FAMILY PRESSURED TO PUT S0N ON RITALIN

Associated Press .. direct feed | August 8, 2002

[GovernmentShrinker]

I believe the problem rests with adults who view children as miniature adults and expect, nay, demand the deportment of adults from them.

I disagree. Before all the new-fangled leftist education and child-rearing ideologies came into vogue, parents and teachers routinely demanded that children behave "like adults" most of the time -- and the children did. The trouble now is that many parents and teachers don't want to be bothered with demanding and enforcing certain behavior from children. It's so much easier to have them drugged into compliance, and spares the loony-lefties from having to confront and abandon their silly ideologies about letting children (and everybody else) do whatever they want whenever they want.

They keep right on with their fantasy which runs like this:

1) Nobody should impose rules, values, etc. on anyone else;

2) Left to decide for themselves, all normal people will be cooperative and participate fully and eagerly in all the leftist indoctrination programs that are provided for their own good;

3) Anyone who doesn't decide to behave this way has a mental illness, and must be drugged for their own good as well as for the good of society.

Unfortunately for them, reality runs like this:

1) Responsible adults have not only the right but the moral obligation to impose rules and values on children;

2) It is perfectly normal for children to put up resistance to said rules and values;

3) Responsible adults have a further right and moral obligation to meet said resistance with such greater resistance as is required to ensure compliance.

[alisasny]

THANKS FOR YOUR POST.

My situation is proof positive that something is wrong.

My son did not qualify for special ed, ( like I didn't know he would not prior) however the public school insisted they would not let him into second grade unless I had him medicated.

He was in private school until end of first grade.

He was in a private school with very high standards that my child could not meet. They offered to have him repeat 1st grade but I just could not do that to him so I opted for the public school.

[BossLady]

http://www.drugawareness.org/home.html

This is an awesome website sponsored by Dr Ann Tracy. Tons of great info and articles.

True...once you get meds on your record through insurance or other means....you are basically tagged. If the drugs are 'OK' to take....why tag people????

[backhoe]

Let's link that:

-http://www.drugawareness.org/home.html--

[Old philosopher]

You sound like an NEA Troll.

In the area where I live a commitee of three school teachers in each school evaluates the student, and if they reccomend that the child be put on Ritalin the parents have an extremely difficult time opposing the action. In this one school district almost 25% of the children are classified as having ADD or ADHD.

Several years ago I questioned the qualifications and right of Teachers to make the evaluation of ADD, or ADHD and I quote the answer given to me by one Teacher "Doctors can not make the determination because they are not in the close contact with the child that the teacher has, only a teacher would be familiar enough with the child to recognize the problem"

One close acquaintance of mine spent almost a year getting his daughter removed from the Special Ed classification even when his physician determined that there was nothing wrong with her.

As to the claim that 45% of her friendly psychiatrist's Ritalin patients being home schooled children, it flies in the face of reality. One of the reasons that many HS mothers take their children out of the Public School System is to keep them out of reach of the "Expert Diagnostic Teachers" who are responsible for putting children into these drug programs. I doubt that many HS mothers would even take their children to a SHRINK to begin with.

[NYer]

Let's link that:

I strongly recommend that you visit the following links:

DR. BREGGIN

LDONLINE

WRIGHTSLAW

[backhoe]

Good links- thanks!

[pray4liberty]

I find that my son gets hyperactive after eating anything with red dye in it, candy, and sugared cereal. Oddly enough, a swallow of coffee also seems to help. It's a much better alternative than Ritalin.

Maybe kids need a little coffee to get focused like we do?

[pray4liberty]

When I was in elementary school, the teacher stood there with a whistle and watched us kids do three laps around the schoolyard. The boys got an extra lap. She never had a problem with hyperactivity in her class.

Nowadays, hyperactive boys don't even get recess! They have to run that energy off.

[pray4liberty]

I forgot to post that my son no longer eats sugared cereal and has candy only on special occasions. If we would only look at the sugar content in most breakfast cereals, we would realize we, too, are drugging our children with a high-energy drug and then telling them to sit still in class. What a recipe for frustration and disaster.

[NYer]

I find that my son gets hyperactive after eating anything with red dye in it, candy, and sugared cereal.

A coworker's son, assessed as ADHD, was put on ritalin in Kindergarten. The parents noticed a dramatic change in his temperament. During school breaks, they would stop the ritalin and his behavior would return to norml, albeit a bit hyperactive ... hey, he's a boy doing what boys do naturally.

