ADHD - To medicate or not?

[CoenNaninck]

While I believe Mr. Barkley has a valid point that adults with ADHD do better with medication, I am once again not surprised by the lack of promotion of natural supplements. While fish oils and plant oils (such as flax seed oil) do not 'cure' ADHD (neither does Ritalin by the way), it certainly helps a lot. Perhaps I'm prejudiced, but this just seems like another advocacy for Big Pharma solutions. They have a vested interest in selling more Ritalin, turning peopl with ADHD into zombies.

[Alyssadelaveg]

CROCK OF SHIT. ADHD and ADD are behavioral and learning disabilities that do not necessarily impair ones overall life. Medication is not the answer. Developing skills and ulternative ways of thinking to cope with the disability are. Barkley's ideas are skewed and he has a poor understanding of what ADHD and ADD are.

[pearboy2]

The best cure of ADHD and ADD is meditation not medication. Secondly this is not a disease its a different way of thinking. I think more and more about new things and start putting all of this together. i think broader about life. We relies that this is not the world we need to live ion we need to change we have a special way of thinking and it make me who i am. I wish i will never be " normal" because i relies that the way we live isnt right.

[CoenNaninck]

@pearboy2 Indeed, very well said!

[TheKsk1997]

That being said, a lot of successful entrepreneurs and businessmen are ADHD..

[Hlvillaire]

THAAAAANK YOUUUU. Geez. I hate it when people tell me my disorder isnt real, and that I'm just lazy, crazy, or stupid when in reality im probably smarter, goal oriented and more desiring of order than they are, I just have a hard time achieving it.

[NAVYWIFEONE]

now if this doctor could talk to all the new school docs who wanna know it all then your kids end up dead like mine from doctors bad decisions we'd have a lower newborn death mortality rate & a lot more attentive smart & independent seeking kids

I LOVE THIS GUY

[gregorygomes1]

Sheldon Cooper in 40 years; hero.

[JimmySilversJr]

ADD/ADHD should be left completely untreated. It is very wrong for parents to push there one beloved kid into addictive drugs.Nobody knows that the response from getting drugged on this crap is the same as taking cocain.You'll be better off hyper,unattentive,or destructive than get destroyed by this so call "good drug".If ritalin has ruined your life,look up Vitamin R by the band Chevelle.

[PajamaLass]

@JimmySilversJr As som one who has gone with and without medicine, I can tell you that I was most definitely not better off unmedicated. I was in a number of car accidents, my grades were god awful, and I would often end up screaming and crying out of frustration from not being able to focus. Adderall has changed my life for the better. It's given a bright future where I can live up to my potential instead of being dragged down by my ADHD.

[pwg1126]

@PajamaLass Have you had a brain scan to see what is damaged on your brain. Dr Amen has the largest database of brain scans and maybe treated without stimulants which are very addictive and damaging to the brain.

[PajamaLass]

@pwg1126 Yup. My parents went through a huge phase where they were in denial about my ADHD and they had a brain scan done. No damage was found as far as I know. I think stimulants have the potential to be addictive, but I've never had any problems with being addicted to my adderall. During the summer or winter breaks I'll decide I don't feel like taking them and just stop until school starts up again. I used to never take them on the weekends or breaks from school when I didn't have any work.

[pwg1126]

@pwg1126 Be aware of all the side effects like a loss of your sense of humor, and depression. The dangerous time is teenage years and young adulthood (20s). The brain is not fully developed and the brain will start to crave the way the drug makes your brain feel. The brain will stop producing it's own dopamine. The drug will damage your brain too. I hope you make out and the drug doesn't hurt you. If you do become addicted to this highly addictive drug your chance of recovery are low (20-30%).

[bungo0]

@pwg1126 [citation required]

[PajamaLass]

@JimmySilversJr As long as the medication is taken properly and it's monitored, it's no more dangerous than taking any other medication.

[jnastyism]

@JimmySilversJr Sometimes.... people shouldn't say things, this is one of those times for you buddy.

[NAVYWIFEONE]

@JimmySilversJr you say this but do you have a kid like this? my son is 4 he is very much like this won't sleep stay awake all night can't do work jumps around all the time he can't sit for more than 2 minutes. his mind is always going. either way i have tried for 3 yrs not to put him on meds but i have done gluten free foods it's not helping i am sick myself. so i am doing whatever is best & thats medicating him properly now when he's 18 &decides he doesn't want to take it anymore it's on him

[Guitargirl5157]

@appetitieforroses Well two things we agree on! Linda Perry and the importance of making an educated decision before taking any type of medication. :D

[AppetiteForRoses]

breggin.com/index.php?option=c­om_content&task=view&id=187&It­emid=93

[Laubotje]

what does having friends have to do with ad(h)d

[RealmSeekr]

If you got ADHD and read this as an adult and are at an diagnostic end, I will tell you from first hand experience that Medical Marijuana(high CBD) will set you straight. Better to be stoned, happy and functional then suffer this terrible affliction. Reclaim your mind, culture can't help you here.

