Big Pharma Sells Risky Meds We Don’t Need for Disorders It Made Up That We Don’t Have

[arithia]

191. I'm guessing not

but I could be wrong. I'd rather have been able to PM this to you directly, but as I am a chronic lurker it seems I cannot initiate those. XD (Some people here also need to realize that their ignorance is not as good as people's first hand knowledge of these disorders. Sad that I need to say that on a supposedly liberal site, but oh well....)

I was diagnosed with ADHD by a specialist in the field when I was 8. It was my third diagnosis of ADHD and my nurse mother was finally satisfied with the label and began treatment. I had years of cognitive and behavioral therapy before that due to the presence of symptoms pointing to some kind of cognitive problem, so thankfully I was already pretty well equipped with social and developmental skills when the clinical diagnosis was given.

When I was finally started on Ritalin, my family reacted much the same as some of the posters here- they assumed I was being "doped" for a fake condition. My hyperactivity just meant I had to do more sports. My inability to concentrate was just me needing more discipline. My loudness was just boisterousness, my forgetfulness a sign that I didn't really care about anything beyond the immediate. I cannot begin to describe to others how devastating it is as a child to hear adults around you saying you are broken, lazy, aloof, rude and need to be punished physically- all because I couldn't sit still, focus or remember my homework.

I'll never forget hearing my mother being told "you need to spank her if you want her grades to improve". I'm lucky that my mother has more sense than that. I'm also lucky I had good therapists to help me work through the adults around me tearing me down as a person just because they didn't understand biochemistry.

3 months into the course of Ritalin treatment, they all shut up. I went from a C student to straight A's. There were no more notes from the teachers. There were no more concerns about discipline or blunted affect or lack of interest. I picked up new hobbies and extracurricular activities. My depression faded (it helped that I wasn't getting such destructive feedback from adults around me). I was in control of my mind and my body for the first time- all thanks to maintenance medication. 4 of my cousins were diagnosed immediately after me- none of whom were medicated and none of whom got any better. It wasn't until the oldest of them turned 18 and he put HIMSELF on ritalin (and subsequently improved), that the others were allowed by their parents to get the necessary meds they needed.

None of us had *severe* ADHD. I knew kids from group therapy who had it. It wasn't pretty. I remember their parents frustration, self blame and tears. I remember the screaming, the crying, the frustration from the children who couldn't give their parents what they wanted. I'd say I pitied them, but they were the ones getting help. The ones I worry about are the ones who dont- who grow up with biochemical imbalances, lack of therapy and parents who would rather live in a state of willed ignorance than see their child healthy.