absolutely ridiculous.

Nobody gives people medication for ignorance or arrogance or other thoroughly annoying personality traits, do they? Well, then why medicate someone who who is obssessive compulsive or whatever? It's exactly the same sort of thing. These traits - because that is what they are, they are not an illness or anything like that - are a part of someone's personality, and why should anyone have to change themselves to fit with society's expectations?

People are different. Children who have these things should be left alone; you can't diagnose someone as mentally ill for having a personality. The same goes for depression or anything else. It simply doesn't exist. If people believe they have these things and want to change themselves when they are older through whatever means they deem necessary, then that is absolutely fine, it is their choice, but I don't think children should be forced to change who they are just because their stuck-up, ignorant parents can't handle it. Stop treating them as though there is something wrong with them, accept that they are different, and deal with it. These ridiculous labels should never even have been created in the first place, in my opinion.
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Well I must say that this is a very elegant and well worded post and I agree with almost everything you have said on the matter.

One thing I slightly disagree with is the exsistance of these disease's in the first place. The human mind is vast and complicated and I feel that it is a little presumptious to say that none of these illness's exsist in the first place. There is countless research that suggests that the human mind can have uncontrolable deviations from that of a normal one. I mean what about more extreme illness such as schizophrenia or memory loss?

I will account that there is a vast difference between the severity of them though, you could compare OCD to that of the common cold as far as physical diseases.
 
Roland_Deschain said:
One thing I slightly disagree with is the exsistance of these disease's in the first place. The human mind is vast and complicated and I feel that it is a little presumptious to say that none of these illness's exsist in the first place. There is countless research that suggests that the human mind can have uncontrolable deviations from that of a normal one. I mean what about more extreme illness such as schizophrenia or memory loss?
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Really? I would say it was presumptuous for psychiatrists to simplify the human mind by giving aspects of it simple and derogatory labels, personally. I would find it much more offensive to have my mind put into categories than having labels attached to aspects of it denied, because the aspects go far beyond the label. If the human mind is so complex, how can people give it such a simplified label? Calling aspects of my very self a disease is, to me, much more offensive than saying they don't exist.

I put absolutely no faith in psychiatry or scientific research; I do not believe you can generalise a personality, or any aspect of it. This is one of the reasons why I am strongly against labels, and I deny the notion that things can be simplified in this manner. Hence why I think medication is pointless. You're trying to treat something that does not exist: it may exist in some fashion, yes, but certainly not in the simplified form that you are thinking of. It goes much deeper than a simple label, and there is absolutely nothing wrong with it either. How can anyone tell anyone else that an aspect of their personality is wrong? Who are they to judge? How dare they, in fact? Just because they don't like it?

As I said, nobody gives people medication for arrogance or any other negatively perceived aspect of their personality, I do not see why things like OCD should be any different. These things have extremely negative connotations attached to them, but a personality is NOT a disorder, in any form. Individuality is not a disease. Nobody ever gets drugged for lack of manners, or an overly optimistic/pessimistic attitude, or for laughing at inappropriate times. Why should people have to be drugged for wanting to keep things orderly, or keep their hands clean, or whatever else? How is this behaviour any different from any other behaviour? To me, there is no distinction. It's as natural as anything else they may do. Why should it be singled out and labelled?

Some forms of "mental illness" will impact upon people's ability to act for themselves, or interact with others yes and, again, if medication helps them and they want to take it, I don't see why they shouldn't be able to; I'm not against the use of medication entirely. But that doesn't make them diseased. It just makes them different. Just because people can't understand them does not mean that they should be labelled with half a dozen different diagnosis and then drugged until they fit in as best they can.

