[Lenduro]

I've been thinking about this for a while when it was mentioned in my class a long time ago. More and more children these days are being diagnosed with these two disorders. Many children are normally hyperactive and have a short attention span. But children's behaviors, with plausible cases of ADD or ADHD, are distinct from these 'normal' behaviors. However, my professor commented that although they are real problems, they tend to be one of most over-diagnosed. Sometimes there may be a different behavioral problem or that the child has no problem at all. Thoughts on why do you think this is?

One of my friends was diagnosed with ADD at an early age. She was put on Ritalin for a short time. She told me that her parents found her to be more like a "zombie" rather than an actual child. They ended up putting her off the medication and instead dealt with her as she was. Now she takes prescription amphetamines. lol

For those who or know someone who has been diagnosed, do you think the drugs actually do more good than harm?

If your child was diagnosed with ADD or ADHD, would you be skeptical on the diagnosis? If not, would you be wary of putting him/her on medication or just be, "Dammit, I can't deal with this kid! He needs to be put on meds!"? lol

[Mannosuke]

Aside from all the medical and technical details, what are the immediate social consequences that actually affect me such that I would actually have to consider putting them on medication?

[adiavoy]

I had one classmate with ADD... he was a pain in the @ss, even when he was on his medication, he was still hyper. *sigh*

[Lenduro]

Aside from all the medical and technical details, what are the immediate social consequences that actually affect me such that I would actually have to consider putting them on medication?

Off the top of my head, I can't think of anything immediate. Eventually, maybe marriage. The cause of marital problems are often times about children. Many couples may not usually agree with parenting, discipline, etc. issues such that a raising child can be a stressor in a marriage. Raising a child with ADD/ADHD adds in whole new circumstances. One of them may be about dealing with how a child's disruptive and/or any behavior should be managed. You might see something as a problem and your partner might not. Your partner may see the disorder itself as a problem and needs treating and you might not. And if you do agree that it is a problem, you may disagree on what you should do about it. (i.e. medication or not?)

Something similar can happen with your child's siblings. You may invest more time and attention to your little "problem" child. In turn, the other one may become neglected, as such that he becomes detached from you. The sibling may also actually start complaining to you about your child with ADD/ADHDH's behavioral problems.