Comments on: Is It Safe to Medicate Our Child with ADHD? https://www.additudemag.com/slideshows/what-are-the-side-effects-of-adhd-medication-on-kids/ ADHD symptom tests, ADD medication & treatment, behavior & discipline, school & learning essentials, organization and more information for families and individuals living with attention deficit and comorbid conditions Wed, 04 Dec 2024 15:31:45 +0000 hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.6.2 By: rADD_dADD https://www.additudemag.com/slideshows/what-are-the-side-effects-of-adhd-medication-on-kids/#comment-118217 Tue, 22 Sep 2020 13:10:07 +0000 https://www.additudemag.com/slideshows/should-we-medicate-our-child/#comment-118217 I was always in the group that felt that we over-medicate our kids, and that even adults over-medicate. I’ve modified my feelings somewhat, though, through having experience with my kid with ADD, and after learning more about mental health. I’ve always felt that if there’s a valid reason to medicate, then it’s OK. But making up reasons, or exaggerating reasons, was not OK. I think it’s OK for kids to act like kids, and some are a little wild and unfocused. And so when my son was diagnosed with ADD in 4th grade, I was leery about putting him on meds. But, I learned, with ADD meds, if a kid doesn’t have ADD, then the meds don’t help. So I knew if there was no improvement, we could take him off right away. I’ll say this…in January of his 4th grade year, it was looking like we were going to have to hold him back. He was a grade behind in reading, and behind in every subject. And the bad part, is that he’s a very smart kid. But then he was diagnosed with ADD, and we made the move to put him on meds. By April/May, he had caught up in all of his classes, and in reading he had caught up and then bumped up a grade ahead.

So now when asked, if a kid is diagnosed with ADD and struggling in school, then try the meds. There’s no shame, no reason to be embarrassed. But I think in most situations, a noticeable difference will occur.

As a side note, as I was going through paperwork to see if my son had ADD, I learned that I have ADD. I’ve been self-medicating with ridiculous amounts of coffee my whole adult life. But if only I knew about ADD back when I was a kid, I think my school experience would have been totally different. But in the 1980s no one really new about ADD. You had the hyper kids, which we now know as ADHD, but I didn’t fall into that category.

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