Ultimately, I think it comes down to personal choice. If you believe that these labels apply to you and you want to take the scientific steps to try and "correct" them, then that is up to you, and that is absolutely fine. But I don't think these labels should be forced upon people with a diagnosis and the absolute imperative that they should do something about it. Why should people be forced to conform with society's expectations? Because whether people like it or not, a "mental illness" is a part of who they are. It's just a part that has been singled out by society because they either don't like it or can't fully relate to it, and it's been ridiculously over-simplified so that they can understand something that, in truth, I don't believe they have any hope of understanding. People like to think the human mind is complex, but they also like to think they can divide it up and classify it into easy-to-use terms. It's either one or the other; you can't have it both ways.

Roland_Deschain said:
I will account that there is a vast difference between the severity of them though, you could compare OCD to that of the common cold as far as physical diseases.
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The severity of what people like to call "mental illness" is, in my opinion, only down to the fact that they cannot understand or relate to it: classic autism, for example, is harder to relate to than OCD, so it is regarded as more severe. I wouldn't compare "mental illness" to physical illness, though.

People give these labels out and treat them as something that needs to be purged. Nobody ever thought "optimism" or "arrogance" or even "loving" needed to be treated, so why these? It is EXACTLY the same; if it wasn't natural, then it wouldn't occur. It just isn't acceptable. So it's wrong. This is the kind of thinking I am strongly opposed to; if people must give such complex ideas such simple labels, they should accept these differences and move on. It is up to the individual if they don't like it and want to change it, just as it is up to them if they want to change any other part of their personality. It isn't for anyone else to say these things are unacceptable and that they must be removed.
 
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Kainé said:
Really? I would say it was presumptuous for psychiatrists to simplify the human mind by giving aspects of it simple and derogatory labels, personally. I would find it much more offensive to have my mind put into categories than having labels attached to aspects of it denied, because the aspects go far beyond the label. If the human mind is so complex, how can people give it such a simplified label? Calling aspects of my very self a disease is, to me, much more offensive than saying they don't exist.

I put absolutely no faith in psychiatry or scientific research; I do not believe you can generalise a personality, or any aspect of it. This is one of the reasons why I am strongly against labels, and I deny the notion that things can be simplified in this manner. Hence why I think medication is pointless. You're trying to treat something that does not exist: it may exist in some fashion, yes, but certainly not in the simplified form that you are thinking of. It goes much deeper than a simple label, and there is absolutely nothing wrong with it either. How can anyone tell anyone else that an aspect of their personality is wrong? Who are they to judge? How dare they, in fact? Just because they don't like it?

As I said, nobody gives people medication for arrogance or any other negatively perceived aspect of their personality, I do not see why things like OCD should be any different. These things have extremely negative connotations attached to them, but a personality is NOT a disorder, in any form. Individuality is not a disease. Nobody ever gets drugged for lack of manners, or an overly optimistic/pessimistic attitude, or for laughing at inappropriate times. Why should people have to be drugged for wanting to keep things orderly, or keep their hands clean, or whatever else? How is this behaviour any different from any other behaviour? To me, there is no distinction. It's as natural as anything else they may do. Why should it be singled out and labelled?

Some forms of "mental illness" will impact upon people's ability to act for themselves, or interact with others yes and, again, if medication helps them and they want to take it, I don't see why they shouldn't be able to; I'm not against the use of medication entirely. But that doesn't make them diseased. It just makes them different. Just because people can't understand them does not mean that they should be labelled with half a dozen different diagnosis and then drugged until they fit in as best they can.

Ultimately, I think it comes down to personal choice. If you believe that these labels apply to you and you want to take the scientific steps to try and "correct" them, then that is up to you, and that is absolutely fine. But I don't think these labels should be forced upon people with a diagnosis and the absolute imperative that they should do something about it. Why should people be forced to conform with society's expectations? Because whether people like it or not, a "mental illness" is a part of who they are. It's just a part that has been singled out by society because they either don't like it or can't fully relate to it, and it's been ridiculously over-simplified so that they can understand something that, in truth, I don't believe they have any hope of understanding. People like to think the human mind is complex, but they also like to think they can divide it up and classify it into easy-to-use terms. It's either one or the other; you can't have it both ways.