[Laubotje]

@RealmSeekr marjiuana makes you sick in your mind

[TOURSGMD]

@SewGirl49 don't know why your message was flagged as spam. Dr. Barkley has the greatest lectures on the web about ADHD. Unlike alot of others, who has strong oppinions, soley based on myths and paranoia, he speaks of the subject with years of "actual scientific research," knowledge and compasion.

[TOURSGMD]

My dog just ate all my adhd meds. First it shit on the carpet, then it started spinning around, faster and faster, untill the friction set it on fire. ADHD MEDS ARE DANGEROUS!

[Guitargirl5157]

@TOURSGMD Probably because your dog doesn't/didn't have ADHD. Any medication taken w/out reason can be dangerous. Aspirin is dangerous. So, is walking across the street. Sometimes it's a necessary risk. To each their own.

[TOURSGMD]

@Guitargirl5157 Tongue-in-cheek ofcause. Btw nice channel.

[Guitargirl5157]

@TOURSGMD I didn't think he actually set himself on fire from the spinning. :D BTW thx!

[pamaspamas]

adhd meds just killed my buddy. i say NOT to take it. the pharma corps are run by Eugenics criminal syndicates, they should be held accountable. gee, you don;t fit in the box of normal controlled society, let's just medicate you all and kill you then is their way... BIG PHARMA MUST BE HELD ACCOUNTABLE FOR DELIBERATE PLANNED GENOCIDE...

[ljg307]

Well duh! It's a nuerological disorder, not a behavioral issue. Of course it'll continue into adulthood.

[AppetiteForRoses]

@ljg307 That's never been proven.

[Guitargirl5157]

@AppetiteForRoses Actually it has been proven via brain scans and MRIs. It is a disorder of the frontel cortex which is why stimulates help. They stimulate that area of the brain to function properly.



[AppetiteForRoses]

@Guitargirl5157 Rubbish. They may have found changes in the brain but there is no proof to say that this is a 'disorder'.. ADHD has never in history been proven as a disorder these are assumptions not fact. Stimulants cause imbalances not correct them. I suggest that you learn the facts here: breggin.com

[sagalmibagal]

I would never call it a disease or a disability, its a unique condition that alters a lot of aspects of someones mind, therefore having both pros and cons. Having adhd is extremely difficult to cope with, as this world is governed by ones ability to perform in schools, schools do not create content that can be molded to allow ones with adhd to perform as wonderful as a whole. I do believe drugs are beneficial in that that urge for distraction

[RonaldBarone]

Show someone that take meds and behave the same way you call a "normal" person and I will never talk about this again. Cause I have been seen some of my students on meds and let me tell you something, I felt so bad for them cause they were like zombies. We all deserve to be treated as equal, so if for you ADHD is a disability and not part of the personality, please find the cure of homosexuality cause if ADHD is a disorder homosexuality is too.

[Guitargirl5157]

@RonaldBarone If that's been your experience then your students were not on the correct dosage for their disorder. Yes it is a very real disorder that functions nothing like homosexuality. ADHD causes a chaotic order of information into the brain. The brain is unable to prioritize information and stimulation the way a typical brain does. Medication can make daily life infinitely better for those suffering from it. I know because I have it. I wish I would have been medicated as a child.

[RonaldBarone]

@Guitargirl5157 Oh wonderful... so you get the students, teach them good discipline, make room creativity and acceptance and boommmm All my students are at least B+ with no medication. This is 2011 and the same way things have been changing, we are changing as well. And we can't label ourselves or try to create something so called "normal" and if someone doesn't fit to that criteria we give to this person meds. Oh no, this is 2011 we can teach kids the same way we done at 1800.

[Guitargirl5157]

@RonaldBarone You are making quite a lot of assumptions with your comment. I do not teach my kids the way they did in the 1800's. Medication doesn't make a student more "teachable." Medication is not for the TEACHER, it is for the student, or person w/ADHD. ADHD makes processing information, recieving informtion, and assimilating information properly chaotic in an ADHD brain. Why not level the playing field and give all students the same advantage? I

[DrSpooglemon]

@Guitargirl5157 "ADHD makes processing information, recieving informtion, and assimilating information properly chaotic in an ADHD brain."

You hit the nail on the head here. Thankyou for puting so eloquently. That is how my brain feels. The stuff I need is usually in there, it's just rather messy...

