Writing an article - need your input! | ADHD Information

Well that's proof that the system works!

Instead of allowing the teacher last say in the diagnosis he didn't just simply take their word but rather did the work mandated by the guidelines in the DSM.

There are very rigid details as to dxing ADHD.  The testing should not be done in 5 or 10 minutes - any parent that lets it go after that short time gets what they paid for.

Even with diagnosis (heck even professional MDs get it wrong dxing a serious infection as a cold, etc.) there can be mistakes.  Medicine - heck science in general is an ever changing field.  What is known as fact today is totally changed tomorrow.

Even with my limited medical background my extensive work with others with ADHD here would tell me that ADHD may not have been the best diagnosis.  A good psychiatrist with a background in ADHD (the only one I'd recommend when coming to pediactric diagnosing) would be able to know they must delve deeper and find out the true cause.

The best advice I could ever give anyone is to do the research.  People do if their child possibly has cancer or any other serious ailment - they don't even hesitate they just do it.  Why would they just nod and walk when it comes to the mind?

I don't think there's anything wrong with the questions. I think it's a good idea. Glen, not to contradict your concerns, however, even my own son's psychiatrist has voiced concerns to me regarding too many children coming in to his office, teachers thinking children are ADHD that aren't, and so many parents looking for meds. I'm certainly no Scientologist, or against any dx and certainly not against meds, but in our case, my son was originally dx'ed ADHD at 3, when in actuality, that was inaccurate (even now he carries an ADHD dx on his Axis I, however, it's a R/O, because we're unsure if it's actually ADHD or symptoms of the PDD-NOS). In hindsight, I wish we would have found a psychiatrist willing to wait to treat, spent more time with my son, and made sure the dx was accurate. So, here it goes:

At what age was your child/children diagnosed with ADD/ADHD? 3


What were the symptoms he/she was exhibiting? Hyperactivity. Head banging. Odd behaviors such as fascination with tires, music CD's, hand twirling. Lack of attention. Lack of social skills. Violent. Destructive. Aggressive. Temper tantrums (aka meltdowns, rages) ranging anywhere from 15 minutes to 3 hours. Inability to accept the answer no. Unable to stay on task. Speech delays. Hyperactivity (oh, did I already say that one LOL!!! - this kid was 10x more hyper than an ADHD child, manic for sure)


What drug(s) was he/she prescribed? Started with Tenex and Clonodine. Clonodine discontinued. Tenex alone, didn't work. Ritalin. Then Concerta. Then Metadate. The list continues to include: Topomax, Tegretol, Strattera, Adderall, Depakote, Abilify, Seroquel, Risperdal (missing a couple, sorry, I forget)


Have your child's situation improved since the prescription of the drugs? How so? Yes, because his diagnosis now is accurate. His current diagnosis is Bipolar-NOS, PDD-NOS, ADHD. His current meds are Lithium Carbonate (750 mg.) and Abilify (10 mg.) daily.


If you found out that your child was misdiagnosed with ADD/ADHD, would you recommend they continue taking the drugs or stop immediately? Why? We are unsure if Dylan is accurately dx'ed ADHD because some symptoms of ADHD and PDD-NOS are similar (i.e. hyperactivity, lack of focus). I didn't know 6 years ago that stimulants make Bipolar children worse. Nor did I know what Bipolar disorder was. If I could do it again, I would say to any parent, if you have tried several stimulants (i.e. Ritalin, Concerta) and see increased hyperactivity and/or aggression, there is probably something more going on. And yes, you should stop giving your child the medication. We had one psychiatrist give my son Risperdal (an atypical antipsychotic) and he got insane on this medication. The pdoc told me to up the dose (I didn't know any better back then) and Dylan got even worse. It sent him into a manic episode and was discontinued. You also want to see a BOARD CERTIFIED PSYCHIATRIST (WITH AN M.D.) OR A NEUROPSYCHOLOGIST. DO NOT LET A THERAPIST/COUNSELOR/SCHOOL PSYCHOLOGIST/PSYCHOLOGIST OR PEDIATRICIAN ALONE DIAGNOSE YOUR CHILD. Anything beyond ADHD is beyond the scope of expertise for a pediatrician or any of the others I listed.