The severity of what people like to call "mental illness" is, in my opinion, only down to the fact that they cannot understand or relate to it: classic autism, for example, is harder to relate to than OCD, so it is regarded as more severe. I wouldn't compare "mental illness" to physical illness, though.

People give these labels out and treat them as something that needs to be purged. Nobody ever thought "optimism" or "arrogance" or even "loving" needed to be treated, so why these? It is EXACTLY the same; if it wasn't natural, then it wouldn't occur. It just isn't acceptable. So it's wrong. This is the kind of thinking I am strongly opposed to; if people must give such complex ideas such simple labels, they should accept these differences and move on. It is up to the individual if they don't like it and want to change it, just as it is up to them if they want to change any other part of their personality. It isn't for anyone else to say these things are unacceptable and that they must be removed.
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Im sorry but both my grandmother and my mother have more extreme cases of OCD and ADD and I am strongly inclined to think that there is actually something wrong with them other then actual personality.

I have witnessed the destructive force that these illness's can carry if they are not acknowledged. My mother and step father almost went through a divorce for the same reasons my blood father had a divorce. And in my child hood I watched my mother's manic obsessive depression drive her to purchase many things she did not want nor need, causing my family to go bankrupt, and even this did not drive the problem home, in the end she got herself medicated and had therapy that eventually balanced things out. She would get depressed over money issues and then make the hole bigger by buying things more, and she could never acknowledge the problem because it was a deeper internal problem.

I have been first hand through what these mental illness's can do, my mother is a very caring and loving person, but she had a "disease" and if she had not had a mental instability then she would have been able to learn from her mistakes a lot sooner.

I have been labeled with the same disorder my mother and grandmother were and this is what drove me to forcefully control myself, and I must tell you that it does not come easy.

I fully appreciate and agree with your opinion on being able to work out these problems yourself, but I must argue with the fact that a deeper rooted problem does indeed exsist. It is just my personal experience with this that I feel this way. I have seen what was a rather small problem at one time turn into an extreme personality alternating effect that no one is prepared for and I have learned from 3rd person perspective the mistakes of not at least acknowledging that you do have a problem in the first place.

I do agree that some parents take advantage of these short cuts and I am agaisnt it as well. However I should warn you not to label these things as "personality" attributes until you have had an entire life to watch first hand how these disorders can take a normal mind and flay it up and down violently without any sign of warning. My grandmother used to be the same as my mother until she started taking medication 30 years ago. She tells me that when they were younger the problem was not so bad, but if not handled or realized it turns into a severe problem and that is why she takes medication at age 87 still. After growing up in such an enviorment I must tell you that these "MILD" disorders can potentially turn into severe disorders, and after living this enviornment there is no possible way I will ever believe these illness's are "imaginary". To me that idea is almost insulting.

So agree to disagree, and I agree with almost everything else in your first post. You can take it from someone who is NOT generalizing the human mind, but someone who has observed the radical difference.
 
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I have to say I somewhat agree with Hal and Kaine.

Traits like absent mindedness and perfectionism will suddenly turn into ADHD and OCD. These labels are handed out as trinkets to anyone who has told their little habits to a doctor.

My two close best friends, who I've known for 12 years, say that they have "slight ADHD" and that it runs in their family, while I know that's not true at all since I don't even know them to be absent-minded. Now if you think you have some disorder you really don't have that's already a problem, but telling the world and writing it as disabilities is a whole other issue.

Now being medicated for it is just a whole new issue. So you have little odd tendencies, so what? It's your brain, that's just how it's working. Why would some pills fix that?

I personally have small little strange habits. If I draw a smiley face, I always draw another next to it so it doesn't fell lonely. 2 cookies left? I eat both because I don't want it to be all alone. My doctor said that I probably have a small case of OCD. I really don't believe that.

While, in itself, I do believe they exist, but only rarely where cases are extreme that hinder your actual lifestyle.
 
