Posted on 07/11/2006 3:24:49 PM PDT by blam
It could be that the percentage is so high because parents are more likely to pull an ADHD child out of school to spare them. My thoughts were just that homeschooled kids would have more opportunity to move and get rid of the energy so that a normally active child would not be misdiagnosed when they are just bored. But if truly ADHD children are homeschooled at a higher rate, that would throw off the numbers.
I don't try to get into why people home school, no more than I try to get in why any school is chosen. Kids are who they are and we as parents have to make our best choice at the time.
My gut tells me that more ADHD kids are in public schools than home schools because I don't think most parents have the patience to handle these bundles of energies. I can't tell you how many times I have parents tell me how bad their kids are after the weekend or after vacation. It's just a thought, not sure of anything.
BTW, good catch on that vanilla flavoring. But, I bet it wasn't too much of an accident, I imagine you were like we were, looking at everything that set him off. Is he still sensitive to it?
I would bet many times as many die from vaccinations. It is pretty obvious whether it works or not. If the person is more calm after taking it, bingo. I just think they need to find something else for children. 10 mg of Ritalin in a 50 lb (or less) child is ALOT! I think in most cases the children under 18 need to be placed in a controlled environment rather than medication. Even though I don't think it is killing them, I don't think it is possible that all the cases in children are correct diagnoses. But trust me, it is real. Just a note: Zoloft seems to be really good for certain types of depression and doesn't give the patient a drugged feeling. Many times things like Prozac work only because the patient doesn't give a crap. The problem is still there, but they are standing beside themselves looking in, and could care less. Zoloft is definitely a great cure for IBS without feeling drugged in any way.
I don't know if it still bothers him or not. He's 16 now and loves to eat good (real) food so doesn't bother with the baked goods that usually contain it. When we do bake at home (which he also does a fair share of) we use real vanilla flavoring.
I'd guess he still is sensitive. If it's some kind of chemical reaction, as opposed to an allergy, it's unlikely that he would outgrow it like you can with an allergy.
BTW, I have a friend whose son was sensitive like that to Red#40. It was like Dr. Jekyl and Mr. Hyde. This normally nice kid would get downright vicious when he had it. She could ALWAYS tell. But off it, he was a really nice kid.
[BS. I've had this mess all my life.]
I totally sympathize and agree. I'm right there with you. I have ADD too. The problem with me is that I hyperfocus on one thing. Whatever I focus on I will know it backwards and forwards. If it is a subject I'm interested in I will have read about 20 books on it at least. But meanwhile I forget to pay my bills, return phonecalls or do paperwork at my job. I could go on and on, but I will stop there.
That's about how many reasons we had for homeschooling ourselves. I could not really pinpoint any one that was the deciding factor.
Sounds like you're exactly describing my daughters.
Every time you pick up a paper, you read about recess becoming optional or just being deleted. Or they limit what the kids can do at recess...Dodgeball is out...too dangerous...Tag is hazardous...no monkey bars, teeter totters or swings, lawsuits waiting to happen (okay, so the teeter totters really ARE dangerous...)...playing Red Rover? I don't think so.
So they completely remove any kind of spontaneous activity...which is the root of playground joy and fun. You can only play what they let you play.
And they wonder why kids are hyperactive in class.
One thing I found that worked well for our kids, aside from the dietary things, was having them join the local Y swim team. When they were putting in enough hours a week in the water, it really settled them down. A week after the season ended, I could see a big difference in how they behaved at home and how they treated each other. That's why I'm such a big fan of getting them moving.
My youngest daughter, also 19, kept getting into trouble at school because she gave teachers she didn't like a difficult time. The teachers complained that she had ADHD, which mysteriously disappeared when she took a class from a teacher she liked.
I took her to the counseling sessions, but did not put her on drugs, and she managed to graduate from high school in the middle of her class.
Now she is working to earn money for college, her goal is to become a therapist and work with disabled children.
My daughter's story is similar to yours, SoftballMom.
She was diagnosed by doctors at age 19, and the help she got changed her life. She was never hyperactive (except within her mind), and no teachers pushed any diagnosis or medication. She begged for help herself, after years of silent frustration. She went from an absolutely desperate state, to highly successful college senior in just a few years. What she suffered was painfully REAL.
I may be ignurnt, but I do know a sentence is supposed to have a period at the end of it. < /sarcasm>
Go get yourself a medical degree,complete an internship and residency and then spend some time in the research labs of Harvard,Yale,Columbia,the NIH,or the CDC and we'll talk.
I wish it was as simple as too little dopamine, or exercise or food allergies or loose parenting or bad teaching or any number of things you want to throw out, but it wasn't. It is however part of her and we love her because of it, in spite of it, with it or without it. She is our beloved gift and we celebrate everyone of her victories.
So, you are one of those that don't deal with this in your life or in the lives of one that you love. Count yourself lucky.
Nope. Those who have it and/or have children with it know better. Yes, there are some who are mis-diagnosed, but that doesn't support the conclusion that all diagnoses are false.
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