Article about ADHD meds (stimulants)
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Dh emailed this to me. Robin's not on any meds for ADHD right now, but there is some controversy about one of the meds he's on for Bipolar (Abilify). I'd love to have him med free, but just don't think that's a good idea. I told a friend of mine I'd like to take him away somewhere for about 3 months to get him off all meds. Somewhere away from all life's little distractions like tv, video games, friends (and other people) that are bad influences, etc. Sometimes I think it would have been easier to live 100 years ago. We wouldn't have a lot of modern day conveniences but we also wouldn't have a lot of other things that cause problems. *sigh* Darned if you do, darned if you don't...
My son takes Adderall XR (listed in the article). I really think it's more the abuse/overuse/known cardiac issues thing- which is why the FDA has been so hesitant. I've been following it. Believe me! I didn't know there were issues with Abilify. My son also takes Seroquel right now. (He switched to that from Risperdal).
I hear you about 100 years ago. I often daydream that if my son lived in a tribal community, he would be a leader. Then I go to- we could move there- and how I couldn't handle it because I need my shower- and that's when the dream ends! 
Read this, Laura. Robin's been on three of the six drugs they list (Risperdal, Zyprexa and now Abilify). I hate that he has to take these meds, but fear what would happen without them, ykwim?
I have a friend who is right aroun 40 and is absolutely ADHD. His mother said she never had any problems with his as a child because they were missionarys in Africa. She said the jungle was his playground! How much trouble could he get into? Talk about a tribal community! lol Now he's a special ed teacher in high school (math and history). He's a great guy. His dd is Robin's age and is medicated for ADHD. I can always tell when she doesn't take her meds.
UGH. I didn't need to see that.... My son has been on Risperdal and is now on Seroquel. Both are listed. Some of those kids were taking a LOT of meds. Wow. Doesn't seem like they were being monitored well. Unfortunately, we've exhausted enviornmental issues at home. School is a problem- but I don't have much control over that. Maybe it's time for a misson!
Here's a scary fact. There's a lawyer in New York who deals just with law suits involving for sure Risperdal, but maybe other meds.
My daughter's biological sister was so messed up by risperdal that she will require some sort of care her whole life. It left her an absolute mess! The doctor obviously wasn't monitoring it well, or she would have been taken off of it within days. She had problems with taking ritalin for a long period, too. For that reason, my daughter will never be on meds!!
Was just reading this post, and I have a question. What is supposed to be wrong with Risperdal and Abilify? One of my DS's takes Risperdal and the other takes Abilify. The Abilify, for sure, has been a wonder drug for him. One my guys also takes Seroquel for sleep. You're scaring me.
Older DS was on Adderal when he came to me. He had nose bleeds and blood pressure off the charts, AND it didn't help his issues.
The psychiatrist the guys see now is really on top of things; does blood work evry three months, etc.
Hol, your kids are older than the kids I'm talking about. It's a med for adults, but too often is used to treat children.
My daughter's bio sister had tremors immediately after starting it, at which point they should have discontinued it but didn't. She went on to have paranoid and psychotic episodes. She has been off of it for quite some time, but is still very messed up.
I know a lot of people are opposed to the use of any drugs for AD, ADHD, etc. (I will admit, I don't even know what all the initials mean.) And a lot of people swear by them.
I think, first, that drugs have a place in treatment of many disorders. I know my son would be in and out of hospitals (mostly in) or would have committed suicide by now if it were not for anti-depressants, anti-anxiety drugs, and even tranquilizers as needed.
I think, second, that the drugs should be prescribed very carefully and very carefully monitored, including regular blood tests.
I think our world has become so complicated, and our children experience an onslaught of stimulants in so many ways - TV, radio, computer, school, etc. - that a lot of problems that could be dealt with fairly easily in a slower, less technological time without medications (which, of course, didn't exist). But that was then and this is now, and we have to live in the now. Then was also a time when someone who had a 6th or 8th grade education could find a manufacturing or other kind of job somewhere and make a living decent enough to support a family. And also a time with smallpox, polio, measles, people dying from pneumonia. There's definitely a trade-off.
I know my oldest son was diagnosed as hyperactive and pre-autistic at about age 3-1/2. He was put on fairly heavy doses of Valium, and was in special ed from almost immediately after his diagnosis until 9th or 10th grade. (That was a time when there was no mainstreaming, and the states of Illinois and Pennsylvania paid the full cost of separate special education schools - providing there was a vacancy.) We were lucky - the combination of special ed, counseling (for him and for me) and, I guess, the Valium worked. I have been told that he is 3-4 inches shorter than he would otherwise have been because of several years of heavy doses of Valium. I don't know - he looks just like my brother, in his face and build, including height. His brothers are both 3-4 inches taller than he.
I guess what I am saying is that the kinds of difficulties some children have are more obvious now and more of a problem, because of the world we live in. And for many children, medications do make a significant and positive difference. For others, the medications can create serious problems. Close medical monitoring and parents - and doctors - who are educated as to what to watch for are absolutely necessary. And, that's true even of aspirin or, from what I have been reading lately, Tylenol.
I do think that in many cases doctors will prescribe medications for "problem" children without first educating themselves as to the indicators for and potential risks of the medication, and all too often without having good diagnostic tests and counseling done first. And, I also remember one of my doctors offering to prescribe a tranquilzer for me when I was depressed and unhappy in my marriage - that was a fairly common medical reaction to depressed and/or unhappy women during that period. (Heck, at one time a hysterectomy was the recommended treatment for "hysterical" women.) As always, the patient/parent has to pay a lot of attention, monitor the treatment, and trust the parental gut if things don't seem right, even in the face of a doctor who will not consider that s/he might need to revisit a diagnosis or prescription.
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