The Drugging of the American Boy

[n2doc]

By Ryan D'Agostino

f you have a son, you have a one-in-seven chance that he has been diagnosed with ADHD. If you have a son who has been diagnosed, it's more than likely that he has been prescribed a stimulant—the most famous brand names are Ritalin and Adderall; newer ones include Vyvanse and Concerta—to deal with the symptoms of that psychiatric condition.

The Drug Enforcement Administration classifies stimulants as Schedule II drugs, defined as having a "high potential for abuse" and "with use potentially leading to severe psychological or physical dependence." (According to a University of Michigan study, Adderall is the most abused brand-name drug among high school seniors.) In addition to stimulants like Ritalin, Adderall, Vyvanse, and Concerta, Schedule II drugs include cocaine, methamphetamine, Demerol, and OxyContin.

According to manufacturers of ADHD stimulants, they are associated with sudden death in children who have heart problems, whether those heart problems have been previously detected or not. They can bring on a bipolar condition in a child who didn't exhibit any symptoms of such a disorder before taking stimulants. They are associated with "new or worse aggressive behavior or hostility." They can cause "new psychotic symptoms (such as hearing voices and believing things that are not true) or new manic symptoms." They commonly cause noticeable weight loss and trouble sleeping. In some children, some stimulants can cause the paranoid feeling that bugs are crawling on them. Facial tics. They can cause children's eyes to glaze over, their spirits to dampen. One study reported fears of being harmed by other children and thoughts of suicide.

Imagine you have a six-year-old son. A little boy for whom you are responsible. A little boy you would take a bullet for, a little boy in whom you search for glimpses of yourself, and hope every day that he will turn out just like you, only better. A little boy who would do anything to make you happy. Now imagine that little boy—your little boy—alone in his bed in the night, eyes wide with fear, afraid to move, a frightening and unfamiliar voice echoing in his head, afraid to call for you. Imagine him shivering because he hasn't eaten all day because he isn't hungry. His head is pounding. He doesn't know why any of this is happening.

more
http://www.esquire.com/features/drugging-of-the-american-boy-0414

[sendero]

1. If you do a bit or research..

.... on these drugs you will quickly find out that at best they are only a short-term solution. Long term side effects are not pretty.

[nenagh]

2. Canadian Medical Journal study from 2012... researchers found that..

"boys who were born in December" - typically the youngest students in their class- "were 30% more likely to receive a diagnosis of ADHD than boys born in January"- who were a full year older.

And "boys were 41% more likely to be given a prescription for medication to treat ADHD if they were born in December than if they were born in January."



Edit: Thanks for posting the article.

[snooper2]

4. our daughter just turned four in November

I was originally seeing if there is a way (and there is apparently) that she could start kindergarten this coming school year instead of waiting till she is five (then turns six right away) in kindergarten.

After talking with a teacher friend and some co-workers in similar situations learned it's best to just have her be the oldest in her class. More mature and less likely to fall into this fucking trap of (bad kid give drugs)

Now I just have to worry about her being one of the first teenagers with a drivers license as a sophomore

[nenagh]

10. How great it is to have a little one four years of age...

and it seems you got a great answer from your friends..

Best of luck to your little one...plenty of hugs to her from the north shore of the St. Lawrence River.

[Ex Lurker]

12. they'll have self-driving cars by then nt

[surrealAmerican]

5. Is the "cut off" date for school the same throughout Canada?

In the US it varies by state, and sometimes by school district.

[nenagh]

8. I actually don't know... my children, years ago, started school in a little town

in Ireland

[Mnemosyne]

3. k&r nt

[bullwinkle428]

6. K&R. My nephew was diagnosed as being "along the autistic spectrum"

(sort of "Asperger's-lite", if you will), and has been on medication for at least a couple of years now. He clearly doesn't have the appetite he used to have, and looks considerably thinner (not that he was ever close to looking "overweight&quot than he did before starting the medication.

[WatermelonRat]

7. Fearmongering nonsense.

One of the worst things to ever happen to me was being taken off of Adderall. I went from being an honors student with a wide circle of friends to lacking the focus or drive to do anything. I couldn't pay attention in class or maintain interest in any sort of activity with friends and ended up barely getting by. In my junior year of high school, I got prescribed a different medication, and it certainly helped, but by then I had already missed out on years of socialization and study skills that everyone around me already had. It wasn't until I was prescribed Vyvanse that my life really began getting on track.

This sort of article enrages me. Not because it talks about potential side effects - people should certainly be aware of them - but because it hypes them and is dismissive of the good they can do. The thought of some parent reading this article and taking their kid off of medicines that help them makes me very angry.

[ananda]

9. There is no such thing as ADHD.

There IS such a thing as DSM nuttery and pharmaceutical greed,
aligned with control freakism and the need to suppress any
kind of rebelliousness in order to make boys more amenable
to the military.

[liberal_at_heart]

11. As someone who has an autistic child I find this thinking dangerous.

I get so tired of hearing that certain conditions don't exist or that they are somehow a parenting problem. These conditions damn well do exist. Medications help some people and don't help others. That is why people should be in very close contact with their doctors and report any side effects immediately. I just started taking Zoloft for anxiety. The first few days I felt funny. Now I feel fine. In the past I have quit taking medications because they made me feel funny, so I have never had the benefit of finding out if they actually work for me or not. I'm not quitting this time. I want to know if they will help me along with cognitive behavioral therapy finally be able to do the things that anxiety has always prevented me from doing. I have never put my autistic son on any medications simply because that for his autism I find that behavioral therapy works just fine. If my son had severe autism you better believe I would give medication a try. My husband was suffering from PTSD and medication literally saved his life. Like I said before, medications work for some and don't work for others. People should report side effects to their doctors immediately so that they and their doctor can figure out what the best course of action is. I will say this. I do think that our schools and even our work places don't really take into account that boys are physically active and often punish them for being physically active. But schools are not the ones diagnosing ADHD, doctors are. Doctors are qualified to determine whether a child has ADHD or not.

[jtuck004]

13. By...high school, nearly 20 percent of all American boys will be diagnosed with ADHD....

...
If you have a son, you have a one-in-seven chance that he has been diagnosed with ADHD. If you have a son who has been diagnosed, it's more than likely that he has been prescribed a stimulant—the most famous brand names are Ritalin and Adderall; newer ones include Vyvanse and Concerta—to deal with the symptoms of that psychiatric condition.
...
6.4 MILLION CHILDREN BETWEEN THE AGES OF FOUR AND SEVENTEEN HAVE BEEN DIAGNOSED WITH ADHD. BY HIGH SCHOOL, NEARLY 20% OF ALL BOYS WILL HAVE BEEN DIAGNOSED WITH ADHD—A 37% INCREASE SINCE 2003.
...
...overwhelmingly boys...
...

From the article.

[TeamPooka]

14. Drug the white boys and jail the black ones. We need a better plan. nt