Has this become the "pill popping generation"?

[Texas_Tickle]

Is your kid acting up in class? If so, have him pop a pill

Is your kid "rebellious"? If you, have him pop a pill

Is your kid having problems with school-work? If so, have him pop a pill.

Is your kid hyperactive? Have him pop a pill.

Am I the only person who finds this trend to be disturbing? I mean behavior that was classified as "normal teenage rebellion" and just "goofing off" 15 years ago, all of the sudden needs "medical attention", and the child needs to be "medicated".

I tend to think that there really is no problem, but this is just a way for the drug companies to make a profit, using "hyperactive children" and "rebellious children" as the excuse.

It seems to me that the parents who have their child "pop pills" only wants to mask the problem, rather than trying to get to the root of it.

I have a cousin who was diagnosed with hyper-activity. I think we were all hyper when we were kids, but his mother (my aunt) had him pop pills that made him almost catatonic.

 

[46and2]

There are some cases where kids are definitley suffering from chemical inbalances and the like, but I do agree with you that alot of parents (not all) tend to turn too quickly to pills instead of finding out if it's just a problem with the kids attitude. Psychiatrists can sometimes do more damage then good, my brothers paranoid schizophrenic, and he's had meds really throw him for a loop and do some really dangerous things.
-Phil

 

[TicklingDuo]

My brother has two step sons who have ADHD. Both were bad enough to have been kicked out of school on more than one occassion...violent and totally wild. They'd been on meds for a couple of years with no real discernable change. Then, they decided to take my other sister-in-law's advice and go natural. They weened the boys from the meds and drasticly cut their sugar intake. Then, they started them on a set of herbs (which they use in moderation in their cooking) that act to settle the system without any harmful side effects.

After about two months, both boys were showing marked improvement. They could concentrate. They were doing much better in school. And, they were no longer violent all the time. Both still struggle a bit. But, they're 75% better than they were. The prescription meds only made them dopey. They didn't solve a thing. And they cost a fortune. The herbs are natural and can be grown in their own garden.

One of the problems is that we, as adults, look for the easy fix too often. Got a slight headache? Pop a few asprin. Having trouble keeping up with things? Pop some uppers...even if it's only caffine pills. Feeling a bit depressed after a breakup? Go get some anti-depressants. Now, don't get me wrong. There are times when using these things is valid and necessary. But, we've come to look to pills to solve things...leaving our systems no chance of stepping up to bat and developing the ability to do so itself. It's also harmful to mask things rather than really dealing with them.

Why would you put a bandaind on a gaping wound and just take a pain killer? The wound isn't going to heal that way. You need to FIX the problem, not cover it up. Our systems need to know how to overcome minor pain on its own. They need to fight off milder infections on their own. If we keep doing things artificially, that ability will disappear...perhaps for good. It's like muscles. If you don't use them, they atrophy. Then, you're stuck. We need to give ourselves a chance to learn how to cope with things naturally. We DON'T need more pills!

Ann

 

[Stitch62679]

Whew, finally a post I know about! LOL
Personally, I don't believe in giving a child stimulants for ADHD, and I REALLY don't believe in giving them any neurotransmitter altering drug.
I think some children do have ADHD, but the VAST majority do not or can manage it in other ways.

I do not put the fault on the drug companies though, I place it on the physicians prescribing for it so quickly and the parents first and foremost. After all, it is the parent most likely to suggest the drug therapy, and they are the pill popping generation, just look at depression and anxiety and weight loss prescribing trends.

 

[luv2bt&tickled]

I agree we have seem to go with a quick fix, got a problem pop a pill! 🙁 When instead trying to find out the problem, a lot of ADD kids diet needs to be changed. They have found that sugar, wheat, caffine and many other things contribute to their problem. Why they are so hyper...give my nephew candy and he is a total different child!!!!! Some good points were made, but I don't feel we should be giving small children drugs, drugs that they really do not know what type side effects that they will have on the child. Just my humble opinion, again I am no doctor...🙂 I just play one in real life! Ha! No, seriously I do feel feel we have become a pill poppin gereration! With that being said, I'll just say.....
*Toodles*😀

 

[Texas_Tickle]

I agree we have seem to go with a quick fix, got a problem pop a pill! 🙁 When instead trying to find out the problem, a lot of ADD kids diet needs to be changed. They have found that sugar, wheat, caffine and many other things contribute to their problem. Why they are so hyper...give my nephew candy and he is a total different child!!!!! Some good points were made, but I don't feel we should be giving small children drugs, drugs that they really do not know what type side effects that they will have on the child. Just my humble opinion, again I am no doctor...🙂 I just play one in real life! Ha! No, seriously I do feel feel we have become a pill poppin gereration! With that being said, I'll just say.....
*Toodles*😀

There was some research done to prove that sugar-filled candy does not make the child hyperactive, It's more the power of suggestion "I think therefore I am" type thing.

