[wanttobemommy]

No I am not talking about cold medicine. I am wondering what everyones veiws are on medicating your child as a minor for conditions such as ADD ADHD Depression, Manic Depression/Bipolar and other disorders. The only reason I am asking this question is I am now 22 years old. I was diagnosed with ADHD, Bipolar and ODD when I was in the 4th grade. Which for me seems like an early time to diagnose this. Anyway I was put on loads and loads of medicine. And was never explained by my parent why they chose certain meds over others. Do you research what your Dr perscribes, do you take the Drs word on it. I am really upset as I have learned that one of the medicines I used to be on was recalled for causing extreme health problems in many people who took them. Also another medicine that I was one for over a year isnt prescribed to anyone still able to concieve as it is known to cause slow motility and poor quality of sperm in men and has been led to cause multiple birth defects in babies. So what do you do before medicating your children.

[twinzplus3]

None of my children have had conditions as serious as those but yes, I research thoroughly everything that I give my kids. There are several 'herbal' rememdies on the market for attention deficit disorders and I would likely try those first w/dietary changes to see if they would help. I am not familiar enough with the other issues to know if there are effective homeopathic remedies for those as well.

[mollymae]

My son was assessed for ADD after his brain injury and even though we struggle with his behaviors which is very tough at times. I think drugging your child to control a behavior is far to common and often not necessary. I know a lot of parent don't medicate lightly and seriously look into everything, but there are parents out there that see it as the easy option. I do feel that sometimes normal boy behavior is labelled ADD or ADHD.

We use fish oils for Jacks concentration and it does have some effect.

[kimchee67]

My daughter is still very young, but I try to find out as much as possible about what goes into her body. I have research which vaccines I feel comfortable with her having, what I'm feeding her, what I'm going to feed her in the future, and what meds that are suggested. I have been very selective, and am sure that I will remain that way throughout her life.

For myself, I am very concerned with what medications I take. I tend to think that the less medication I need the better. For instance, I was prescribed Prozac to calm my depression and anxiety, but instead of taking it, I have worked with a therapist on techniques that calm these issues. I have been able to keep it under control without meds, and will continue to as long as I can. The same goes for pain meds and pretty much any other drug. I'd rather control what I can naturally before turning to drugs.

[wanttobemommy]

its nice to hear that parents out there use different methods. My parents didnt want to deal with it so they took the drs advice. Needless to say now that I am 22 i was reevaluated and told that theses diagnosis' were not accurate. I was medicated for a long period of time and nothing helped since it was just me not a disorder making me act the way i did. I was very stubburn as a kid and tend to be that way still i dont think i will medicate my children unless medically neccesary there are too many other options out there

[MissyChrissy]

Often hindsight is 20/20. Diagnosing any behavior/mental issue is very subjective. It's not like a doctor can draw blood & see your cells & determine, yep, she has ADD (or whatever). Of course research is always a good thing-so you can be prepared to ask the "right" questions, and know as much as possible what risks you're taking (for yourself, or your child). But you have to remember that as far as psychiatric medication, the technology and knowledge changes daily. What is known now was not known even 5-10 years ago. Throughout history dr's have prescribed, with the best intentions and knowledge at the time, medications that turned out to be hurtful to their patients. Just over 100 years ago or so dr's prescribed Opium! Now we laugh-but at the time the dr's were doing it because they believed it to be helpful. Even with all the research you could possibly do today, I guarantee when you look at the same medications or symptoms 10-20 years from now there will be different, varying information out there. There is no promise that you or your dr can provide a 100% "perfect" medical history. We all can only do the best we can with the information we have right now.

[PamalaLauren]

I researched all the medicine that Kaylee has been prescribed. There are no alternatives to what she has to take. If she doesn't take it she can have a sezuire and either die or have serious brain damage. So she takes it. But the side effects of the medicine aren't too serious anyhow. Just hair growth. She looks like a little werewolf. !

[kimber12]

I was put on a medication when I was about 9-10 to help me with anxiety and so that I could go to sleep at night. I couple of years ago I was diagnosed with a minor medical condition that may be linked to the drug I was on. I don't blame anyone; I think my parents did the best thing they knew to do at the time.

As individuals, we all have some things we will probably struggle with at one point in our lives. I think that when possible we should teach our children how to work through it without medication. I still struggle occasionally with stress and anxiety issues. I have learned what can trigger it, what can aggravate it, and what I can do to prevent it from getting out of control or stop it when it starts.

While I do believe that there are some conditions that require medication, I believe that society has become quick to medicate. I do know people who have been on meds and it has genuinely helped them. However, it is my opinion that is most cases kids are just being kids. I think it is perfectly normal for a child to have a hard time staring at a chalk board and paying attention to a teacher for 6-8 hours a day. Of course they would rather be outside climbing trees and splashing in puddles! Wouldn't you? Kids are also very imaginative, and get distracted easily, that is normal. I have worked with kids for a long time and I think that in most cases, when they act out, they are either bored, or there is a deeper underlying issue that needs to be addressed.

[MissyChrissy]

Originally Posted by kimber12

I was put on a medication when I was about 9-10 to help me with anxiety and so that I could go to sleep at night. I couple of years ago I was diagnosed with a minor medical condition that may be linked to the drug I was on. I don't blame anyone; I think my parents did the best thing they knew to do at the time.

As individuals, we all have some things we will probably struggle with at one point in our lives. I think that when possible we should teach our children how to work through it without medication. I still struggle occasionally with stress and anxiety issues. I have learned what can trigger it, what can aggravate it, and what I can do to prevent it from getting out of control or stop it when it starts.

While I do believe that there are some conditions that require medication, I believe that society has become quick to medicate. I do know people who have been on meds and it has genuinely helped them. However, it is my opinion that is most cases kids are just being kids. I think it is perfectly normal for a child to have a hard time staring at a chalk board and paying attention to a teacher for 6-8 hours a day. Of course they would rather be outside climbing trees and splashing in puddles! Wouldn't you? Kids are also very imaginative, and get distracted easily, that is normal. I have worked with kids for a long time and I think that in most cases, when they act out, they are either bored, or there is a deeper underlying issue that needs to be addressed.

I think you make some very valid points. I remember a co-worker once said to me (about add & adhd) that it was actually society's fault our kids have such disorders. It wasn't 40-50 years ago when boys (especially) were going home to milk cows, do hay, cut wood, etc. Girls were expected to do laundry & other general household chores. They had to burn a lot of energy! Their play time was tag and hide-n-go-seek, not Xbox, tv, and internet. I believe on a very basic level we NEED to exert more energy to be mentally healthy. Instinctively, kids want to run, jump, play, hop, etc....or cut wood, milk cows, clean the barn!!! Yet, they're expected to sit still and listen for 6 hours a day. If they cannot do so, we have to label them. Very unfair to them, imo. Instead of cutting PE classes across the country, I think they need to be cutting some lecture classes and extending physical education. I bet they'd see an improvement in many of their "troubled youth"

[wanttobemommy]

i understand that some medications are neccesary as in Kaylees case but the problem is my parents medicated me literally without even listening enough to anything. The statistics on my meds have been know for at least 10 years and that would put me at 12 only a year into the meds. yes they could have had them same affect from a year but I am sure that three years of it made it worse. Also the problem that I was addressing here is my parents put me on whatever a dr said to put me on. I was not a danger to anyone else or myself. I was hyper and stubburn. They were trying to find a way to subdue me. They thought that since i had soo much energy they didnt know how to deal with it. Instead of signing me up for another dance lesson or gymnastics practice they medicated me