I had a severe case of OCD when I was 14. I would check the locks on my door over and over again, check to make sure the stove was off, washed my hands constantly to the point that they became dry and red. I would check to make sure the TV was off, make my bed several times over and over again, check to make sure that all game systems were off, check to make sure my bedroom door was shut. This would go on for hours and it got to the point that I could almost never leave the house. I was always very late for work and school.

In my mind, if I did not do these things, the house would catch on fire, someone would break in, something would be on my hands, the TV would be left on and make our electric bill rise.

If I would force myself to leave the house, I would only think about the things I needed to check while out. I would literally spend the entire day thinking about the stove, the doors, my bed, washing my hands (which I would leave class several times to do). When I was with my friends, all I could talk about is whether or not the door was closed, the stove was off, the door was locked ect.

So eventually, I went to see a psychiatrist. I was put on Luvox and went through behavorial therapy. Months later, I was much better. I still have a minor case of it but I do not take medicine anymore and can pretty much handle it.

It is believed that a lack of serotonin can cause OCD. (Which the drug I took Luvox is supposed to help with that.)

As for ADD and ADHD I think it is over diagnosed. When kids act up, I think they are just not interested in the topic, not that they do not have the ability to concentrate or they are not getting enough exercise. I would have to look at more evidence though.
 
While this thread is mainly foccused on the issue of wether it should be medicated, I notice that it has swung to the topic of wether these issues exsist in reality or not.

You can call it what you want, but I will say it is much harder for those who have not dealt with these disorders perosnally or in their families to understand that they are not a defining characteristic of a person.

You can call it personality, you can say that its just a way a person is naturally. I agree that lots of parents take the high road on getting their children medicated or lebeling them with these mental illness's. But realizing the difference between a real mental illness and one blown out of porportion is very important.

Some cases of ADHD ADD and OCD are very strong, as well as unpredictable, and if not mentally acknowledged can lead to trouble, and its much more then some naughty child. Its an extreme habit of thinking that does indeed pass through the genetic tree, and not in the same way.

Me and my mother, and her mother had these disorders, and they have gotten weaker through the chain, this could mean we have learned to cope with it better, or that it has just gotten weaker. Do not be fooled into thinking that these disorders do not exsist, or that they are your average personality. Take it from the people posting in this thread that certain things in the mind can be hindered and off set a person beyond their own personality or desires. Just take it from the many posts from others who have them.

Now as for the topic the discussion is still at hand.
 
As for ADHD, honestly I think it's another bill for people pay to get their kids medicated. Let's say your kid was a problem child and was constantly bullying people and being loud in class and also unruly with the teachers, well it's safe to say that's almost enough to give them a prescription to ridlin or whatever else that calms their ass down.

It mostly stems from a messed up child hood or an superiority/inferiority complex, where they have to make themselves feel bigger, because they in fact have a fear of being smaller.

Yes while I agree I don't mind seeing some of these folks medicated, in my head I'm just saying that so I don't have to see these hyper active non parented little whelps. The ones that run around in a restaurant because they can't sit still, due to their parents feeding them donuts in the morning and getting whatever they damn well want.

Now for ADD that's a very touchy subject. I was diagnosed unfortunately with it around the age of 11... I was doing fine in school, but my mind would wander due to some crap shoot things that happened in my life at the time. Age of 8-12 my mom had cancer, age 10ish my aunt was killed by a drunk driver, my other aunt died from a terrible spill, and my throwing arm went lost too much cartilage. Instead of actually giving me a psych eval, I was taken to a general pediatric who looked at me twice up and down and tested my hearing/vision.. and next thing you know I am on ridlin for a year or two. To be honest, I barely remember those years, partly due to just being a boy and blocking the memories out.

