Is ADHD/ADD just an excuse?

HI there, my son no longer takes medication and hasnt since November. I found that they were not beneficial enough to warrant the loss of appetite etc. His blood sugars were checked twice last year in regards diabetes. Came back normal on both times.

I cannot deny my son is different. His behaviour is different to anything I have ever seen. I have 5 children and even as a baby he was different. I believe whole heartedly that if ADHD is not the correct diagnosis then something else is going on.

I should mention that he is currently being monitored for autism as he has lots of the traits relevant.

originally posted by: Guenter
a reply to: demondonna

I might stir the pot there but here it goes anyhow: My kids are today adults in their early 30 but one of them was diagnosed with juvenile diabetes at age 6. During the 1st few years, and especially in a preteen child the pancreas does not shut just down over night. Even when one thinks one has finally the right dosage of insulin for weight and age; it can flare up and cause severe "low sugar" levels. As adults when we are stressed out and get cranky/nasty and hostile in the work-place it is exactly this "low sugar" level. I used this as an introduction concerning ADD because what followed was almost coincidental and surprising. 2 of my child's closest friends had "discipline problems" pretty "bratty lil' guys at times. On one family party in summer my child went also in a damn bratty mode and I took a blood test and found her low. A good sweet drink and snack did the trick. Due to the open event of taking the blood test, and out of curiosity, several other kids also wanted a test. I gave a test to several kids; including the 2 "brats". Lo and behold both "brats" were constant low sugar types. Additionally their parents were concerned of them to 'take too much sugar'. The moment they had ingested a few sweets and "real sugar" they turned within minutes into almost "angels" in comportment.

Personally I have had my serious up and downs with the diabetes association. As a pilot in the 90 we were officially told by the transport authorities to NOT consume any product containing aspartame. BUT we had to "shut up about it". Naturally the diabetes foundation receives 90% or more of its funding from "Monsanto" the producer of aspartame. Using the same logic and applying the no aspartame rule to my diabetic child the same improved dramatically within its daily sugar balances and levels. Actually i needed less insulin for age and weight than when the child was on the so called "recommended diet and low sugar products". The doctors finding out as to what my trick was had serious warnings for me, either THEIR way or they take my child away.

Back to the 2 "brats". After the parents realized that low sugar caused the behavior and they abandoned the no sugar rule, their so called ADD had disappeared like it had never been there at all.
So before putting you child on drugs, maybe a few weeks of trying the "sugar cure" and foremost avoiding aspartame products, it would be worth a try. A few weeks more or less wont make a dent in the final outcome. And it might save you a lot of money on medication that you do not need.

originally posted by: CriticalStinker
I was the poster child for adhd. That being said there is nothing odd about a young boy being hyper and distracted. I ended up working my way up at FedEx and becoming an extremely effective manager as I learned how to channel my extra energy. Do not let him take medication for it as that is just narcotics.

Narcotics are opiod painkillers.

AD/HD medications work by either focusing attention or by improving the communication between brain cells in the executive decision-making areas of the brain.

I admire anyone who can overcome the energy/activity of ADHD and become successful without medication. It sounds like you are a very strongly driven person and have been able to overcome it with hard work.

a reply to: demondonna

My younger one was like this. He was finally diagnosed with PDD-NOS, which is now classified simply as an Autism Spectrum Disorder.

Even though he struggles some times he is amazing!

PDD-NOS

a reply to: emsed1

Thank you and yes I'm a type A personality and can't stop Haha. But they are narcotics, you can fail for meth if you take them, and they are hanusly over prescribed. Some people need it but I promise not nearly as many as they'd like you to think.

Thanks for the link. I have never heard of this diagnosis. Are you in the UK?

originally posted by: emsed1
a reply to: demondonna

My younger one was like this. He was finally diagnosed with PDD-NOS, which is now classified simply as an Autism Spectrum Disorder.

Even though he struggles some times he is amazing!

