Advance in medical science and study of behavioural science is a great boon to human beings. We live in a world that is riddled with ailments related to mental and physical health conditions. The workings of the human brain is, still a big mystery to medical science but technology and advancement in science helps us to identify certain behavioural ailments very early in life. One of the most common among them is “Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder” (ADHD). As the name suggests the disorder causes unusual hyperactivity and lack of attentiveness in young children. Research shows that as the child grows, this disorder if left untreated can lead to long-term behavioural disorders including substance and drug abuse. The disorder is also one of the most common ones that are treated psychiatrically. The debate continues on whether children should be administered psychiatric drugs so early in their life.
Life of Alex
We will look at this argument based on Alex, a 12-year old boy who has been diagnosed ADHD. Alex is an overweight boy with, inherent self-esteem issues. We see that very early in the video. His parents mention how he showed signs of depression and had very little sense of self worth. Alexis is currently under regular medication, which has helped him with his depression. Doctors have hinted that he has to prepare himself for a live of regular medication. The doctors say that his depression is because of a chemical imbalance cause in his brain and that getting rid of the Attention deficit disorder will get rid of his depression. Dr. Yancey prescribes stimulants for Alex. Stimulants on a person with normal hormonal balance, increases brain activity, but in a person with an imbalance like Alex’s it has a calming effect which, takes away the feelings of depression from his mind. But does it really remove the feelings of depression or does it just numb the brain temporarily? We can infer that the problem is only arrested temporarily as the doctors insist that he has to continue medication throughout his life. So there is a very good chance that Alex will develop dependence to the stimulant. It cannot be ignored that such dependence will cause other problems in his adult life. There is also a good chance that the drug can slow down the process of development of Alex’s brain because of the numbing or calming effect the drug has on his brain. We can definitely see that psychiatric treatment for young children may help with the existing condition but runs the risk of creating other new disorders and other physiological and medical conditions in adult life.
However we also see how his depression was becoming a threat to his own life. In this situation let us see if the treatment is justified from this point of view? ADHD is known to occur side by side with other conditions in the brain, which makes it difficult to diagnose correctly. If we base the disorder on neurologist Xavier Castellanos’ findings we can see that it is more of like a shut down or disorder or underdevelopment in one section of the brain. This underdevelopment probably causes the distraction and lack of focus that is characteristic of ADD or ADHD. Therefore although there are no conclusive results that ADHD causes depression. The depression can be due to the fact that the person is unable to focus and find himself capable to doing anything well. In a way Dr. Yancey is right in saying that curing his ADHD can get rid of his depression. But we also see that the stimulants do not offer any cure, they only offer temporary relief.
Alex’s Parents
Let us view the situation from the point of view of Alex’s parents. They seem like nurturing parents and are visibly distraught at the trauma that their son is going through. His mother even mentions how she does not reprimand him even if he misbehaves and throws a temper tantrum as, she understands the pain that her son is going through. Alex’s parents do not understand the reason why their son is depressed. We can see that his depression could be largely due to his social situation. His friends make fun of his weight and are mean to him. This could have aggravated his depressed state of mind. But we have no evidence that this is what caused the depression in the first place. ADHD can be a hereditary condition or a genetic disorder. Have either of his parents had ADD in their childhood or gone undiagnosed? Research on behavioural disorders is a very recent activity. People in the previous generation could have had similar problems with focus and hyperactivity and outgrown it or disregarded whichever the case maybe. So I would think that it is important to figure out a family history or even if Alex’s mother suffered from depression at any point of her life or when she was pregnant with Alex.
Alex mentions that he is unable to focus o anything but his video games. Could it be a simple case of disinterest in academics? It is not unusual for a child to buckle under the pressure of what society considers normal behaviour. The fact that he is able to focus on video games proves that he does not suffer from complete lack of focus. Is it possible that a bit more intense therapy would have bought some other hidden problem to light? While it is completely understandable that his parents were scared that Alex would harm his own life, we do have to ask based on the above argument if they feel that they have done all they can to get the best treatment for Alex?
Conclusion
It may seem that the article is over simplifying the real problem of ADHD in some areas, I wish to emphasise that the article does not refute the fact that ADHD is a disorder rather the argument is more from the standpoint of psychiatric treatment of ADHD. I have to however disagree with Citizen’s Commission on Human Rights’ (CCHR) chairman Bruce Wiseman viewpoint that psychiatry is witchcraft and not a science. Psychiatry is a science that is developing and still forming its roots and has helped many with mental disorders. But it is arguable if psychiatric treatment is right to treat young children for disorder’s like ADHD at a time when science is still perplexed by the functions of the brain and not able to ascertain what is the exact cause of ADHD. Especially if it is a condition that only impacts on the quality of a child's work and not his capabilities. It is however not the fault of the parents because they want the best for their child and want to protect him from a judgemental society.
Works Cited
“Alex’s Story.” Medicating Kids. WGBH Educational foundation. April 10. 2001.Video
