Thomas Gresham Gresham, 1

Prof. Campbell

UWRIT 1104

April 5th, 2017

Over diagnosis and Overmedication: ADHD Off the Pill

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, or ADHD, is a chronic medical

condition which results in the inability of an individual to sustain attention on a task for

an extended period of time. According to the Center for Disease Control approximately

11% of children between the age of four and seventeen have been diagnosed with ADHD.

While not encouraged, statistics show that medication is often treated as the first line of

defense for ADHD, despite its many negative side effects. While ADHD medication can

be a helpful tool for treating students with ADHD, how can alternative methods be

implemented to support students ability to learn in the classroom?

In order to understand the problems with ADHD medication we must first take a

moment to understand how it works. The brains of persons with ADHD are rather

different than the brains of those without. A neuron is a brain cell; information is passed

between neurons either electrically or chemically in a synapse. Neurotransmitters are the

chemicals which pass information between neurons. Each human function has specific

neurotransmitters which are responsible for carrying that information. Dopamine,

norepinephrine, epinephrine, and serotonin are neurotransmitters often associated with

ADHD (untappedbrilliance.com).

Persons with ADHD have a hard time making connections between neurons.

Stimulant medications like Adderall and Ritalin are often prescribed to alter the amount

of neurotransmitters present in the brain making these connections easier. To provide a

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comparison, ADHD can cause two synapses to function like two distant cliffs; it's hard to

get information across. Medication acts as a bridge between the two points.

While ADHD medication can be incredibly helpful, side effects can be drastic. It

is important to understand that children often have unique behaviors prior to the start of

medication such as trouble sleeping or irritability. ADHD medication can cause side

effects including sleep problems, decreased appetite, delayed growth, headaches,

stomachaches, Rebound (upon medication wearing off), tics, and moodiness and

irritability (childmind.org). Some side effects become better with time.

Side effects may also worsen depending on which stimulant medication is being

taken and at what dosage and at what relase. ADHD medication is made using stimulants;

there are two main stimulant bases for ADHD drugs. It is recommended to try both if a

bad reaction occurs while taking a specific medication. Dosage can be the culprit behind

many negative side effects, for instance some children may have trouble sleeping at night

due to the high dosage of the medication they are on. What can be even more important is

the release of the medication. Some medication is designed to release all at once and may

need to be taken multiple times during the day, while other forms are designed using

extended release which dismisses the need for taking a second dose during the day by

extending the release of the medication throughout the day. It is recommended to explore

options prior to making a final decision as to how ADHD medication affects an

individual. The real question presented is why waste time and money trying different

forms of medication when there alternate forms of treatment that can be just as effective?

With sufficient evidence to support a pattern of overdiagnosis, do all kids diagnosed with

ADHD need medication to begin with?

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A 2012 study asked doctors to diagnose a variety of previously diagnosed school-

aged patients with ADHD, each individual demonstrating a range of symptoms. Doctors

were unable to successfully diagnose patients consistently and there was also a trend in

diagnosing boys more consistently than girls. There was also a general trend for doctors

who diagnosed more to prescribe medication more, meaning that individuals who may

not have ADHD in the first place would then be medicated for a problem they did not

have (Bruchmuller et. all). This result is not unique to this study, just take a moment to

compare in your head the number of boys you know with ADHD with the number of girls

you know with ADHD.

The Center for Disease Control does not recommend medication as the first form

of treatment for ADHD. Behavioral therapy or behavioral modification therapy is most

recommended. This form of treatment aims to equip persons with the necessary skills to

manage their ADHD. This therapy encourages people to keep their goals specific and

limited; focusing on a limited number of goals will allow individuals to be more

successful. It is necessary to keep a realistic mentality when working towards the selected

goals, for example, if a student is working to stop being distracted by their phone when

working, it would be a better goal to only become distracted a few times, rather than all

together. While behavioral therapy will not always produce consistent results. It is

important to remember that it is a long term plan, not a short term solution (ADDitude).

Nutrition and ADHD are strongly connected. Both omega-three and vitamin C

support the function of dopamine within the brain, both of which are important

neurotransmitters for persons with ADHD as previously discussed.