PDD-NOS

a reply to: demondonna

I'm in the US.

Here's a UK resource:

PDD-NOS

I also have a sibling who was diagnosed with ADHD and ODD. As a child he was always super hyper and defiant. That being said, we had two pretty crappy parents. Our mother was an overly sensitive yeller who suffered greatly with depression and mood disorders of her own, and our father was ....just one of those guys who didn't grow up until he was 40.

When you take a child to the doctor, what kind of emphasis is put on parenting? Who knows. The doctor at the time suggested my mother take a parenting class especially for parents of ADHD children, but she was so offended that she only came home to scream about it. She then put brother on a regimen of St. John's Wort .... no big changes were noticed.

Parenting has to be a factor, but I do believe the issues are there.

a reply to: demondonna

A brief description from the UK site:

At school the child with PDD-NOS may appear defiant, disobedient or lacking in interest: not responding to their name, seeming distant and being unable to show emotion except under extreme conditions such as fear. The child may eventually develop emotional ties with those closest to them but not others, whom they may seek to avoid. Because they struggle with peer relationships, they may find groups difficult and prefer more solitary activities. Reading between the lines of social encounters is problematic for them, and they may struggle to decipher facial expression or tone of voice unless these are obvious. They may be clumsy, and dislike team games or those involving throwing and catching. Their early hyperactivity commonly gives way in teenage years to lethargy. Such children may also be vulnerable to bullying and teasing as their unusual demeanour sets them apart from their peers.

originally posted by: Aliensun
a reply to: demondonna



ETA: I had to come back and tell you that your user name is a little frightening. How does your own situation fit with his?

You are probably in the wrong place if user names frighten you. I find it in bad taste and Off Topic to speak of user names or avatars in a negative light.

a reply to: demondonna

I know what you mean. Our kiddo is the sort that winds up tighter and tighter as he gets more tired. So we always try to make sure he has enough sleep, otherwise he practically flies off the walls. He takes after me in that.

We had him out at the Fourth of July display on Saturday, and I'm sure everyone around us was convinced he had ADHD. But, as his mother, I knew better. He was just really tired.

originally posted by: demondonna
I have a 13 year old son who was diagnosed with ADHD/ADD a year ago along with ODD.

I am curious as to what other parents think, Is it real?

3 years ago I would have been of the opinion that a child was 'naughty' rather than suffering from any sort of disorder. However..having spoken to many doctors I see the points they make about the symptoms in my son. Am I deluding myself?

It is certainly real. I do feel there is some over-diagnosis because: Big Pharma. Some might not need medication or simple diet changes could help. But you are the mom. You know if something is really wrong.

a reply to: demondonna

I just read something a couple days ago that said adult genders are nearly equal in terms of ADHD while boys significantly outweigh girls. This is because boys are wired different(learn differently) and tend to be more rambunctious and in many of those cases, were not ADHD.

Schools/doctors often misdiagnose young boys as they don't understand the gender differences or are too impatient and seek an easy alternative to control their behavior to make their life's easier.

Say no to drugs.


Ghost

originally posted by: demondonna
I have a 13 year old son who was diagnosed with ADHD/ADD a year ago along with ODD.

I am curious as to what other parents think, Is it real?

3 years ago I would have been of the opinion that a child was 'naughty' rather than suffering from any sort of disorder. However..having spoken to many doctors I see the points they make about the symptoms in my son. Am I deluding myself?

I've not read the posts in this thread yet. So forgive any duplication of ideas, thoughts, opinions.

I think it is real and has many causes and influences as most diseases do including: basic temperment and environmental factors, eating habits, adult modeling, and honestly training both mentally and physically.

I'm going to assume that your son's school/teachers would like him to be medicated so that he is not so disruptive to classroom life.

There is the drug approach and their is the developmental approach. Our society is filled with distractions calling for our attention - televison, radio, people, traffic, internet - often all going at the same time - you can learn to focus for any length of time in those conditions yet that is often the reality around modern children.

