Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Because there are other options doctors refuse to try first.

I also refused to take medication for an issue I was having, did the research and changed my diet and my 2 year medical condition was resolved. I talked to the doctor about it and he said, "Most people are not that disciplined so I don't suggest it."

How about this ... suggest it, and let the patient decide.

Also, my son has a 3.3 GPA, he is happy, he is healthy, he is on 2 Varsity sports (as a Freshman) and volunteers with the Special Olympics. Why would I give him drugs?

Because think of how much better he would be if be weren't limited by his condition. If your son was missing a leg, would you let him crawl around without crutches and then ask why should you give him crutches?

Anonymous wrote:This is not a black and white issue and I deeply resent those parents who make blanket statements condemning parents who medicate (not "drug") their children. Every parent must do a cost-benefit analysis for her own child and make the best decision possible in the moment based on the wide array of conflicting information that is out there. My child is 12 and has been on meds since he was 8. Yes, I am aware of the potential future side effects (he has no noticeable side effects currently.) I weighed these potential unknown side effects against his current SUFFERING-- yes I use that word because that is the right word. My child was in pain -- deep emotional distress. He was drowning before my eyes. I could see where he would go without my intervention. He would continue to spiral downward. I read the data about kids with untreated ADHD, and the statistics regarding depression, drug abuse, car accidents and suicide. I weighed those potential outcomes alongside the the potential negative outcomes. I tried other things; nothing worked. I tried the meds. They worked. His weight and his sleep were not affected. His life became immeasurably better. So we continued to medicate AND provide all those other supports people like to yammer on about as if they are some kind of miracle cure (for most kids they are not -- they work well in complement to the meds.) All of this considered, this is the best course for him based on the information available to me right now.

All I can say is a big go fuck yourself to anyone who dares to suggest that my husband and I, as parents, are doing this to get his GPA from a 3.3. to a 3.9 or whatever. This is so insulting. I don't give a flying fuck about my kid's GPA. I care about his emotional health. I care that he can function day to day and feel like a normal human being who can live in society and carry on in a somewhat competent manner. I'm tired of people having an opinion about what my thoughts and motivations are as a parent; I'm tired of people assuming I am lazy or just want a quick fix. If you knew how many doctors appointments there have been, how many late nights researching, agonizing, discussing, how many conversations I've had with parents, teachers, and on and on and on it took before I made this very carefully considered decision. You people should be ashamed of yourself. Imagine your child coming home and rolling into a ball on the floor and weeping and weeping because he feels like a giant piece of crap because nothing in his life works or make sense, and think what you as a mother would do to lift that burden from your child if you could. I would literally cut off my right arm if it meant my child could function without medication. It will kill me if it turns out 20 years from now that he has some horrible condition caused by the medication. You don't think I live with that worry every day? But if you have a bucket of water and your house starts burning down right before your very eyes, you throw the water on the fire and worry about what you'll drink at some later time.

Rant over. Carry on.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The real question is, why do so many professionals default to recommending medication before trying other approaches?

Because ADHD is a real condition - and it's not a matter of the child just trying harder.

A PP wrote about over-prescription of statins -- which is also, IMO, just sanctimonious. I take statins, I eat well, get at least some exercise and, without statins, still have high cholestoral. I think that we, as a society, have gone off the deep end because we don't remember that people used to die from lack of vaccines and medications. So now we have measles and whooping cough outbreaks because free-range parents don't want to vaccinate their precious snowflakes and people think of ADHD medication as poison.

Our DS has been on ADHD medication for years. Periodically, he skips/forgets a dose and it gives us a good reminder of why he takes ADHD medication. It's not perfect and we're not one of those families whose child has gone from failing grades to Honor Roll thanks to meds, but he wouldn't be able to function well in school without it.

As for side effects, very few in DS's case. There are times he has had appetite and sleep issues but in general, they've been few and they've been manageable. He's continued to grow normally and he sleeps OK.

But you do realize that is 1 case that you are using to base all your judgement for all kids with ADHD. It worked for my kid. Well for some parents meditation works, diet change, lots of exercise.

Many people with high cholesterol and diabetes just change their diet and it fixes the issue are you saying they should not change their diet and only take meds?

When your son is "off his meds" is he on a special diet, meditating, exercising enough? Does he do behavioral therapy as well as meds?

