I think the use of SSRIs in young brains is the issues. Our brains don't stop growing when we hit 18, they continue to grow until about our mid-to-early 20s. I think they should not be prescribed to our young adult males...I think more behavior modification would be more helpful to them. Just my 2¢.
Yeah, young brains is a different story. A lot of behavior things going on in the youth/adolescent range. Hormones for one thing.
Certainly, they are in a stage where they are more apt to learning, which would make behavior mod a good match. Well, for much of the time. I can imagine (not an expert by any stretch) that there are cases that require a different or more intense approach.
Thinking now of this, I student taught in 1978 in the first mainstream class in a large central high school in the south. Mainstreaming today is law under the IDEA act, a good piece of legal protection for parents and children, ensuring they can receive the needed help for students with learning disabilities to be successful in the classroom. Sometimes these students require behavioral or other medications to allow them to function in a regular classroom environment with proper accommodations.
On the other hand, there are also accommodations given for students with behavioral challenges that inhibit their ability to function successfully in the classroom. These students fall under the “504” law which is administered through the Administrators (Principal’s) office instead of the Special Education department of the public schools.
Would be interesting research to see if those students (and adults) on these meds were documented with IEP (Individual Education Plans) and under the IDEA Special Ed guidelines and supervision (very strict compliance standards) or the 504 behavioral Administrative (less strict) guidelines?
Remember, the law requires the school to provide “the least restrictive” learning environment to both students and even governs how these students are disciplined (quite different than students w/o IEPs). These students will also be more likely statistically to be taking prescriptions that modify behavior or mood.
Mainstreaming may be a good intention hijacked by those with less than honorable intentions (think DS)?