Recently, the diagnosis of ADHD has been a rumor - attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. Not one year working with children of problem categories, I met both hyperactive and incapable of learning, and pedagogically neglected children. I was always interested in the experience of other regions, more experienced specialists.
Recently I heard about the educational problems of hyperactive children being treated in a medical way. Therefore, I decided to conduct a research search in the global network of “ drugs for the treatment of ADHD ”.
The first thing that caught my eye was the ambiguous attitude of specialists towards the medical treatment of ADHD.
Short help.
ADHD - attention deficit hyperactivity disorder - began to be actively investigated by US experts. At first , attention deficit hyperactivity disorder was not related. Further studies have shown that their symptoms and causes are very similar. In the nineties, world practice recognized that the number of children diagnosed with ADHD is steadily increasing. Medical studies have found that brain function is different in children with ADHD. Since then, a medical solution to the ADHD problem has been common in the United States - stimulant medications .
What drugs are used in the world to treat ADHD ?
In the USA, Ritalin has long been actively used. Then came the Concert, Dexedrine, as well as the drug of the new generation of Straterra. These drugs for the treatment of ADHD include the active substances of the amphetamine series, that is, they are psychostimulants.
What was my surprise when I found methylphenidate (Ritalin) in the list of psychotropic substances prohibited in the Russian Federation according to the “List of Narcotic Drugs, Psychotropic Substances and Their Precursors to be Controlled in the Russian Federation”, approved by the Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation.
Why are children who find it difficult to learn, who have increased activity, carelessness, unable to exercise their own control of behavior , pumped up with drugs?
I drew attention to an article by Zalomikhina I.Yu. in the journal "Speech therapist" (2007). Analyzing information on the ADHD problem, the author identifies several reasons leading to the onset of the syndrome.
Doctors associate early organic damage to the central nervous system (pathology during pregnancy and childbirth, perinatal encephalopathy, residual encephalopathy, MMD) with ADHD.
There are genetic hypotheses about the influence of hereditary risk factors on the occurrence of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder
Equally important is social influence. Socio-psychological reasons exacerbate the existing residual and hereditary factors. These include family dysfunction, a low level of education among parents, and pedagogical neglect. The problem arises in the case that a child who has a slower rate of development of the nervous system does not receive support from society during sensitive periods of development and the gap with peers is growing.
The obvious question is: Do all children need drugs to treat ADHD ?
An analysis of the opinions of various specialists shows that at present the debate between the two points of view is in full swing. The first unambiguously classifies ADHD as a psychiatric illness that can only be treated with medication. Moreover, psychostimulating drugs for the treatment of ADHD do not eliminate the causes, but only relieve symptoms.
The second point of view is based on a pedagogical approach to solving the problem of attention deficit / hyperactivity disorder.
There are studies that reasonably prove that the use of psychostimulants and antidepressants in childhood is the strongest risk factor in the formation of drug addiction.
What is easier for parents: to give a sedative pill or to work hard in order to help the child overcome the difficulties of behavior and learning? The answer suggests itself.
But ... Each child can be raised a notch in development than he is today. Perhaps patience, love, mother's selflessness is the best treatment for a troubled child?