1
Consider the idea that medication dependent children will grow up to be drug dependent adults.
Personally, I think with the passing of the Affordable Care Act, some positive changes were made.
Children can stay on their parents' insurance plans into their twenties now, versus moving out and being unprotected in the event of illness or injury - this is a step in the right direction...but what happens when they reach that point where they are no longer covered by the ACA - and they are working to pay the bills, and they get sick... Well, they should have purchased insurance, you say. It is the law now... Still, some young people can not afford to rent their own place, let alone have the "luxury" of health insurance. Young adults, without children, working, but still without insurance - it is a common scenario and it puts them in a very bad place... if they are sick or injured, it puts their entire future on the line. Even with insurance, if these individuals miss work due to an illness, there is no mandated sick leave for them. They can lose everything simply for being sick. That doesn't sound right... There needs to be some major discussion about the kinds of reforms we need on this subject.
But I digress.. back to the issue of medicated children.
We live in a culture full of parents that seek medication as an easy out for things that can be handled through natural practices. Often times parents let the media, gaming devices, or technology babysit their children to avoid the difficulties of the interactions.
For example - I know so many diagnosed & medicated ADHD that need no medication when they are engaged in things they enjoy like video games, shopping, leisure reading, journaling, even building computers, yet when they are to do something they do not want to do, like school work, they "can't sit still" and need their (insert medication here). Regarding the diagnosis and treatment of personality and behavioral disorders in children - If he doesn't do his homework, it is ADD. If he doesn't do his homework and says it is because he can't focus on it, it is ADHD. Either way, there is a medication for it.
Perhaps if there was nothing else to focus on, this wouldn't be an issue. Maybe if the internet was disconnected while he typed his paper, or his cell phone was in the other room, or maybe if there was a punishment for not completing assignments... I see parents that do not even explore those options, but simply head to the pharmacist and get him a pill to help him focus.
Some people have legitimate issues with attention deficit and medicine may be their only hope, and I am not shaming those people or degrading them. I have personally suffered from personality/behavioral issues myself, and I relate to the issue on that level.
It is just, I see so many parents jump on the "drug your kid" band wagon rather than seek counseling, therapies, or proper disciplines for behavioral issues. It is creating a culture, more so a generation, of medication dependent children that will grow into medication (drug) dependent adults.
If the message is to medicate yourself to be more focused, more productive, and to succeed...what happens when these medications are no longer covered under mom and dad's insurance and the once child is now left to find an alternative to that feeling...or they began to seek another kind of fix...
It might seem like a bizarre thought process to those who do not spend a lot of time around medicated adults, high adults, or addict adults... but we, me and those in my line of work, are seeing this trend. It is a side effect of the medication trend in parenting...
I just got off work and this was on my mind. It isn't as organized or as concise as I would like it to be, but I just wanted to get it out.
Personally, I think with the passing of the Affordable Care Act, some positive changes were made.
Children can stay on their parents' insurance plans into their twenties now, versus moving out and being unprotected in the event of illness or injury - this is a step in the right direction...but what happens when they reach that point where they are no longer covered by the ACA - and they are working to pay the bills, and they get sick... Well, they should have purchased insurance, you say. It is the law now... Still, some young people can not afford to rent their own place, let alone have the "luxury" of health insurance. Young adults, without children, working, but still without insurance - it is a common scenario and it puts them in a very bad place... if they are sick or injured, it puts their entire future on the line. Even with insurance, if these individuals miss work due to an illness, there is no mandated sick leave for them. They can lose everything simply for being sick. That doesn't sound right... There needs to be some major discussion about the kinds of reforms we need on this subject.
But I digress.. back to the issue of medicated children.
We live in a culture full of parents that seek medication as an easy out for things that can be handled through natural practices. Often times parents let the media, gaming devices, or technology babysit their children to avoid the difficulties of the interactions.
For example - I know so many diagnosed & medicated ADHD that need no medication when they are engaged in things they enjoy like video games, shopping, leisure reading, journaling, even building computers, yet when they are to do something they do not want to do, like school work, they "can't sit still" and need their (insert medication here). Regarding the diagnosis and treatment of personality and behavioral disorders in children - If he doesn't do his homework, it is ADD. If he doesn't do his homework and says it is because he can't focus on it, it is ADHD. Either way, there is a medication for it.
Perhaps if there was nothing else to focus on, this wouldn't be an issue. Maybe if the internet was disconnected while he typed his paper, or his cell phone was in the other room, or maybe if there was a punishment for not completing assignments... I see parents that do not even explore those options, but simply head to the pharmacist and get him a pill to help him focus.
Some people have legitimate issues with attention deficit and medicine may be their only hope, and I am not shaming those people or degrading them. I have personally suffered from personality/behavioral issues myself, and I relate to the issue on that level.
It is just, I see so many parents jump on the "drug your kid" band wagon rather than seek counseling, therapies, or proper disciplines for behavioral issues. It is creating a culture, more so a generation, of medication dependent children that will grow into medication (drug) dependent adults.
If the message is to medicate yourself to be more focused, more productive, and to succeed...what happens when these medications are no longer covered under mom and dad's insurance and the once child is now left to find an alternative to that feeling...or they began to seek another kind of fix...
It might seem like a bizarre thought process to those who do not spend a lot of time around medicated adults, high adults, or addict adults... but we, me and those in my line of work, are seeing this trend. It is a side effect of the medication trend in parenting...
I just got off work and this was on my mind. It isn't as organized or as concise as I would like it to be, but I just wanted to get it out.
Your point is totally valid, as an adult who just chose to go back on my medication for my attention issues it wasn't a light one. I also wasn't put on medication for it until I was in high school and my grades soared, I can only imagine if my parents had been more observant earlier on of my needs. I got by, but on my medication I didn't struggle to focus for more than a few minutes (on anything music, sports, school work, etc.)
I think a lot of parents do jump the gun however with medication. There are a lot of things that contribute to hyperactivity and other things on the mental health spectrum that relate directly to our diets. Beginning with the refined sugars, dyes, and all those other goodies.
Thankfully I live in Canada and my prescription medication is fairly inexpensive =3 Thank you for your insights =)