Hi everyone! ( From a Clinical Psycholgist in Training)
May 2012.
I've seen some great responses from the topic I previously posted in relation to whether mental illness does actually exist or whether it is just a label to use for behaviour which we perceive to be abnormal.
To continue this debate further, as is happening during my lectures, I would like to gain peoples views of ADHD. During the lecture, I learnt that the majority of ADHD diagnoses may be treated with Ritalin and diagnostic criteria can include things such as 'the child will not sit still', 'the child will not listen' (not sure if these are accurate). I also learnt that teachers have a major influence on the psychiatrist's/doctor's awareness of the childs behaviour and, in America at least, a school is provided more money if they have a pupil attending the school who has been diagnosed with ADHD; make of that what you will. We are still at a very early stage in the debate within the lectures so I apologise if this comes across a bit biased, I am still very open minded about this issue so far, but what does everyone think about ADHD in terms of it being a mental illness? Is it really a mental illness or just a term used to describe an over-active, energetic child who is causing teachers/parents hassle?
At the moment I think I am favouring towards the latter...apparently, ADHD was a rarity in the 60s/70s, when children were more likely to use up energy playing outside instead of nowadays when they are on a computer/watching TV the majority of time. Could it be that children now have more energy in need of using up, which would explain things such as not being able to sit still, etc? Also, does anyone know if it is still the case that the majority of diagnoses are treated with ritalin? Why have psychological therapies not been considered compared to psychotropic medication?
Thoughts please!
I've seen some great responses from the topic I previously posted in relation to whether mental illness does actually exist or whether it is just a label to use for behaviour which we perceive to be abnormal.
To continue this debate further, as is happening during my lectures, I would like to gain peoples views of ADHD. During the lecture, I learnt that the majority of ADHD diagnoses may be treated with Ritalin and diagnostic criteria can include things such as 'the child will not sit still', 'the child will not listen' (not sure if these are accurate). I also learnt that teachers have a major influence on the psychiatrist's/doctor's awareness of the childs behaviour and, in America at least, a school is provided more money if they have a pupil attending the school who has been diagnosed with ADHD; make of that what you will. We are still at a very early stage in the debate within the lectures so I apologise if this comes across a bit biased, I am still very open minded about this issue so far, but what does everyone think about ADHD in terms of it being a mental illness? Is it really a mental illness or just a term used to describe an over-active, energetic child who is causing teachers/parents hassle?
At the moment I think I am favouring towards the latter...apparently, ADHD was a rarity in the 60s/70s, when children were more likely to use up energy playing outside instead of nowadays when they are on a computer/watching TV the majority of time. Could it be that children now have more energy in need of using up, which would explain things such as not being able to sit still, etc? Also, does anyone know if it is still the case that the majority of diagnoses are treated with ritalin? Why have psychological therapies not been considered compared to psychotropic medication?
Thoughts please!
"He who would learn to fly one day must first
learn to stand and walk and run and climb and dance; one cannot fly into
flying".
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