Any additional stories you'd like to share?

I'd also like your name, age (if you want to reveal it), and hometown as well.  I hope to hear from you soon! Janna, 34, Gettysburg, Pennsylvania

I have a few questions for you then.

1) why do you feel that meds have been overdiagnosed? most scientists believe that ADHD is UNDERdiagnosed in many venues.

2) What made you want to take this angle on ADHD rather than the positive effects of millions of success stories?  Did you simply watch the shock TV that aim towards' the scientology view that ADHD doesn't exist - or did you do some in-depth research that lead you to believe that  medication is overprescribed??

3) Do you already have your mind made up?

4) Is this actually going to go to an anti-med agenda-based paper?? Honestly - tell us is this a legitamate study?  I feel like you came in with a particular view and you just want others to fill in your paint-by-numbers view.

If I'm wrong and you truly wish to know the  benefits and/or risks of the ADHD treatments and the efficacy therof - pm me and I'll give you a 34 year view of the undiagnosed/untreated ADHD and the stories of success I hear each and every single day here.

Thanks.

What is your source? Have you ever been around someone with ADHD? I honestly don't think you have done any research? Have you talked to doctors or have you only gotten your info from morning TV.

Sorry but you struck a nerve. ADHD is a real chronic condition.

Joemom, I'll post my response that I sent to GlenW here for you too.

My initial plans for the story were to write it with the focus that ADHD is actually caused by a dysfunction in the brain's nondominant parietal lobe, and that this dysfunction is actually found in a significantly less number of people than are actually diagnosed.  I've heard numbers ranging from less than one percent to about twelve percent (as far as those actually affected with ADHD).

Of course, all focuses are subject to change with further investigation.  That's why I came to a message board like this - to get an argument in favor of the prescription of meds to make life easier for those diagnosed with ADHD.

My mind is absolutely not made up - remember, I'm no expert in the field, just a kid writing her final story for her Newswriting class.  My initial focus is based on the research that my child and adolescent psychology professor taught (I'm minoring in psychology), but I am very curious to hear the other side.  I come in with a very "Correct me if I'm wrong, and there's a good chance I'm wrong" attitude. 

I would not be interested in talking to you if this was going to be an anti-med agenda-based paper.  However, I'm extremely interested in talking to you and hearing the other side of things, and I sincerely hope I get the opportunity to.  I am completely willing to change my focus if I can find some good success stories.

I'm sincerely sorry if I struck a nerve.  I was not implying that ADHD does not exist or that it is not difficult to live with by any means.

I apologize for my cyncism.  We get attacked almost daily by the anti-med campaigns and it's hard to tell the white hats from the black in cyberspace.

There are theories being bandied about in scientific circles that ADHD is not one disorder but a couple - much like depression.  They have already found that focusing on activating chemicals in differing parts of the brain and differing chemical solutions work on different ADHDers - with almost identical symptomatic complaints but the reaction varies.

I am always interested in hearing about differing viewpoints on the cause and treatment of ADHD.  The whole research platform is new and exciting and now that they've found a genetic component to Autism there is very new and real hope that they will find genetic causation to ADHD as well. 

 

Hi guys! I'm a sophomore at Ohio University and I'm currently writing my final story for my Newswriting class about the overdiagnoses of ADD and ADHD in children. I'm looking for some interested parents to talk to about how they feel the drug has affected their children - positively or negatively. If you're interested in answering some general questions for me, please respond! I'm very curious and would love as much input as I could get.

At what age was your child/children diagnosed with ADD/ADHD?


What were the symptoms he/she was exhibiting?


What drug(s) was he/she prescribed?


Have your child's situation improved since the prescription of the drugs? How so?