Though I can tell you one thing, misdiagnosing a child is very unfortunate due to the chemical imbalances that could ensue. Due to the fact my parents saw me unaffected during my mom's cancer, they just naturally assumed I was fine I guess. I was fine actually, the problem being I was put on medication for no reason. I didn't even need anti-depressants. It was just something I had to do on my own. I couldn't relate to my peers, so naturally I just looked like a damn dim witted non opinionated kid.

What I can say though is this. I can relate to people on this level, because no matter who takes aderol or ridlin will be cracked out. During those 2 years I hardly slept. I focused, did the same grades in school, but I basically couldn't do crap. When I got to college, I noticed folks passed these pills out to help them study (aka a dealer). I noticed when their friend ran out on a prescription, they would talk to their own parents about needing it, and boom they were on it.

I wish I could get these drugs off the market to be honest, because now a days I see them as enhancers. Just like Anabolic steroids for athletes, they are the enhancers for intellectuals. (which is a complete load of crap). Instead of studying hard naturally people will drink all night, then the next day instead of having the extra day to study, they pop an aderol and stay up till 4:00am to study.

To me that's worse than smoking the reefer due to it handicaps them down the road with the drug runs out, or doesn't work anymore due to their dosage is too low.

So my :tl;dr: to all this is... Get the drugs off the market. Learn to deal with "disabilities". Also if you are a parent, and you have an unruly kid.. and you literally just let them be.. well there's your hint. Stop overmedicating the kids. If they need help with school, get them a tutor or if you are still smart enough to know your schooling, then help them yourself and be a half assed parent, rather than sitting their with a thumb up your ass planning your next vacation.
 
Shu said:
It mostly stems from a messed up child hood or an superiority/inferiority complex, where they have to make themselves feel bigger, because they in fact have a fear of being smaller.

Some times that is the case but not always. It has been scientifically studied and evaluated that children are born with these mental difference's. And that they are triggered by the complex's you mentioned. This is where a mature adult comes in handy, to educate them as to why they are different. This is why I was glad to have my Grandma around, she was able to educate me at my young age because my mother was a little too stubborn or busy to do so.

Yes while I agree I don't mind seeing some of these folks medicated, in my head I'm just saying that so I don't have to see these hyper active non parented little whelps. The ones that run around in a restaurant because they can't sit still, due to their parents feeding them donuts in the morning and getting whatever they damn well want.

Well I guees this is where we differ. I like to take the humanitist view upon it. First and foremost is seems unethical to slow some one down with pills. Yet also there is a difference a wild kid and a wild adult, and the difference is dangerous. I think kids need to get it out of their system as opposed to holding it back their entire lives, other wise then you have a fucked up adult.

Now for ADD that's a very touchy subject. I was diagnosed unfortunately with it around the age of 11... I was doing fine in school, but my mind would wander due to some crap shoot things that happened in my life at the time. Age of 8-12 my mom had cancer, age 10ish my aunt was killed by a drunk driver, my other aunt died from a terrible spill, and my throwing arm went lost too much cartilage. Instead of actually giving me a psych eval, I was taken to a general pediatric who looked at me twice up and down and tested my hearing/vision.. and next thing you know I am on ridlin for a year or two. To be honest, I barely remember those years, partly due to just being a boy and blocking the memories out.


Though I can tell you one thing, misdiagnosing a child is very unfortunate due to the chemical imbalances that could ensue. Due to the fact my parents saw me unaffected during my mom's cancer, they just naturally assumed I was fine I guess. I was fine actually, the problem being I was put on medication for no reason. I didn't even need anti-depressants. It was just something I had to do on my own. I couldn't relate to my peers, so naturally I just looked like a damn dim witted non opinionated kid.

I here you on these two points. These drugs act as tranquilizers to the human child and it makes reality almost pass by carelessly as if you are halfway in a dream world. Some important moments can may not be noticed to the child, or lessons learned, and because of these drugs the child will take away nothing. Barely a scrap of memory, and no meaning.