There was a study of 15 kids and the researcher told them to eat something and told them it was loaded with sugar and would make them hyper-active.

Sure enough the kids were bouncing off the walls, and as it turns out, the candy they ate, contained no sugar at all.

It's all in the mind.

 

[Celticrose2001]

As an ECE major who has just finished a research project in this very topic, I would have to concurr with the sugar- weaning diagnosis. While the drugs can be effective in severe cases, often they Do casue more harm than good esp later down the road. In our reasearch my partner and & devoted 4 pages alone to treatment of ADHD by behabior modification and diet. The reduction of sugar, white flour, processed foods, and red and yellow dyes in the diet of ADHA children caused a very marked improvement in as little as 2-3 months, even in soem so called "hopeless cases" where even Ritalin was not helping the children's behavior( These are largely Canadian studies,mind..If anyone wants details/verification I'll be happy to supply them). If the children deviated from this diet, even for a day or 2 the hyperactivity and attention problems would return. So IMHO I think that pills should be an absolute LAST resort, and stated as much in my presentation.
On a personal note, as someone who has suffered recurring depression since age 8 and who has been on different antidepressants_prozac, elavill,( all of which either made me more depressed than I already was, made me climb the walls, or screwed up my metabolism) I think that other avenues should be looked into before pills are prescibed. If drugs are indeed necessary , then they should only be used for the shortest time possible to get the person back and functioning.
IMHO we in this world today use too many panaceas , be it food, excessive sex, drinking , video games, or overmedicating, to kill our pain.
Just my opinion anyway

Maggie

 

[Celticrose2001]

I do not put the fault on the drug companies though, I place it on the physicians prescribing for it so quickly and the parents first and foremost. After all, it is the parent most likely to suggest the drug therapy, and they are the pill popping generation, just look at depression and anxiety and weight loss prescribing trends.
[/B][/QUOTE]

Btw stich, on a related note, what do you think of the weightloss drugs currently on the market? I have not taken them yet- my dr's not a fan of em and thinks I'm doing ok with my current way of eating
( I DID take dexadrine wayyy back and took ma huang for a time too.. back about 3 yrs ago) ? Also what's your opinion on the current antidepressants, esp Celexa, Effexor ect?

Maggie

 

[Limeoutsider]

Seems that medicating is the answer to everything. Let's dope'em up so all they can do is sit there and stare out into space! No more trouble!

 

[Texas_Tickle]

Seems that medicating is the answer to everything. Let's dope'em up so all they can do is sit there and stare out into space! No more trouble!

I hope that was sarcasm, because I know a parent (in real life), and that is her answer.

In fact, I have been tempted to report her ass to child welfare.

 

[luv2bt&tickled]

There was some research done to prove that sugar-filled candy does not make the child hyperactive, It's more the power of suggestion "I think therefore I am" type thing.

There was a study of 15 kids and the researcher told them to eat something and told them it was loaded with sugar and would make them hyper-active.

Sure enough the kids were bouncing off the walls, and as it turns out, the candy they ate, contained no sugar at all.

It's all in the mind.

I have to disagree with you on this TM, it isn't all in the mind. What type of candy did they feed the kids? The only candy I know of that doesn't have sugar in it is sugar-free. I have seen for myself how sugar affects children, wheat too. Their diet were changed and it made a huge difference in the children. It was amazing! Giving the medication is not always the answer. I would suggest an allergist first to see what foods they are allergic to and go from there. Hey, some kids just seem to have more energy than others 🙂

Here are some facts that I found on the subject:
Attention Deficit Disorder


Hyperactive behavior and Attention Deficit Disorder have been serious problems for children since the fifties. Hyperactivity seems to be the expression of either hypoglycemia or food allergies or both. Dr Feingold's book suggests the connection between food allergies and food additives are a direct cause of ADD.

Others feel that ADD is neurological problem where the brain waves produce too many slow brain waves (theta) and not enough fast brain waves (beta). For this theory there are two alternative therapies for ADD: biofeedback, where people can learn to control their brain waves, and vision therapy. Vision therapy can help the child's brain learn and mature neurologically. A combination of the right lenses and visual "games" to help the child focus, track, and coordinate his vision may reduce or eliminate the need for drug therapy.

