Somehow basic common sense have been propagandized out
of our culture.
I've frequented a number of internet boards dedicated to parents of
children with psychiatric diagnoses. I've recently noticed an
increasing number of parents of preschoolers coming to boards seeking
information after having self-diagnosed their children with one or
more of those made-up disorders showing up in the DSM. For a while
it was bipolar, now every kid has ODD (Oppositional Defiant
Disorder). And, of course, every kid has the ubiquitous ADHD. After
reading the parents' posts, it becomes pretty obvious that too many
people have no clue what preschoolers are like. They seem to believe
they are simply short adults with the same attention span, energy
level and knowledge of how they are suppose to act. But they haul
them off to the doctor and they all come home with meds....and if
they don't, Mom's mad.
I believe a big part of the problem is preschool. First kindergarten
became the new first grade, now preschoolers are getting
instruction. Are any kids allowed to run around and play all day
anymore? And the worse part about all this frantic educating is
that it clearly goes against everything known about child
development.
--- In SSRI-Crusaders%40yahoogroups.com">SSRI-Crusaders
yahoogroups.com, "Jim Moore"; <mofunnow...>
wrote:
>
> http://www.bohemionews.com/news.php?nid=2583
>
> No Child Left Undrugged
>
> Monday, 09 June 2008
> By John W. Whitehead
> According to autopsy reports, 4-year-old Rebecca Riley died from an
overdose of psychiatric drugs. At age 2, Rebecca was diagnosed with
attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). At 3, she was
diagnosed with bipolar disorder, also known as manic depression. By
the time she died on Dec. 13, 2006, little Rebecca was taking
Clonidine, as well as the anti-convulsant Depakote and the anti-
psychotic Seroquel.
>
> What were some of the symptoms that prompted such treatment plans?
As her mother described it, Rebecca was "constantly getting into
things, running around, not being able to settle down.";
> Rebecca's diagnosis was not a medical aberration. Her 10-year-old
brother and 4-year-old sister were already being treated for manic
depression. Indeed, nearly one million children are reportedly
diagnosed as bipolar, making it more common than autism and diabetes
combined. From 1994 to 2003, the number of children treated for
bipolar disorder increased 40 percent, a jump that many experts
attribute to more doctors aggressively applying the diagnosis.
>
> An increasing number of medical officials are voicing the concern
that children are being misdiagnosed. Dr. John McClellan, who runs a
children's psychiatric hospital in the state of Washington, suggested
that the bipolar diagnosis has become a catch-all for aggressive and
troubled children.
>
> Likewise, child psychiatrist John Holttum believes that the
definition of bipolar disorder is expanding. Whereas children who
were seen as troubled or irritable 10 or 15 years ago might have been
treated with counseling, parental training for their caregivers or
other social interventions, children with similar symptoms today are
being diagnosed as bipolar and treated with medication.
Unfortunately, for many families, therapy is not even an option.
According to Dr. Michael Brody, a child psychiatrist at the
University of Maryland, since insurance companies often do not
support therapy, most parents opt for medication.
>
> Not surprisingly, the pharmaceutical companies are reaping the
rewards, aided by the medical community and the media. Bipolar
disorder medication is typically three to five times more expensive
than medications prescribed for other disorders, such as depression
or anxiety. As the News Tribune of Tacoma, Wash., points out,
"Furthering the trend is extensive marketing of atypical anti-
psychotics by the companies that make them, and media coverage of
bipolar disorder as a childhood disease."
>
> Yet many of the anti-psychotic drugs being prescribed for children
have not been approved by the Food and Drug Administration for use on
them. Of the two that have been approved for children, Risperdahl and
Abilify, they've only been approved for short-term use. Nevertheless,
as the News Tribune points out, because these drugs have been
approved for adults, "doctors are free to prescribe drugs to anyone
and in any way they see fit once they have been approved for some
purpose."
>
> What this means is that in addition to being misdiagnosed, there is
an increased likelihood that children are also being overdrugged.
Concern about this scenario has prompted Dr. Jeffrey Thompson, chief
medical officer for the Washington state Medicaid program, to provide
more stringent guidelines to ensure that anti-psychotic drugs are
prescribed to Medicaid children only when truly needed and at proper
dosages.
>
> While Thompson's actions signal a move in the right direction, at
least for minor-aged Medicaid recipients in his state, it will do
little to help children in private care and in other states.
>
> When confronted with the numbers of children being diagnosed with
bipolar disorder-about 800,000 in 2003, and likely much higher now-it
is hard to know how to respond. Could that many young people truly be
suffering from this disorder? It is tempting to lay the blame on an
over-zealous medical community or a greedy pharmaceutical industry.
There is no doubt that they have benefited financially from the sharp
rise in bipolar cases among young people.
>
> Is it more a case of kids just being kids-noisy, rambunctious,
hyperactive, disorderly? Or is there something else going on here?
Curiously, one study released in 2007 indicated that among children
diagnosed with bipolar disorder, two-thirds of them were boys.
>
> While there are undeniably cases where children are actually
suffering and are helped by diagnosis and medication, I have to
wonder about the majority. Little is said in the studies I have read
about the impact that family life and the environment may have on the
behavior of children diagnosed as bipolar, or even ADHD, yet they
can't be ruled out.
>
> Society as a whole has become irresponsible in its duty to young
people. Obsessed with materialism, we have handed over our young
people to marketing mavens and corporations eager to make a quick
buck. Distracted by entertainment, we have relinquished our children
to television babysitters, allowing them to become turned on by and
tuned into mindless television programs, video games and advertising
that promote violence and premarital sex, among other unhealthy
behaviors. Children need human touch and love. All too often, parents
give them over to others for care. They also leave them floating in
the non-real world of virtual reality.
>
> Thus, it is little wonder that so many children are out of control,
disorderly and unable to settle down. But they shouldn't be
victimized and punished for our neglect. Nor should they be drugged
into compliance. Our children are screaming for help, but we're not
listening to what they're saying. Instead, many parents are just
hoping to shut them up-whether with drugs or entertainment-and get a
little peace and quiet. But that's not the answer.
>
> A solution will not be found by passing another law. Rather, it
must start at home and in the community. When the family breaks down,
everything breaks down. We need to start by re-building families.
Parents need to be parents and stop over-scheduling their children.
They need to start spending time with them.
>
> Finally, parents need to say no to drugs for their children. They
need to control what their children watch and listen to. And they
need to take off the headphones, turn off the cell phones and try
communicating with their children.
>
> Constitutional attorney and author John W. Whitehead is founder and
president of The Rutherford Institute. His new book Why We Should
Give a Damn: The Struggle to Reignite the Politics of Hope
(Sourcebooks) will be out in August 2008. The Rutherford Institute is
available at www.rutherford.org.
>
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