What I can say though is this. I can relate to people on this level, because no matter who takes aderol or ridlin will be cracked out. During those 2 years I hardly slept. I focused, did the same grades in school, but I basically couldn't do crap. When I got to college, I noticed folks passed these pills out to help them study (aka a dealer). I noticed when their friend ran out on a prescription, they would talk to their own parents about needing it, and boom they were on it.

Now that is not completely true though. This is another way to prove that the illness indeed is more then personality. If you hand the drug to a person diagnosed with this disorder it will almost put them to sleep and keep them in a normal frame of time. However if you give this drug to a person lacking the mental illness, you will find that its like smoking meth, cracking your soul open to the ugly nature of drug use.

I wish I could get these drugs off the market to be honest, because now a days I see them as enhancers. Just like Anabolic steroids for athletes, they are the enhancers for intellectuals. (which is a complete load of crap). Instead of studying hard naturally people will drink all night, then the next day instead of having the extra day to study, they pop an aderol and stay up till 4:00am to study.

Oh I hear you man. Me and my roomate back in college did a lot of recreational experimenting to be honest. After playing around with things like coke, shrooms, or ecstacy (things I do not condone any more), he found out that I was prescribed Aderal and asked if we could sell it or do it. I said no, and he asked why. I said because if we are going to party like college boys recreationally, then we are going to do it with style and pride, not shame. Even in my most reckless phases I discovered that this just seemed kind of barbaric.

To me that's worse than smoking the reefer due to it handicaps them down the road with the drug runs out, or doesn't work anymore due to their dosage is too low.

What I always say is this. Weed is the green godmade plant that grows from the Earth, it makes people eat, sleep, laugh, and generally more relaxed and kind. Speed is the man made drug that robs you of sleep, makes you not eat, and makes you cruel and greedy. Pills are the gateway to both painkillers and speed. Weed is the gateway to smoking cigarettes haha.

So my :tl;dr: to all this is... Get the drugs off the market. Learn to deal with "disabilities". Also if you are a parent, and you have an unruly kid.. and you literally just let them be.. well there's your hint. Stop overmedicating the kids. If they need help with school, get them a tutor or if you are still smart enough to know your schooling, then help them yourself and be a half assed parent, rather than sitting their with a thumb up your ass planning your next vacation.


Agreed
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It's very easy for someone without these afflictions, or an outsider looking in, to make an opinion if you have not experienced the suffering that these conditions bring.

I have had what I believed to be severe OCD for over 13 years, in fact as far as I can remember as a child, and my parents tell me of things my memory can't reach as far back to. I hid many of my symptoms, as I was afraid if people found out I would be considered a freak and a weirdo, teasing I was already enduring at school every single day at that point in time. My obsession with doing things perfectly would lead to compulsions involving doing things over and over again until they were 'perfect'. This, coupled with anxiety and social difficulties made my life a living hell for many years. I, too, was against medication. My mother has bipolar disorder and my sister has eating disorders, I lived through alcohol and pharmaceutical drug abuse with them, and believed that to "be strong", I must stay away from what my father called "those head doctors that are giving your mother and sister a pill for every conceivable thing, a pill to sleep, a pill to eat, a pill to sh*t".

When I finally had a breakdown and had to decided to go for counselling, I was diagnosed with Asperger Syndrome, an autism spectrum disorder. The symptoms I had suffered for years at last made sense. My younger brother was also diagnosed. He was initially thought to be ADD and "unteachable", but since being diagnosed we are learning to cope with this condition. But I digress from the topic at hand.

I initially went on a course of anti-depressants which made me feel like a robot and I experienced the most terrible withdrawal symptoms after ending my prescription (even though I "tapered" them off like you're supposed to). I was literally constantly dizzy for three months. My OCD and anxiety have gotten a LOT better since going on short courses of diazepam and fluoxetine, and for the first time in over a decade I am able to live my life like a relatively "normal" person, and not tormented by constant obessions and rituals.

My mother is on medication for her bipolar and it allows her to function. Without it, she loses it. If my sister is not on medication, she has to be hospitalised because she is close to death from not eating.