The success Dr Feingold has achieved with removing certain foods and food additives is worth consideration. Read food labels carefully. Avoid all food products with preservatives, (BHT, MSG, BHA, etc.) additives and colors. Eliminate red meats (nitrates) and canned or frozen foods (too much salt). Reduce carbonated drinks (Excess phosphorus) and sugar.

Use applied kinesiology to determine allergens, or test foods like milk, wheat, corn, chocolate, and citrus with an elimination diet. Avoid refined sugar (almost always involved in ADD reactions.)

In addition hypoglycemia has also proved a worthy theory which is easily checked out. Remove the child from foods containing sugar. Natural sugar such as fruits are not as critical, but no fruit juices. Small meals containing some type of protein are also helpful. The ongoing diet could be high in vegetable proteins and whole grains, with plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables, and no junk or fast foods.

And here is the link:
http://www.getwel.com/atn_dd.htm
My 2 cents on your no sugar thing🙂
Be well 🙂 *toodles*

 

[Stitch62679]

Well, Celtic, you're askin' a ton!!!! 🙂

Weight loss drugs, put simply, are terrible. The Prescription ones that aren't stimulents, let fat go through your GI tract, which, umm, causes what we in the medical field like to call "anal leaking" LOL

Antidepressants are great! For TRUE cases of depression!!! 🙂
All antidepressants are 70% effective, and of those 60% work at target doses...which means you pick em based on their side effects, which are kinda nasty, lol.

I hate overprescribing..even if it's my livelyhood, lol.
Truth is most people don't need the drugs, but many do, which makes it hard to say yay or nay as to drugs in general.

 

[Stitch62679]

I recently spoke with an MD from a univsersity hospital who was telling me how the forefront of nutrition and diabetes is expanding so rapidly that they keep having to stop themselves from getting off track.

He's now leaning toward the idea it's body fat and the distribution of the two types of fat that leads us to being prone to problems. Get this, they have good reason to believe that not only will 40-50 Million Americans will develop diabetes by the next couple years, but also, children's diabetes is growing so rapidly that they tend to call it a public health emergency. The interesting part is they're noticing a non-sugar related trend with obese children who are either pre or full blown type 2 diabetes and ADHD.
The new way of thinking is it's not sugar, and it's not caffeine and it's not even fat. What they're leaning toward now is those diets are most likely correlated with the lack of other dietary nutrients! So in essense, deficiencies in basic vitamins and nutrients even as simple as fiber!

 

[Deleted member 2452]

laziness, and instant gratification are to blame.

i hate the way our society has taken to pushing drugs on kids (and adults) for everything.
back in my day (lol) kids were just being the "class clown" or what have you. now they have to be slapped with a label, and loaded up with drugs! the teachers are too damn lazy to cope with boisterous kids, and everyone wants a quick fix for all the problems in life.
another angle that is being looked at is the link between higher rates of "problem kids" and parents that used illegal recreational drugs. seems all that getting high did have a consequence after all!

now, the sugar issue. some kids, and adults are "sensitive" to sugar. somthing like an alergic reaction. that's why taking some kids off sugar help in decreasing the add, and adhd affects. sugar in large doses is actually a body depressant. diabetes can be "almost" totally controled through diet, juvenial onset being the exception.

steve

 

[Stitch62679]

Gotta defend drugs 🙂

Drugs are not quick fixes, they are tools in the management of diseases or disorders. There's no need for labelling a person, but we need to aid them when we now have that ability.

The Classic mindset is from when there were no drugs. Remember, most drugs are new, we are the medicine revolution. Unfortunately social stigma likes to blame drugs and we as a society like to impose "quick fix" status and Advertising really helps push this along.

I would rather have a well-educated patient who takes medicine to help them manage illness than someone who is untreated because of pride or fear.
On the same note, no one should be plunged into medicine or diagnosis nor should they be led to believe taking a pill will completely fix anything. This is careless medicine and above all it's careless on the part of the person who is not caring to take care of themselves properly.

 

[Limeoutsider]

I hope that was sarcasm, because I know a parent (in real life), and that is her answer.

In fact, I have been tempted to report her ass to child welfare.

Indeed, it was. You seem a little overworked by the issue? Would you like some Valium? Tranqulizers?



😀

 

[Texas_Tickle]

Indeed, it was. You seem a little overworked by the issue? Would you like some Valium? Tranqulizers?



