|
Basic InformationMore InformationTestsLatest NewsQuestions and AnswersVideosHow to Select the Best School Accommodations for Your Child with ADHDHow to Manage ADHD and AnxietyWhat You Need to Know about Students with ADHD and AnxietyADHD and Eating Tourette Syndrome and ADHD Homework, Organization, and Time Management Strategies to Help Kids with ADHDNutrition in Support of ADHD TreatmentBehavioral Therapy: What it is and finding a therapist Project-Based Learning and ADHD Conditions May Mimic ADHDDepartment of Education Guidance Broadens Understanding of 504 Rights for Kids with ADHD Part I Treating ADHD in the African American CommunityHow to Build Self-Motivation in Teens with ADHDGoal Setting and Keeping for the ADHD BrainNeurofeedback Treatment for ADHDADHD in Preschoolers: What to Look For and How to HelpFYI on ADHD Evaluations Teaching Grit, Perseverance and Frustration Tolerance to Students with ADHD Does my Child Have ADHD? How to Start Eating Well When You Have ADHD 5 Solutions for Common ADHD Social StrugglesIs My High School Student Ready for College? (And Is My College Student Ready to Go Back?) Understanding and Applying the Science of Time ManagementADHD Medication and College Students: Prevent Misuse, Abuse, and DiversionImprove Homework Time with Strategies That Work For ADHD Student Voices: What Really Matters to Young Adults With Learning and Attention Issues 5 Ways Nutrition can Impact ADHD Symptoms 3 Tips for Adjusting to a New Diagnosis of ADHDCreating the Best Learning Environment for Students with ADHD ADHD & Executive FunctioningDepartment of Education Guidance Broadens Understanding of 504 Rights for Kids with ADHD Part II Ask The Expert: Neurofeedback Treatment for ADHDADHD and Suicide Risk FactorsThe Choice is in the Details: Medication Options for ADHDUnderstanding and Supporting Young Adults with ADHDHelping Your Young Adult Become IndependentCreating Structure and Routines for Children with ADHDWhen You and Your Child Have ADHD - Communication Skills to Resolve ConflictGuidance for Uncertain Times: Navigating Relationship ChallengesGuidance for Uncertain Times: Mindful Parenting Couples with ADHD: Creating Caring Connection amid the ChaosDisclosure and Workplace Accommodations for Individuals With ADHDA Summer At CampSelf-Advocacy Tips For Teens With ADHDADHD and Curbing Impulsive Spending to Help Your RelationshipADHD: Signs, Symptoms, ResearchADHD & Risk of Adult Drug UseHealth and Life Expectancy in ADHDFocus on ADHDPediatrics: ADHD and Food Allergies ADHD TreatmentADHD: It's a Family AffairDoes Your Child Have ADHD?ADHD in ChildrenLiving with ADHDRise in ADHD Cases in ChildrenWhy is Dating Difficult When You Have ADHDVideo Games, Screens, and ADHD A Potent MixAsk the Expert Helping Children with ADHD LD Conquer Chronic StressAsk the Expert: Mindfulness, Stress, & EmotionAttention Deficit Hyperactivity DisorderAsk the Expert Educator Edition: ADHD & Executive FunctioningAsk the Expert - Academic Evaluations - What Parents Need to Know ADHD and Sibling RelationshipsMedication Treatment for ADHD Using Time Out Treating Childhood ADHD ADHD-friendly Summer Family FUNdamentals Preparing Older Teens for the Road Ahead Tips for Teachers: Tailoring homework to make a difference Your Active Preschooler: Could it be ADHD? Tips for Teachers: Creating a positive dialogue with parents of students with ADHD Helping Parents & Kids Understand the Social & Emotional Aspects of ADHDSocial and Emotional Concerns of Children with ADHD: Strategies to Help Holiday Gifts for Children with ADHDBehavior Management and Combined Treatment for Children with ADHD Setting Realistic School Expectations for Students with ADHD On Their Own: Helping College Students with ADHD Children's Communication Challenges: Is it Attention, Language or Both? Out-of-School: Parenting During the Summer ADHD in the Workplace: Finding Success Emotions and Motivation in ADHDThe Role of Medication in Managing Children's ADHD Symptoms Top Tips for Combating Stigma and Addressing Myths about ADHD Facts and Myths about ADHD What To Do If Your Child Has ADHD? How Common is ADHD? Children, Meds, and Heart Safety: A Tale of ADHD and Public Health ADHD & Your Child’s Transition to CollegeYour Teen with ADHD: Challenges and Strategies for SuccessAsk the Expert - No more homework battles A Frontline to ADHDUnderstanding Girls with ADHD What is ADHD? What To Do When Your Child With ADHD is BulliedStop the Chaos! Tips for Creating a Peaceful Household When Mom has ADHDIs It ADHD?Ask the Expert - What else can I do? Complementary approaches to ADHD treatment All in a row: Getting your kids with ADHD organized Your Student With ADHD Was Admitted to