[Guitargirl5157]

@RonaldBarone Furthermore, medication isn't about GRADES. I was a straight A student all through school including graduate school. I have ADHD. I have several family members who do as well. We, as adults, take medication for it. I do not take mediation so I can complete my homework or sit still in class. I take it so I can access my brains the same way most people can and manage my life normally. Anyone living with ADD/ADHD understands it is a disorder and wouldn't wish it upon anybody.

[RonaldBarone]

5- I teach their parents how to treat them, how to talk to them, how to make them more productive and disciplined

6- When I give them an order I tell them to tell me back what they understood, and set time for everything.

Yes they lie a lot, yes they try to trick me all the time, but one thing I got from them... their trust, so when I look at them in their eyes and say... tell me why you are doing this or that, they tell me why and we work together on that issue

DISCIPLINE, TRUST AND RESPECT

[RonaldBarone]

1- I spend a month with the person trying to make he or she realize that things in life are very important if we like or not and that applies to every one on earth.

2- I help them to realize that they are not less than any student in the class room

3- I help them to control and understand their impulses asking them to look at their friends and see how they behave and tell them that is the key to make friends

4- I understand their limits and lil by lil I work thru every single problem they have

[RonaldBarone]

Professor with all my respect.

But I disagree with you in many points.

1- For me it isn't a gift nor a disorder, but part of personality. We all are born with things society do accept such promiscuity,envy,anger,lack of compassion and some others they never take any meds for.

2- I am a private teacher that has 4 ADHD and we all study at the same time and they all from different grades. And I am been very successful with them. Their grades are B to A+

3- DISCIPLINE for me is the key to help them

[buddyduddyful]

Unless less you suffer from this disorder you can't understand. Don't be foolish and make statements you can't back up, use some logic and reason, do some research with an open mind come up with conclusion that way.

[CliveGains80s]

this is the type of sicko i am talking about. and that type of checklist. they ignore any other reason. anyone that meets these creeps just ignore them. even though ignoring is probably is a form of autism or something.

[lakelly55]

Seems pretty black and white to me. It is not so much a "disorder" as a chemical imbalance. Many of us have not only survived but have led highly productive and creative lives. While ADHD may lead to risky behavior, the unwanted pregnancy is a leap. I think of "risky behavior" more akin to skydiving, mountain climbing or joining the military during wartime, etc. Barkley seems completely negative and I might add nasty.

[jimmybrown11111]

You dont know that you shit head. You cannot genetically prove that any of these disorders exist. Dont bullshit like that assholes. Its like you went to school in a different universe and decided to make up "disorders". You cant back up any of what you say you FUCKS! and this dumb dame did a shitty job at not putting you in your place. Go back to school and become real doctors.

[Deadmau5forever1]

I have ADHD very badly.. And i stopped taking my medication called Concerta.. I found out that my friends father took weaker dosage then i did.. and he was 35.. i'm only 16 i took pills for many years already but i stopped 4 years ago , because the medication made me not sleep. and made me feel pretty muched spaced out and stoned, i find it very hard for me to understand little things even if someone tells me many times, hope it gets at least a little better some day ?;/

[islespatrick]

speaking from someone who does have ADHD..you don't need "medication". I mean, sue, it does help out for a shot-term..but not in the long-run. The best solution is exercise (and it's free).

[Phatcow07]

This guy is a tool. DO YOU NOT SEE, HE IS MAKING BANK OFF OF THIS IMAGINARY DISEASE!!! THIS IS ALL ABOUT MONEY.

[Phatcow07]

This guy is a tool.

[gamejockey]

Russell Barkley is amazing. I wish I could meet him.

[AMULET72]

anxiety.

[samann95014]

i self medicated somewhat successfully. modafinil. i still feel comfortable & creative with my adhd and hence don't believe in medicating from childhood.

[dihle12]

not brain disorders life style disorders money disorders what a load of crap

[lenore123456789]

@ChicagoFusion: Im not saying you are right or wrong in saying Dr. Russell Barkley say something non-scientific... but unless you are writing this as a joke, then... whatever your statement is, should it not be... sorry... I don't even know what to write.. it makes no sense to say someone is not scientific and then make a statement that have no scientific prove (since you didn't link to something about what you said).

If its a joke, then add more smileys ;)

[CosmosMarinerDU]

@ChicagoFusion Correlation of ADHD person to identical twin is over 95%. Correlation with fraternal twin, much less. with close relatives less again, and so on.

Vaccines do not cause ADHD - just as they don't cause Autism ... but they do save thousands children's lives of children each year from diseases that, not so long ago, were killing them - like polio, whooping cough, and measles.

Unfortunately, because of people like you, they're coming back to kill again. Congratulations.

[ginygino]

Thank you Russell Barkley. Real information is much needed here.

[threadysparrow]

russell barkley is my hero

[jimmybrown11111]

@threadysparrow You are clearly a victim of a lobotomy.