The ADD & ADHD Answer Book: Professional Answers to 275 of the Top Questions Parents Ask by Susan Ashley Ph.d

Author:Susan Ashley Ph.d.
Language: eng
Format: mobi
ISBN: 9781402205491
Publisher: Sourcebooks
Published: 2005-09-01T21:00:00+00:00

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C h a p t e r 7

MEDICATION

■ Should I medicate my child?

■ Is medication being overprescribed?

■ Why is medication use on the rise?

■ Which children are most likely to be prescribed medication?

■ What is the controversy about medication?

■ What can medication do to help?

■ Will medication stop all the symptoms?

■ Is medication alone enough?

■ Does medication improve a child’s ability to learn?

■ What types of medication are used to treat AD/HD?

■ How do stimulant medications work?

■ What are the side effects of stimulant medication?

■ How are the side effects of stimulant medication managed?

■ Can stimulant medication cause tics?

■ What is sustained release medication?

■ What are the types of nonstimulant medications used?

■ What are the side effects of nonstimulant medication?

■ Is medication necessary on nonschool days?

■ Is the medication addictive?

■ Does stimulant medication lead to later drug use?

■ What are the long-term effects of medication?

■ How long will my child have to take medication?

■ How do children feel about taking medication?

■ What do I do if my child refuses to take medications?

■ Does medication teach children that they need pills to succeed?

■ How do parents feel about giving their child medication?

■ What factors should I consider before giving my child medication?

■ Will I experience pressure to medicate my child?

■ How do I resist pressure to give my child medication?

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The ADD and ADHD Answer Book

Should I medicate my child?

The decision to give your child psychiatric medication is a highly personal one; one that should be made only after a thorough evaluation, in-depth consultation with the prescribing physician, and a chance to educate yourself about the various medications and nonmedication treatment options. You must make the time to become an informed consumer, as medication is almost always the first option presented, and in many cases the only option.

There are pros and cons of medication. It is a game of balancing benefits with side effects and determining if the positive results out-weigh the negative side effects. Only you can decide which way the scales balance.

Be prepared to hear from teachers, parents, and physicians that you absolutely should medicate your child. You will hear that over 70 percent of children taking medication receive positive benefits.

Parents will tell you that medication made their child a completely different person. You will hear praises of medication that will make you wish you put it in your child’s baby bottle!

Despite the praise medication receives, you must know from the beginning that medication is not a cure. Nor is it a miracle. It is a tool that helps some children with some of the symptoms, some of the time.

Is medication being overprescribed?

There is no doubt that far more prescriptions are being written in the past fifteen years than in the years previous.

Rates of stimulant medication consumption provided by the International Narcotics Control Board reveal an overall increase of 87 percent in Denmark, France, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Spain, Sweden, and the United Kingdom when usage during 1994 to 1997 was compared to usage during 1998 to 2000.

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