The ADHD Fallacy

A stance I share...



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This came to mind -

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iG9CE55wbtY

My daughter has trouble focusing in school, herself. The other day, somebody suggested that I put her on some medication to help her focus. I told them, I don't know how I really felt about that suggestion. What I can say is, she's 9. She's just being a kid, and I don't know if I want her growing up having to rely on medication to appease the demanded conformity of the system around her.

I'm not sure how true your video is of all schools Proteus, but I wonder if perhaps it is a cultural thing. I visited something like 12 schools last year (and 5 so far this year) and they were all covered in pictures and artwork and sculptures etc done by the kids.

Jestor wrote: A stance I share...

A simple look into the history of psychiatry or the diagnostics manual used by psychiatry and psychology or even the circumstances of the creation of the ADD and ADHD labels supports that stance.

The so called "Father of ADHD" Dr Leon Eisenberg, is claimed to have said that "ADHD 'is a prime example of a fictitious disease" and although there is no reliable evidence he said it, he was absolutely clear on the fact that he believed the symptoms that we group as ADHD are the result of environment and conditioning rather than genetic or developmental considerations.

However the "shut up and be normal" pills for kids are entirely too lucrative an industry. And the label too convenient a scape goat.

Have yo ever taken the pills they give to kids with ADHD? It's like steroids for brains, minus all the water rentention, moobs and acne.I wouldn't be surprised if people have their kids diagnosed just to get their hands on ritalin without risking prison.

My little sister has ADHD and you're not in doubt if she missed her medication. She's all over the place.
However, the diagnosis does seem to be thrown around a lot and way too much these days and it concerns me that no child can display any behaviour besides the commonly approved before being slapped with a diagnosis and put on drugs. Save for very severe cases children should not be exposed to these so-called medicines when their brains aren't even fully developed. We have no clue what it will do to them in the long run.

We are always telling them to 'be quiet' (we being adults or guardians in general, not specific people) and wanting to do our own things, as opposed to pay attention to the child...

My first two children, being girls, I didnt relate to as much as I do my third, who is a boy...

To be fair, I did think I paid quite a bit of attention when I could, but I did travel quite a bit, and I probably fell quite short...

Its why we here always talk about balance, the mind BODY and soul...

If they get those kids exercising, running, playing for a little bit, that might help them... running them tired, lol...

Calem, please dont think I meant every child doesnt need the meds, I am sure it is very valid in many cases, but like most of us have said, it is abuse by people wanting 'controlled' children...

My wife and I both refused to medicate our kids, instead letting them fight through it on their own...

You cannot teach self control, you can offer lessons, you can provide support, but they have to learn their own coping mechanisms... My thinking, anyway...

First-hand, my son is on the higher energy part of the spectrum of ADHD. But, the term "Attention-Deficit" is a misnomer: it's more of an attention-excess. That is, it's not that they have a difficult time paying attention, rather they have a hard time paying attention to just one thing. They have a hyper-awareness and they take everything in a lot quicker than most "normal" people do. I've reasoned it to be more of an evolutionary trait meant for better hunting and gathering. The more you can take in, the better able you will be at predicting behavior patterns of the animal you're hunting, or knowing which direction to go in to get that herb or vegetable you need. So, in a hunter-gatherer community, hyper-awareness is king and so my son would be a highly efficient hunter-gatherer. He's not meant to sit in class for 8+ hours a day, bored off his rocker. At the same time, he's a kid and kids need to run around, get plenty of sunshine and fresh air, and explore and discover. Not all kids have the same energy, either. Out of the five I have, only one has this hyper-awareness. I've got one who's very attentive to detail, one who's physically inclined (not many things are difficult for him to do on a physical level), one who studies things from afar and decides his actions before he does them, and one who is better able to read people and make them laugh. I've got quite the broad spectrum at home and it's rather busy.

TL;DR: Kids are kids and, no matter what we think, they all have their strengths and weaknesses that help them succeed at some things and not do so well at others. Can't teach a fish to climb a tree if you don't give it the tools to do so.

Jestor wrote:

Calem, please dont think I meant every child doesnt need the meds, I am sure it is very valid in many cases, but like most of us have said, it is abuse by people wanting 'controlled' children...

I don't think that. I brought up my sister's case to add perspective on it all. I've known people with genuine ADHD but I've also seem some on whom the diagnosis was just added for no apparent reason. One guy in particular who claims* to have ADHD and is using generic methylphenidate. However, he also takes a powerful sedative each day to be able to sleep, which leads me to believe that he really doesn't have ADHD, it was just an easy diagnosis to give him. But this is also a person who is in all ways written off by the system.
The ones I've known who really does need the medication have no trouble sleeping despite taking a strong stimulant.

It should be acknowledged that children, especially, learn in different ways and why wouldn't they, they are different people, afterall, so expecting all of them to fit into the same framework is adult arrogance.

*: this guy is what most who know him has described as an 'attention whore'. He has an almost pathological need of being center of attention and so always comes up with something new to gain that atttention

I agree with everything Jestor stated. I have Asperger Syndrome and it was very obvious in school.