You may want to realize that your way is not perfect, just the path you have decided to take... one of many options.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is a timely thread because we decided to take our DS off stimulants for 3 days during Thanksgiving break and see what he was like (he also uses a non-stimulant medication to treat ADHD and we kept him on that one because you can't just stop it). It underscored to us why, although not perfect, he does take (low dosage level of) stimulant medication and that the effect of taking away even the low dosage he uses is pretty significant. He was loud, a lot more argumentative/impulsive in behavior, and unfocused. He also ate a lot more (and he has not had significant eating issues/side effects from the medication). We have worked on behavior etc etc and it was like it all went out the window. On the other hand, he was somewhat more outgoing (he also has anxiety and yes, stimulant medications can add to anxiety in some cases).

Stopping the medication for a few days was helpful -- DS has taken these meds for several years and we wanted to see if the non-stimulant med alone would help (DS is not hyperactive). On the whole, the benefit of stimulant medication continues to exceed some of the negatives.

Could some of this be due to disruptions in routine, the presence of other family members or otherwise unusual circumstances? My DC doesn't have an ADHD diagnosis or take medication, but we observed definite behavior changes!

Anonymous wrote:I am against them for MY kids anyway... My opinion is that there are boys, like mine, who should not be in a typical school. My boys thrive with outdoor time and lots of movement and exercise all day, and hands-on learning. If they were in our local PS or even most privates, they'd probably need to be drugged. So I think that there are sometimes alternatives to the meds, like changing the environment to suit the kid. My boys are now actually a lot calmer than many of their schooled peers; I don't think it's good for the kids' brains to be forced to sit all day and passively learn. But I really don't go around judging other people's choices, so I'm not "anti-medication" for all.

Anonymous wrote:This is a timely thread because we decided to take our DS off stimulants for 3 days during Thanksgiving break and see what he was like (he also uses a non-stimulant medication to treat ADHD and we kept him on that one because you can't just stop it). It underscored to us why, although not perfect, he does take (low dosage level of) stimulant medication and that the effect of taking away even the low dosage he uses is pretty significant. He was loud, a lot more argumentative/impulsive in behavior, and unfocused. He also ate a lot more (and he has not had significant eating issues/side effects from the medication). We have worked on behavior etc etc and it was like it all went out the window. On the other hand, he was somewhat more outgoing (he also has anxiety and yes, stimulant medications can add to anxiety in some cases).

Stopping the medication for a few days was helpful -- DS has taken these meds for several years and we wanted to see if the non-stimulant med alone would help (DS is not hyperactive). On the whole, the benefit of stimulant medication continues to exceed some of the negatives.

Anonymous wrote:This is not a black and white issue and I deeply resent those parents who make blanket statements condemning parents who medicate (not "drug") their children. Every parent must do a cost-benefit analysis for her own child and make the best decision possible in the moment based on the wide array of conflicting information that is out there. My child is 12 and has been on meds since he was 8. Yes, I am aware of the potential future side effects (he has no noticeable side effects currently.) I weighed these potential unknown side effects against his current SUFFERING-- yes I use that word because that is the right word. My child was in pain -- deep emotional distress. He was drowning before my eyes. I could see where he would go without my intervention. He would continue to spiral downward. I read the data about kids with untreated ADHD, and the statistics regarding depression, drug abuse, car accidents and suicide. I weighed those potential outcomes alongside the the potential negative outcomes. I tried other things; nothing worked. I tried the meds. They worked. His weight and his sleep were not affected. His life became immeasurably better. So we continued to medicate AND provide all those other supports people like to yammer on about as if they are some kind of miracle cure (for most kids they are not -- they work well in complement to the meds.) All of this considered, this is the best course for him based on the information available to me right now.