😀

I just don't think that taking Junior and doping him up, simply because you (as a parents) don't want to deal with him, is the answer. His mother gives him some some drugs that produce a trance-like stupor.

He will grow up thinking that drugs will solve the problem.

 

[Limeoutsider]

I just don't think that taking Junior and doping him up, simply because you (as a parents) don't want to deal with him, is the answer. His mother gives him some some drugs that produce a trance-like stupor.

He will grow up thinking that drugs will solve the problem.

I totally agree. I was just being a "wise guy".

 

[Oddjob0226]

This doesn't really have anything directly to do with the topic I suppose, but there's a slight connection, I guess...


A few years ago in TX, '93 or '94 abouts, a kid was found starved in a trailer. He had been going to public school but was causing problems, and was eventaully diagnosed with ADD. So the mother put him on the ususal medicines, as recommended by both the family doctor and some of the teachers. She later became angry with one of the kid's teachers becuase she said the medicine made her kid a "zombie" and, I guess, preferred him as a trouble maker. Anyway, she and her husband decided to home school the boy and his younger brother. Now how did these brilliant people deal with their trouble making son that they cursed the schools about becuase they couldn't handle him? They rigged up a homeade bondage device, chained him to a bed in the trailer and witheld food from him to punish him. He eventally went into a coma and died (after his parents stated that they had prayed to God and He let them know that their son would recover. Guess He was just messin' with them for being such screwups!). This was all discovered around Haloween time, and their trailer had one of those 5 and Dime paper skeletons taped to the door. Anyway, both of these very well fed parents are doing life sentances now....

The point to all of this? I don't know. ADD is bad. Being a parent doesn't automatically make you able to solve problems, or even figure them out. I'm so alone tonight.

 

[Deleted member 2452]

sorry stitch, but i have to disagree.

in the schools my own children attend, the numbers of kids on ritalin, and welbutin, and prozac is astounding! plus throw in a few on xanax, and you have close to a quater of the student body on drugs. this is not good medical practice, this is taking the easy way out. a child is disruptive one day, and it's off to the pharmacy!
and how about puting the blame where it belongs, on the teachers,and the doctors, not on the patients or their parent when the "quick fix" doesn't work. cause they sure as hell promise the drugs will solve all the problems!
steve

 

[CaptainQuantum]

I hate overprescribing..even if it's my livelyhood, lol.

Excuse my ignorance because I haven't talked with you before Stitch, but are you a doctor or pharmacist, or studying to be one? If you are, I would like to post something here that I posted at a place very similar to TMF only it deals with mental illness called crazyboards.org. Any help you or anyone else here can offer would be much appreciated.

Question for anyone who has ever been on Effexor

For anyone who has ever been on Effexor: did you have a point where it "kicked in" all at once and you felt great and nothing really bothered you for long? Because I did, after being on it for 6 days only. This lasted for maybe 2-3 weeks.

Then I could feel myself starting to go downhill. The only thing that was different was that I was no longer taking Trazodone 100MG for sleep. So the pdoc at the clinic where I go said we'll try getting me back on the Trazodone first. Well I do feel quite a bit better than I did a week ago. However I still don't feel as good as I did when I came home from the hospital. I felt great! Best I've felt in years! I felt like anything that happened, I could handle it, do whatever I had to do, but without getting all upset about it.

My very low self-esteem is still bothering me for one thing, and when I came home from the hospital it wasn't. I didn't dwell on things, which I have a real tendency to do. What I'm wondering about is what it says at crazymeds about Effexor: First it starts to work on your serotonin. Then somewhere around 200 mg a day it starts to work on norepinephrine. Then around 300 mg a day it starts to work on your dopamine.

Now, my depression is very situational and has a lot to do with low self-esteem. I have been on various depression meds for about 10 years now (Effexor 150 MG since early August), and I really don't believe my depression is caused by any kind of chemical imbalance. I just have very low self-esteem, and have difficulty dealing with stressful situations without going to pieces or giving up. So assuming I don't have a chemical imbalance, do you think it would be advisable or even safe to increase my dosage of Effexor? I was hospitalized from 8/3 to 8/12, and somewhere in that time they increased me from 75MG to 150MG.

 

[Krokus]

I was on effexor for awhile, now the only pills I pop are Extacy, LOL



All effexor did was make me drowsy =/


I think people are too quick to jump the gun on pills...It's all in the mind as far as im concerned...in many cases, anyhow.

