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It's no coincidence that young males are more likely to exhibit ADHD symptoms. My school attempted to convince my parents several times that I needed medication

It's no coincidence that young males are more likely to exhibit ADHD symptoms. My school attempted to convince my parents several times that I needed medication because I disrupted the class. While I am not proud of my prior misbehavior, I'm thankful that my parents had enough medical knowledge to refuse to put me on pills.

beelzebubble 10y ago
There are many who genuinely suffer from ADHD and their parents did not allow them medication due to ignorance. And they have the exact opposite story to tell.
- goda90 10y ago
  It's a tale of ignorance all around. Overzealous diagnosis leads to problems which leads to mistrust. People who get misdiagnosed suffer, and those who are properly diagnosed, but assumed to be misdiagnosed also suffer.
- AStellersSeaCow 10y ago
  Exactly. My parents shied away from looking into ADD/ADHD treatment for me because of the blowback about overdiagnosing, instead ascribing to the more regressive and I daresay petulant "kids will be kids" outlook of my behavior and educational issues growing up. I didn't last one semester at college, and my life was a mess for close to my first ten years of adulthood, at which point I finally overcame the "this is just the way you are" mindset and sought treatment. Started on medication and my life turned around overnight. So while it's certainly important to keep an eye on pharma, it's also wildly irresponsible, unfair, and unscientific to claim "it's mostly made-up because I don't like the implication that a lot of people have a mental problem". Particularly disgusting is including the anecdote about the person who faked ADHD symptoms to get stimulants, then killed himself when his supply was cut off: prescription drug abuse/addiction is a serious issue, but one that is completely separate from the proper diagnosis of a medical condition. There's rightfully been a backlash against the "better living through chemistry" postwar mindset that every problem should be medicated. But I think in this case it's ultimately less about medicating and more about fear of and unwillingness to address mental issues.

beelzebubble 10y ago

There are many who genuinely suffer from ADHD and their parents did not allow them medication due to ignorance. And they have the exact opposite story to tell.

goda90 10y ago
It's a tale of ignorance all around. Overzealous diagnosis leads to problems which leads to mistrust. People who get misdiagnosed suffer, and those who are properly diagnosed, but assumed to be misdiagnosed also suffer.
AStellersSeaCow 10y ago
Exactly. My parents shied away from looking into ADD/ADHD treatment for me because of the blowback about overdiagnosing, instead ascribing to the more regressive and I daresay petulant "kids will be kids" outlook of my behavior and educational issues growing up. I didn't last one semester at college, and my life was a mess for close to my first ten years of adulthood, at which point I finally overcame the "this is just the way you are" mindset and sought treatment. Started on medication and my life turned around overnight. So while it's certainly important to keep an eye on pharma, it's also wildly irresponsible, unfair, and unscientific to claim "it's mostly made-up because I don't like the implication that a lot of people have a mental problem". Particularly disgusting is including the anecdote about the person who faked ADHD symptoms to get stimulants, then killed himself when his supply was cut off: prescription drug abuse/addiction is a serious issue, but one that is completely separate from the proper diagnosis of a medical condition. There's rightfully been a backlash against the "better living through chemistry" postwar mindset that every problem should be medicated. But I think in this case it's ultimately less about medicating and more about fear of and unwillingness to address mental issues.