One of my friends who still lives at home is suffering from crushing depression and OCD, but her mother refuses to allow her to go for counselling nor seek treatment, as she "does not believe in those things".

There are cases where medication for these disorders - OCD, ADD and related conditions - are absolutely necessary, in my honest opinion. I do believe doctors can be too liberal to diagnose and hand out drugs, but the heart of the matter is if the person suffering cannot cope, they cannot get better from willpower. Once the initial reprise has been established, then maintenance of the condition can be exercised. I don't believe there is a "cure" for conditions such as OCPD (Obsessive Compulsive Personality Disorder), Aspergers, autism, bipolar, bulimia and anorexia. You can cure the anxiety and depression that can accompany them, but often the maintenance depends on a good balance between medication and therapy.

I do not claim to be an expert on psychology, nor am I a firm advocate for any specific method. Each individual has to be assessed and addressed. I am only speaking from my personal life experiences and what I have witnessed during them. So I guess my final answer is, medicate when necessary to maintain. I understand my opinion may be flawed, and I can accept that others may not feel the same way. But medication saved me from a complete meltdown, and though I'm not "drugged up" every day of my life, it helps me cope and along with cognitive therapy I can now finally take control of my life that I falsely believed I always had.
 
I have a slight case of both OCD and ADD for OCD i don't mind leaving them because my friends know i can't help it.

[Admin Edit: This thread is about agreeing or disagreeing with medication for these symptoms, it's not about if you have it or not. Could you please stay on topic and throw what you think about medicating for any of these? Thank you - Shu]
 
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Artemisia said:
There are cases where medication for these disorders - OCD, ADD and related conditions - are absolutely necessary, in my honest opinion. I do believe doctors can be too liberal to diagnose and hand out drugs, but the heart of the matter is if the person suffering cannot cope, they cannot get better from willpower. Once the initial reprise has been established, then maintenance of the condition can be exercised. I don't believe there is a "cure" for conditions such as OCPD (Obsessive Compulsive Personality Disorder), Aspergers, autism, bipolar, bulimia and anorexia. You can cure the anxiety and depression that can accompany them, but often the maintenance depends on a good balance between medication and therapy.

I cannot argue that there are indeed some pretty extreme cases where medication is a helpful answer when no other means seem to fit. Could you clarify on a case that you think fits these terms though? In my opinion being hyper or distracting in school is not a good enough reason unless its like severe violence of some sort.

However what do you think of the many severe cases when children are medicated and then drop medication when they become an adult? This is the only huge problem I see with medicating severe cases throughout childhood. Sometimes these cases may be hard to battle by the child, but they could figure it out as they grow older. Other times they might be medicated and had their problems put into hypernaton, only to have them unleashed full tilt when they no longer have to take it.
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I cannot argue that there are indeed some pretty extreme cases where medication is a helpful answer when no other means seem to fit. Could you clarify on a case that you think fits these terms though? In my opinion being hyper or distracting in school is not a good enough reason unless its like severe violence of some sort.

However what do you think of the many severe cases when children are medicated and then drop medication when they become an adult? This is the only huge problem I see with medicating severe cases throughout childhood. Sometimes these cases may be hard to battle by the child, but they could figure it out as they grow older. Other times they might be medicated and had their problems put into hypernaton, only to have them unleashed full tilt when they no longer have to take it.
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Like I said previously, I am no psychiatrist, and the situation differs depending on each child. For example, a child who is so hyper-distracted that he prevents other children from learning as well as himself, could do with therapy to first address why he is hyper, then medication to help ease it a little. However, don't drug the kid into a stupor until he's 18 and then just drop them. That's why you need the advice and guidance of a counsellor/psychiatrist so the condition can be maintained as much as possible without the need for constant medication. This why the underlying issues can be addressed and sorted out, hopefully, before the child reaches adulthood and potentially carries them over into his adult life.
Again, this is just my opinion.
 
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