Distraction isn't new (read Buddhist Literature - they've been working with it for centuries) and with maturity and good modeling and teaching you can learn to be in charge of your chaotic mind and not have your mind in charge of you.

That said, children need to be physically active - short periods of quiet study need to be offset by physical learning activities - the quiet study time can be increased slowly. I don't mean sports or games, I mean jumpping rope and saying times tables, or doing a play on a history subject with all manner of action. The human mind can only focus optimally for approx 20 mins - in a well functioning adult.

www.learningsolutionsmag.com...

Attention Deficient is all around us and we all have it to some degree and to the degree we learn to overcome this natural tendency the more engaged and productive we can be.

Some school districts are training teachers (or were I should say) in teaching to students with cognitive 'issues' that often are symptoms of great intelligence. But certainly you may be able to find private schools that approach the subject environmentally not medically.

Thom Hartmann has several good books on ADD and ADHD and is on the board of one such school.

The Waldorf schools would with children and parents to wean and quit drugs (often the parents require more training then the student ).

Do you homework, ask his teachers what they are seeing....

Good Luck - I wouldn't medicate my child - personal opinion only and adults are able to make their own decisions) for many reasons but the most important one is that you are teaching them that the easy 'fix' of drugs is how to live life and they will never learn focus and concentration.

And if you do choose to go the medical route - make sure the precribing physican is fluent with FMRIs (Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging) - I was trying to find this wonderful doctor that I read some of his stuff and it was wonderful but can't find him off hand -- Last Name starts with an "A".

Good luck and best outcomes...

When i was 12 the doctor told me i was ADHD. As a kid i always had trouble focusing. I was put on 2 different pills but i never took them. I would hide the pill in my cheek and pretend to swallow in front of my mom. I do just fine as a adult today. I have great job, and father of two amazing boys. At 12 years old a lot is going on physically and mentally with your body. I honestly think most kids are misdiagnosed.

Not to say this does not exist but look at the symptoms. It describes every teen ever.

a reply to: FyreByrd

Found him: Daniel Amen, MD.

www.amazon.com...

a reply to: Mythos13

Have you ever tried his medication, not in a recreational way but a scientific way?

a reply to: demondonna

I believe it's real to an extent, but I also think both parents and doctors too easily label it as "It's ADHD, let's prescribe something" both for the parent's sake and for the (doctor's) pharmaceutical sake. All people are bombarded with on TV are advertisements for drugs that are supposed to treat and real and imagined ailment, more often than not with side effects worse than the condition.

That said, my sister was diagnosed with ADHD, and they kept her pumped on ritalin. She had always been hard to control, and outspoken, but that's just her temperament. As far as I know, she never had real trouble paying attention she was just wired a lot of the time, so they put on ritalin, basically, to sedate her through her middle and high school days. Granted, her mother is an RN and her mother's partner is an ER Doctor, so they were always pushing the latest or most popular drug-related treatment.

I'm not sure if THAT had anything to do with it, but then she had to start some hormone treatment (I'm not quite sure why).

Long story short, she no longer takes that crap, graduated college, and is successful...even if she's still very vocal and outspoken.

Do I think she was ADHD. Possibly, but it was wasn't detrimental enough to dope her up, it was convenient for her mother.

a reply to: demondonna

It's very real my son has the same diagnosis. It's rough but do the therapy learn the skills. Basically you have to parent counter-intuitively also don't be surprised if an anxiety disorder pops up too.

originally posted by: ckhk3
a reply to: Mythos13

Have you ever tried his medication, not in a recreational way but a scientific way?

It works but in my opinion it's over prescribed and I don't thing amphetamines are a good way to cope with that, taking them every day can create other problems. It's best to learn to cope with it

i was diagnosed with adhd (among other things) at a young age. now, im not so sure that i wasnt just fantastically bored with 90% of what was going on in my life. and they interpreted it as hyperactivity.