 

[kyle]

I'm in college and the pill problem is huge. I'm not even going to say i don't partake. If you need to focus for a test, ADDERALL. If you want to feel good good, anything with codine will do. If you want to get really fucked up, Xanax. I'm a big fan of the ADDERALL and the codine. I'll enjoy 'em when they are available, except Xanax. I really don't understand why they prescribe that to people, it's an ungodly horrible drug.

 

[Dussicar]

To CAPTAIN QUANTUM: I have the same story to tell as well. I took effexor for two and a half years. Not only was I doped up on that crap, But was also given epival which is a mood stabliser.

Seriously. Why the hell would I need a second drug if the first one isn't working?
Simply put: Doctors recieve a HUGE kickback for prescribing this junk.

If a Psychiatrist took FIVE whole minutes to actually do their jobs, they would discover the real problem...Which, like you, was my self esteem.

I worked a lot on improving myself, and though, I am far from Mr. perfect, was able to swing myself out of my situational depression.

This pisses me off to no end. There is ABSOLUTELY NO responsibility taken by the health system anymore. It's nothing more than a business like any other.

Ignorant and selfish parents who actually believe that bringing life to their child is more than enough to call it having their parental obligation fulfilled, will seek doctors for every damn nuance their child posesses for the sole purpose of a quick fix to their problems, real or imagined.

As Nitzche would say: "Parenting is dead."

Drug companies and doctors alike, revel in this aspect. Playing upon the parents self-denials of "I'm just too busy these days, with my career and all to be able to properly spend the time to help my child naturally." they get away with absolutely ludicrouse statements about the current drug being the child's only salvation.

Which brings me to a question: Do you thing there is a special sub-college for doctors and psychiatrists to attend, where they are taught the basic fundamentals of being able to say that garbage to parents and in front of news cameras with a straight face?

 

[kis123]

Here's a slight twist

The jury's not completely out regarding drug therapy. I do completely agree that doctors are way too quick to prescribe. But, there are instances where the proper medication along with observation will bring change in the child/individual.

For those of you who may have joined the board yesterday, my oldest child is autistic and mentally and emotionally handicapped. During his adolescence, I ended up unemployed. Why? I wasn't able to work a job past three months without the multiple calls from the school. He ran away and would get into trouble with the law. I would have to call into the police after curfew so I wouldn't be liable for his actions even more than the legal standards. He'd run away and steal from stores-did I mention he was also obsessive-compulsive?

The doctors came in droves with all of their drug therapy. He turned into a zombie who slept all day and still ran away, stole, and was as defiant as hell. Finally, his actions landed him into a group home and that's where we started to work on serious change.

We got rid of the county knuckleheads who blamed me for his problems as opposed to admitting he needed placement. If there's anyone reading this that is in social work, I apologize in advance, but they were complete and total shi*heads! My child was bounced from organization to organization because even though he is disabled, he was too high functioning for county placement. Instead of saying that, they repeatedly blamed me.

I ended up losing my daughter over this because she couldn't take any more!! She ended up living with her father (where she still is today) because everyone played the blame game while my family was being held hostage by a 16-yr old child!!

My son finally got the medical aid he needed-a drug named ambilify-a mood stabilizer. It has saved the life of him and my entire family! He's back to the sweet-natured, mild-mannered person he always had been before adolscence, hormones, and chemical imbalances had gone haywire.

Now, his doctors want to take him off the meds so they can see if he can do without it. The first time they tried, he was miserable, but they had convinced him he could live a normal life without the drugs. Well, me, his sister, his employer, and the group home thoroughly disagreed based on the behaviors post drug removal.

I told his psychiatrist that she can continue to delude him into thinking he can be drug free, but he can't stay at my home without his medications. He has decided (recluctantly) that he'd rather be home on the weekends with me on low-dose meds than to be stuck in the group home without them.

He's on the lowest dose allowed, but he needs the meds. He's just so much more mild-mannered and sweet natured with them. Without them, he's borderline demonic. I can't put it any plainer than that.

About the effexor issue:

I took that a few years ago for panic attacks and depression-the stuff was the "bomb" for me. I don't like becoming dependent on meds, so I have the tendency to take myself off when I see the need changing.

If you are chemically imbalanced and you truly see a difference in your life when you take the medications, by all means, take the meds. The alternative could be fatal. Yes, a lot of kids are being overmedicated, but some of them do need some help. Just be a real parent and observe, monitor, and input on a regular basis. Let those organizations know that you're on top of things or they will try to treat you like the village idiot!

I'm sorry this took so long, but I feel that I had something to seriously contribute and I hope it helps someone out there.