College, Now what? Evidence-based treatment for ADHD in young children Home life when Mom or Dad has ADHD: Succeeding with your family How does technology affect ADHD? Diagnosing ADHD Helping Your Child Successfully Handle Change Recognizing challenging behaviors in young children: Could it be ADHD? Classroom Managment Supports for ADHD Behaviors in Preschool Settings Getting through to your teenager with ADHD What Everyone Should Know about ADHD Make Learning Exciting: Apps for Executive Functioning Teenagers, ADHD, and Substance Abuse Past Procrastination -- Get Your Kids Organized, Focused and MotivatedAsk the Expert: Late, Lost, and Unprepared: How to Help Your Child with Executive Functioning LinksBook Reviews |
| |
by Lawrence H. Diller Bantam Doubleday Dell, 1998 Review by Christian Perring, Ph.D. on Oct 3rd 2000 Lawrence Diller is one of the most eloquent and thoughtful doctors writing for a general readership on the issue of the use of medication for children. His book Running on Ritalin was originally published two years ago. Since then he has written a number of articles for Salon magazine, following up on the latest news concerning Ritalin and the treatment of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. Although there are news items almost every week concerning Ritalin and ADHD, Diller's book remains highly relevant to the debate, and I recommend it highly.
In the thirteen chapters, Diller sets out the clinical, emotional, scientific, economic, legal and social issues relevant to understanding the rise in the use of Ritalin. Diller's discussion of these issues is both clear and thorough. At the end of the book are 33 pages of notes and references for those who want to research more into the issues raised. Although there are many complexities in understanding the issues of medicating children, Diller's position is straightforward and plausible. He argues that while he himself often prescribes Ritalin and agrees that it is often appropriate, all too often Ritalin in prescribed without first exploring other options. Often parents, doctors, and teachers talk as if ADHD were simply a brain dysfunction and they prefer to ignore the emotional issues that family members are facing. There has to be some explanation for the massive rise in the diagnosis of attention deficit and in the use or Ritalin in the last decade. Maybe now more than ever, families face many pressures; children often experience those pressures as much as their parents. But Diller's hypothesis is that more important was the rise in the concept of learning disabilities and the accommodation provided to students labeled as having such disabilities. The Americans with Disabilities Act has been ruled applicable to ADHD, and also important is Section 504 of the Vocational Rehabilitation Act of 1973. But probably more important is the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). This act, passed in 1990, mandates that "eligible children receive access to special education and/or related services, and that this education be designed to meet each child's each unique educational needs through and individualized education program, or IEP." (148). Also important was Section 504 of the Vocational Rehabilitation Act of 1973. Of course, giving people an incentive to be labeled with a disability often means that the rates of diagnosis increase, and it seems this is one reason the rates of ADHD diagnosis have sky-rocketed in the USA. Of course, every expert will find some details with which to quibble in Diller's book. As an ethicist, I found his discussion of the medical ethics literature on the topic the least satisfying part of the book, but that's because I am already familiar with those issues. With the vast area of other aspects of the Ritalin debate where I am on less familiar ground, Diller is a sure-footed guide. His ability to combine different aspects of the issues, such as the social, medical, and personal, is impressive, and is what gives Running On Ritalin its coherence. Currently the USA is the main country facing these problem, but other nations are likely to follow. Furthermore, as pharmaceutical companies develop new drugs which can enhance our intellectual and emotional lives, and which can even mold our personalities, we are going to have to look long and hard at what we want to label as disabilities and how much we should use such drugs. Lawrence Diller is one of the best thinkers we have available to encourage and guide the debate. Relevant Links: Lawrence Diller Web Site Salon articles Just say yes to Ritalin! September 25, 2000 Extreme Ritalin March 31, 2000 Kids on Drugs March 9, 2000 Kids on Drugs II March 10, 2000
|