If you found out that your child was misdiagnosed with ADD/ADHD, would you recommend they continue taking the drugs or stop immediately? Why?

Any additional stories you'd like to share?

I'd also like your name, age (if you want to reveal it), and hometown as well.  I hope to hear from you soon!

Nickeeeee38866.895787037My dad majored in Journalism at Missouri and went into the agency business in Chicago as an account exec.  He was so creative!  I grew up reading Advertising Age.  He passed away in '87 but I still follow the advertising business as my husband is also a media relations consultant at a small ad agency in NC. 

Good luck on your assignment.  Feel free to pm me anytime if you have any questions. Thank you so much for your responses, Janna!

Thanks Susie B, for your responses.  Just for the record, I'm not studying to be a reporter - my major is Advertising Management, specializing in Psychology and English.  However, my advertising sequence is in the journalism school here, so I have to take all the core journalism classes - courses in newswriting, information gathering, and public relations, for instance.

And I go to Ohio University, so our schedule is a tad different, as we operate on quarters rather than semesters. We start late (early September), have a six-week long winter intersession, and end in early June.

Happy anniversary!

Nickeeee, I think the problem with over/wrong diagnoses happens when a parent takes a child to a pediatrician with concerns about ADD/ADHD and the pdoc does the dx usually through questionaires that parents and teachers fill out.  This can be driven by a teacher who is convinced, for whatever reason, that the child is ADD.  My ds's first grade teacher called me in for a conference after only 4 days of school and told me point blank that ds had ADD and needed to be on Ritalin.  I was taken aback, but sched an appt with our pdoc, anyway.  We waited in his waiting room for 1 1/2 and then in the exam room for 45 min.  He came in finally and we told him why we were there.  He took one look at ds (who had been working hard to sit still for more than 2 hours) who was bouncing off the wall and said that he could tell right off that ds was ADHD.  He didn't even read the questionaires that we brought in.

Ds has ADD (inattentive) and we finally got a dx from a neuropsychologist that confirmed that along with other co-morbid conditions.  Only after that did we think about meds.  If you read any newbie posts that are usually titled something like "help, I'm new here" you'll see that neuro-psych dx is something that practically everyone who answers will suggest.  The first day ds took meds I picked him up afterschool and he said right off the bat: "Mom, I like myself a whole lot better on these pills."

At what age was your child/children diagnosed with ADD/ADHD? 

The adventure started when he was 6 and he was 8 when we finally got a dx from a neuropsych. 


What were the symptoms he/she was exhibiting?

Lack of focus, daydreaming, easily frustrated, always needing to be re-directed, as well as poor social skills and dysgraphia, which is a disconnect between the brain and the hand that makes it very difficult to get your thoughts down on paper while writing by hand.  Ds now uses a small laptop sized word processor and he's a topnotch writer, very creative.


What drug(s) was he/she prescribed?

Ds was prescribed Concerta at first which kept needing to be upped.  We are currently giving him 40mg of Strattera a day split in two doses and 40 mg Ritalin LA.


Have your child's situation improved since the prescription of the drugs? How so?

Yes.  Ds can now focus at about any time of the day, is not as easily frustrated and has friends.  He is happier and can be a welcome participant in school or any extra-curricular events.


If you found out that your child was misdiagnosed with ADD/ADHD, would you recommend they continue taking the drugs or stop immediately? Why? 

I think the most important issue is not meds as much as it is a thorough and accurate diagnosis.  After getting that, a parent can proceed to make decisions about treatment options. 


If you're going to be a reporter, even if you have opinions about something you're writing about, you need to learn how to phrase your questions without sounding like you already have an opinion.  You put your interview subjects on guard when you mentioned the "over-diagnosis of ADHD."  If you want to get good quotes from a subject you have to project a more neutral attitude.  I know because I majored in English, minored in journalism and have been married to a newspaper reporter for 21 years (last week was my anniversary!).

Now here's a question for you,  most universities end their school year at the beginning of may and don't start summerschool until June sometime so your schedule seems sort of off.  Why?