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Physical activity can also be incredibly helpful for persons coping with ADHD

due to its ability to help an individual produce dopamine. Physical activity also allows for

individuals to have an outlet for excess energy. It can be difficult to find an activity or

form of exercise to stick with, however at this point one can use traits of persons with

ADHD to their advantage. Hyperfocus is a component of ADHD, finding a form of

activity that one is passionate about is key to helping create long term results.

Parenting and teaching interventions can also be incredibly helpful to the success

of children with ADHD. Parenting interventions focus on positive reinforcement, or

catching kids doing good things. It is easy to get frustrated with children when they seem

distracted and apathetic, however frustration and anger creates little headway (American

Psychological Association). Teaching interventions help teachers provide ADHD students

with instruction which they will be able to best understand and follow. I have been able to

witness the power of the combination of these interventions through my classroom

clinical experience required for other courses. Teachers feel far more comfortable

working with and redirecting students when they know that their efforts will not be going

to waste. Informed well trained teacher will best be able to serve students with ADHD

successfully.

It is important to note that no one of these methods is the best solution, rather a

combination of these methods is best to help students cope with their symptoms. These

methods can also be combined with medication to increase effectiveness.

When conducting my research I found it important to include the opinion of

persons with ADHD. I found that there was a large representation of persons with ADHD

in the academic community who believe that their ADHD is an advantage. Emily Anhalt
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is a PhD holder and a physcotherapist. Anhalt discusses her difficulties learning in the

school system. She found she was able to be most successful when in the classroom of a

teacher who was willing to allow her to work around her symptoms. She goes onto

discuss how her ADHD was treated as a problem rather than a unique ability. Her innate

ability to multitask and hyper focus aided her in the future when faced with harsh

challenges. She opted not to medicate herself as she felt it depleted herself of the parts of

her personality she enjoyed so much. This opinion is not uncommon as many persons

with ADHD are able to be successful despite their ADHD. Often times the attitude of

teachers working with students with ADHD are just as important as their actions. It is

next to impossible to learn if you do not have the faith of your educator.

In conclusion, ADHD is a chronic disorder that affects a large percentage of the

population. When diagnosed doctors are quick to jump to medicate patients although this

may not be the best option. Arming persons diagnosed with ADHD, especially those who

are still in primary school, can provide them with the necessary skills to succeed later in

life. It is incredibly important to note that ADHD, while a chronic disorder, is also a

collection of personality traits unique to an individual. Medication can often remove

some of these important traits from that person making them feel other than themselves.

The personality of persons with ADHD should be celebrated in order to make the, feel

able to achieve.
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Works Cited

SINFIELD, JACQUELINE. Neurotransmitters & ADHD 101. Jacqueline Sinfield The ADHD

Coach for Adults , 1 Mar. 2017, http://untappedbrilliance.com/adhd-neurotransmitters/.

ADHD, Subcommittee on. Clinical Practice Guideline: Treatment of the School-Aged Child

With Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder. AMERICAN ACADEMY OF

PEDIATRICS, vol. Pediatrics, no. 108, 4, Oct. 2001.

CDC. Data & Statstics Children with ADHD. Center for Disease Control; , 1 Jan. 2011,

https://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/adhd/data.html.

Boorady, Roy. Side Effects of ADHD Medication: Child Mind Institute, 1 Jan. 2017,

https://childmind.org/article/side-effects-of-adhd-medication/.

Bruchmuller, Katrin, et al. "Is ADHD Diagnosed in Accord with Diagnostic Criteria?

Overdiagnosis and Influence of Client Gender on Diagnosis." Journal of Consulting and

Clinical Psychology, vol. 80, no. 1, 01 Feb. 2012, pp. 128-138. EBSCOhost,

librarylink.uncc.edu/login?

url=http://search.ebscohost.com.librarylink.uncc.edu/login.aspx?

direct=true&db=eric&AN=EJ963004&site=ehost-live&scope=site.

Sprinkle, Nicole. A Pragmatic Parents Guide to Behavior Therapy. ADDitude, 1 Jan. 2017,

http://www.additudemag.com/adhd/article/860.html.

Mahamane, Salif. ADHD Sucks, but Not Really. TED X, 18 Dec. 2015,

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fWCocjh5aK0.
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Anhalt, Emily. The Trouble with Normal: My ADHD the Zebra. TED X, 16 June 2016,

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EAeEQvj16XM. Z