Tuesday, June 01, 2010
A member recently posted a question about her 4 year old child having some adverse reactions to Ritalin, such as aggressiveness.d This question prompted a passionate response from another members on why mediication for ADHD is wrong in a child so young, and wrong in general.
What is your opi...
I can speak from experience on this one. My 4yo takes Ritalin. Do I like it NO, but after we exhausted all other avenues of behaviour management via a child phychologist and ruled out any other medical issues with our Paediatrician we started him on a trial of Ritalin. I was mortified and I must add that when I read posts like these I am mortified all over again as it's a reminder that we will always come accross people with opinions - these are the people I feel I will have to shield my son from in order for him not to grow up feeling different or "labelled".
My family struggled along for 2 years with out of control behaviours - quite simply we were unable to cope and it was literally tearing us apart. Here was our beautiful smart funny child (he was assessed by the psychologist as being way above average in most areas for his age) just unable to focus and he was SO frustrated just as we were.
The Medication trial is going well. It hasnt altered his personality at all it simply allows him time to focus and listen. He is calm. Of course he is only human - if he is tired he is loud and can be aggressive and needy but so can I when I am tired. When he is excited he is loud and squeals with delight. When he is angry he roars with rage. This is all good as I still have my little boy just as he always was but on the whole we can help him manage his condition with the medication to ensure he has the focus to go into Kindergarten next year as a happy confident little boy. I believe he has the intelligence to go on and do great things in his life as long as he has the focus which he now has.
I am sure medication affects all individuals differently but for us so far it is a saviour. Please be mindful of how your opinions affect others - everyone is entitled to an opinion but they can be really hurtful to others if youre not careful and dont have the personal experience to back them up.
Thanks for your response. I also wanted to share a reply I received on Facebook:
"It depends on the child and the situation. If the symptoms of ADHD are affecting that child and family's life significantly, then I'm not opposed to medication. However, at that age, I'd probably try all other avenues first. But, the family also needs to have some quality of life and sometimes, meds are the only way to go. If the child is ... See Morehaving an adverse reaction, then they can either lower the dose, change the med altogether or even lower the dose but perhaps combine it with another med. I can't make a judgement as to whether that parent is right or wrong because it's a very personal decision. I can offer my feedback or advice, but the final decision belongs to that family."
Eileen
Jodi,
Keep up the good work. From my own personal experience with many similar situations, I just thought I'd tell you that you will also need to be mindful of the fact that there will always be those people who will say things to you like, "I know what can fix that...it's called a belt." I have had people offer for me to take parenting classes, tell me outright that I should just take my kid and spank him, and almost an entire population in this town of about 17,000 people where we live completely shun us from everything because my overly intelligent, AD/HD kids (ages 13 and 15 now) are not as socially mature as the other kids their ages. Once you get the confidence you need to know you are doing the right thing, you will be able to be the parent you want to be and the parent you would be in a situation where you weren't dealing with AD/HD.
I have to medicate both of my kids too. People just run around thinking we are sitting at the doctor's office excited to get the drugs to give to them. They don't have the personal experiences we have that justify and almost beg for some help with dealing with the problem in their own lives. One thing I realized early on in my own personal journey was that EVERY kid is labelled. What question I posed to myself was, "What label to I want them to have?" I mean, did I want them to have the label that implied they were intentionally defiant, as many people will assume who don't understand the disorder, or do I want them to be labeled the kid who is on medication, but who sits at his or her desk doing the work? They have a label anyway...there is nothing we can do about that as parents. Don't let that even be an issue in your life because you have many more important issues you will be dealing with in the years to come.
Trust me, I have done a lot of formal research and have talked to many people about AD/HD (even my own siblings deny it even exists), but in the end what I figured out was that I know what my kids need. I learned how to trust my intincts and how to ignore ignorance and those people who don't WANT to educate themselves. You have a long, hard road ahead. Keep your confidence level up, let those who don't understand go, don't try to hang on to friendships with people who judge you-it will only make what you have to do as a parent even harder. Get ready to be left at home when the other kids the same age as yours are having parties. Rely on those around you who do accept the situation as much as possible...you WILL need the support. But no one else will be there for your child like you will. I have to keep all this in mind every day. As a single parent, it makes it even more difficult for me, but in the end, I know that if I educate my kids on their AD/HD and teach them that it's what they HAVE and not who they ARE, they can learn to accept themselves and hopefully grow up to be strong, self-sufficient, productive members of society who surround themselves with people who accept them too.
It's harder at that young age, but as they grow older, teach the child how to recognize when their symptoms are becoming a problem, teach the child how to pay attention to how others are reacting to what they are doing, teach the child behavior modifications (if this happens, the I should do this). I started doing that last one very early on. "If you get lost here, look for a person in uniform. If someone says this to you, you say this. If grandma falls down and won't talk, dial 911 on the phone." They are smart. They just don't think like others, but that doesn't mean that how they think is "wrong." When you give them them the tools they need for success in every area of their lives, but in my opinion, the medicine is required so they can learn the concepts they need to know and can actually get a good education and not be socially promoted out of high school when they don't have the skills they need to compete in the workplace or even to get into college.
Once again, you have a long, hard road ahead. But know you are doing the right thing for you and your family. You should learn soon to develop a thick skin, let the comments of others roll off like water off a duck's back. Some personal growth will come from this because you want to do what is best for your child. Don't worry about what others say. You are HIS parent. They are NOT. Continue reaching out to others who understand and ignore the rest. I went to CHADD for help and it has helped me quite a bit. Again, I say keep up the good work and good luck. Your child is very lucky to have you as a parent.
Hi, I am an adult with inattentive ADHD, OCD, and anxiety disorder. I know that that does answer your question. I think it depends on your child, and the severity of it, yourself and your doctor to make an informed decision. I have found that not every doctor is very involved or very informed about medications, and if your doctor feels it is right, no matter what age he/she is, go with it. If you see it helps him, you made the right decision. You may hear from people, who are not doctors or have never been involved with ADHD that may not agree because of his age. A lot of people should mind their own business and not give advice just to talk.
I only wish when I was young (1,000 years ago) they they were able to diagnose children early. I wish you the best. Take care