By the end of Kindergarten, they decided to look into alternative treatments. They took him to a nutritionist. After running a battery of tests, she put him on a special diet ... all of those "kiddie" cereals, pumped up with artificial colors and sugar were banned, as were the same type of snacks and beverages. He calmed down and they sent him off to first grade, drug free. Their son, in coming off the ritalin, described the experience as "coming out of a cloud" where other voices were directing him.

You are on the right track! Visit Dr. Breggin's web site and you'll understand the long term, permanent damage from ritalin and the other psychotic drugs.

[alisasny]

I really hope that the choice to put my son on Ritalin and other similar drugs for that short period of time did no permanent damage. ( i did make the choice after huge research)

When you wrote earlier that is normal, I kept saying that to myself....my son is pretty great. He is, just spent a few moments together and he asked why I was smiling at him, I said cause I like you, he said no you dont, I said, oh your mad cause you had to come in now, he said yeah.....it was a great scene and I just pray that year of drugs didnt change a thing

[Wondervixen]

I'd make a deal with them...My child takes Ritalin when you take cyanide.

[FixitGuy]

Interesting to see the backlash against this bizarre situation.

We went through this "coveyor belt" deal with our son: from teacher to school counselor, to psycologist to doctor (IE: drug pusher).

Of course each told the next in line what their diagnosis should be.

As we were seeing the MD., the psycologist came in and mentioned to the doctor, "Oh you might consider the diagnosis of "Depression" rather than ADHD. "Why?' asked the doctor. She replied, "I've reviewed their insurance and it will only pay for two visits for ADHD!"

I was stunned that the both of them thought we were that stupid!

Also made me wonder how many childrens lives were ruined as they try to come off this stuff as adults with no behavior modification in the program.

[3D-JOY]

I am so glad to see you express the opinion about running off the excess energy.

I taught elementary physical education and was always available for a little extra activity between classes. Sometimes the kids were lined up at the door as a class left.

Then in came the UNIONS and I was not allowed to offer extra help since there had been no provision for extra compensation!!

I went home and had my own babies and stayed there for 22 years!

[NYer]

my son is pretty great

Consider too that boys are very different from girls, both physically and emotionally. Boys are more physical and need to burn off some of that energy. It used to be that schools had recess at which times the girls often swang on swings while the boys climbed monkey bars. Kids would often work out their differences by getting into brawls ... but that's no longer allowed, either.

Since the sixties when feminists sought to balance and equalize the sexes, and environmentalists expressed concerned about exposure to certain materials, and school systems expanded the curriculum - boys are now expected to behave like girls, schoolyard swingsets and gym equipment have been scaled down or eliminated, and schools have reduced time spent at recess while increasing after school homework. (That's a long sentence but I think you get the point). Children today, especially the boys, are being denied the time they need to burn off their energy and simply enjoy their childhood. It's no wonder so many of them end up in the psychologist's office (another gift from the sixties).

[Redleg Duke]

I think you and I are closer together on this point than you realize. Too many of the parents are products of leftist "education" and as such, behave that way.

I agree. One of our son's early teachers suggested we put him on medication. I suggested she get off her dead ass and teach. She thought I was barbaric and I told her that if she wanted to find out how totally barbaric I really was, she should just keep doing the piss-poor job she was doing. Somehow, the problem solved itself...and our son is still free of drugs.

[Ravaged Nation]

I doubt that many HS mothers would even take their children to a SHRINK to begin with.

Being a hs, sahm allows me to *really* know my children. (I don't see how a shrink would know the true personality of any child.) My 4th daughter would have been diagnosed as ADD or some such phony diagnosis had I sent her to school and I told my husband that there was no way my daughter was going to be drugged for the convenience of the teacher. Granted she learned things differently but that just meant that *I* have to work with her different learning style. My 6th child (a cute but hyperactive 18 month old) will pose an altogether different challenge since he's a boy. But I think that I'll be able to handle it when the time comes. :)

I have a friend who has a daughter exactly as my 4th daughter and she too refuses to have her daughter drugged. She is a hsing mom.

[GovernmentShrinker]

Funny how that works, isn't it? You probably taught that teacher something she really didn't know before -- and desperately needed to.

[pray4liberty]

I'll tell you, there's nothing like a good run around the schoolyard for the kids. However the schools don't allow it anymore, not only because of the *unions* but liability-- if one kid trips over his own feet and breaks his nose, the school and the teacher will be held responsible. So no one dares suggest it!

Unscrupulous lawyers and litigation have ruined childhood for our kids. I would propose jumping rope as an alternative, but then some Ritalin-drugged kid would probably try to hang himself or another kid from the monkey bars.

Best thing to do is to keep our kids out of public school; but if that is not possible, keep a close watch on what is going on. I fully intend to, as I've had to get back to work and can't homeschool my kids this year.