All I can say is a big go fuck yourself to anyone who dares to suggest that my husband and I, as parents, are doing this to get his GPA from a 3.3. to a 3.9 or whatever. This is so insulting. I don't give a flying fuck about my kid's GPA. I care about his emotional health. I care that he can function day to day and feel like a normal human being who can live in society and carry on in a somewhat competent manner. I'm tired of people having an opinion about what my thoughts and motivations are as a parent; I'm tired of people assuming I am lazy or just want a quick fix. If you knew how many doctors appointments there have been, how many late nights researching, agonizing, discussing, how many conversations I've had with parents, teachers, and on and on and on it took before I made this very carefully considered decision. You people should be ashamed of yourself. Imagine your child coming home and rolling into a ball on the floor and weeping and weeping because he feels like a giant piece of crap because nothing in his life works or make sense, and think what you as a mother would do to lift that burden from your child if you could. I would literally cut off my right arm if it meant my child could function without medication. It will kill me if it turns out 20 years from now that he has some horrible condition caused by the medication. You don't think I live with that worry every day? But if you have a bucket of water and your house starts burning down right before your very eyes, you throw the water on the fire and worry about what you'll drink at some later time.

Rant over. Carry on.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

I would literally cut off my right arm if it meant my child could function without medication.

My kid functions without medication. He has an A average, despite having a diagnosis of ADHD, dyslexia, and dysgraphia. He is impulsive and inattentive and hyper-focused on many things that aren't the RIGHT things. It is frustrating and challenging to deal with as a parent. Despite that, we are carrying on without meds, because he does okay without them and because they can side effects and long term benefits. We work hard on behavioral interventions.
I resent the fuck out of parents who want to blast me for "making my kid suffer" because we don't use medications. I'm tired of people assuming that I'm doing it for my own ego gratification and "santimommy" points. We worked hard to make this decision and talked to lots of people before making it. People who want to talk that shit can go fuck themselves. Just because your family couldn't do without meds doesn't mean that my kid can't do without meds. Just because you chose meds doesn't mean that everyone should chose meds.

If you knew how many doctors appointments there have been, how many late nights researching, agonizing, discussing, how many conversations I've had with parents, teachers, and on and on and on it took before I made this very carefully considered decision.

Me, too.

Anonymous wrote:

I would literally cut off my right arm if it meant my child could function without medication.

If you knew how many doctors appointments there have been, how many late nights researching, agonizing, discussing, how many conversations I've had with parents, teachers, and on and on and on it took before I made this very carefully considered decision.

Anonymous wrote:This is not a black and white issue and I deeply resent those parents who make blanket statements condemning parents who medicate (not "drug") their children. Every parent must do a cost-benefit analysis for her own child and make the best decision possible in the moment based on the wide array of conflicting information that is out there. My child is 12 and has been on meds since he was 8. Yes, I am aware of the potential future side effects (he has no noticeable side effects currently.) I weighed these potential unknown side effects against his current SUFFERING-- yes I use that word because that is the right word. My child was in pain -- deep emotional distress. He was drowning before my eyes. I could see where he would go without my intervention. He would continue to spiral downward. I read the data about kids with untreated ADHD, and the statistics regarding depression, drug abuse, car accidents and suicide. I weighed those potential outcomes alongside the the potential negative outcomes. I tried other things; nothing worked. I tried the meds. They worked. His weight and his sleep were not affected. His life became immeasurably better. So we continued to medicate AND provide all those other supports people like to yammer on about as if they are some kind of miracle cure (for most kids they are not -- they work well in complement to the meds.) All of this considered, this is the best course for him based on the information available to me right now.

All I can say is a big go fuck yourself to anyone who dares to suggest that my husband and I, as parents, are doing this to get his GPA from a 3.3. to a 3.9 or whatever. This is so insulting. I don't give a flying fuck about my kid's GPA. I care about his emotional health. I care that he can function day to day and feel like a normal human being who can live in society and carry on in a somewhat competent manner. I'm tired of people having an opinion about what my thoughts and motivations are as a parent; I'm tired of people assuming I am lazy or just want a quick fix. If you knew how many doctors appointments there have been, how many late nights researching, agonizing, discussing, how many conversations I've had with parents, teachers, and on and on and on it took before I made this very carefully considered decision. You people should be ashamed of yourself. Imagine your child coming home and rolling into a ball on the floor and weeping and weeping because he feels like a giant piece of crap because nothing in his life works or make sense, and think what you as a mother would do to lift that burden from your child if you could. I would literally cut off my right arm if it meant my child could function without medication. It will kill me if it turns out 20 years from now that he has some horrible condition caused by the medication. You don't think I live with that worry every day? But if you have a bucket of water and your house starts burning down right before your very eyes, you throw the water on the fire and worry about what you'll drink at some later time.

Rant over. Carry on.