Jackson Free Press

As a social worker working with mentally ill children, I am no stranger to the medicating of them. But, this NYT piece regarding the side effects of stimulant medication really had me upset.

I personally believe in psychotropic medication. I've seen it change people's lives. But, I also have many concern about the "medicating" of this nation's children. It seems that parents and teachers just don't want to deal with behavior problems AT ALL anymore.

Their answer, a pill. But, this article states an alarming finding concerning the "most prescribed medication in the world", Ritalin.

Stimulants like Ritalin lead a small number of children to suffer hallucinations that usually feature insects, snakes or worms, according to federal drug officials, and a panel of experts said on Wednesday that physicians and parents needed to be warned of the risk.

The panel members said they hoped the warning would prevent physicians from prescribing a second drug to treat the hallucinations caused by the stimulants, which one expert estimated affect 2 to 5 of every 100 children taking them. Instead, they said, the right thing to do in such cases was to stop prescribing the stimulants.

Its a scary world we live in if a warning saying DO NOT give the child another pill to make the snakes go away is the solution to this problem. Not, "Hey, maybe we should rethink this whole 'drug' thing."

Dr. Kate Gelperin, an F.D.A. drug-safety specialist, told the committee that the agency had discovered a surprising number of cases in which young children given stimulants suffered hallucinations. Most said that they saw or felt insects, snakes or worms, Dr. Gelperin said.

Dr. Gelperin described the case of a 12-year-old girl who said that insects were crawling under her skin. Another child was found by his parents crawling on the ground and complaining that he was surrounded by cockroaches. In both cases, the hallucinations disappeared after drug therapy was stopped. The boy's doctor persuaded his parents to give him stimulants again, and his hallucinations reappeared.

They don't tell you that after this, the twelve-year-old crawled back into the house and told her mother to "cook up another batch that made her see Barney". She was later seen scratching at imaginary welts on her arm and asking the six-year-old down the street to "give her another hit off that Concerta inhaler".

What happens when a generation of youth used to using drugs to regulate their moods become adults?

Riddle me that.

Previous Comments

ID

105466

Comment

dildo blog: 400 comments children/medication/hallucination: 0

Author

Margaret

Date

2006-03-24T13:43:20-06:00

ID

105467

Comment

Are children being overmedicated? Yes. Should we not give them any drugs at all? Might not be a good idea. I say, if the kid is having hallucinations, try another med. If it still happens, stop the meds and find an alternative. The ADHD could be caused by a food allergy or something else. My nephew was about to flunk sixth grade before he started taking something (wasn't Ritalin), and he finally made the honor roll for the first time in his life. Instead of daydreaming and losing his school supplies all the time, he is much better organized and concentrates on his homework better. Before, if you asked him something about an assignment, he would shrug his shoulders and mumble, "I dunno." Now, he talks specifically about what his assignments are. It's like he's someone else. So far, he hasn't had any side effects other than drowsiness, so he takes it at night. I say, if it helps, go ahead. If it hinders, try something else. BTW, read these comments from Dr. Ken Duckworth about the proposed black box warning.

Author

LatashaWillis

Date

2006-03-24T23:29:57-06:00

ID

105468

Comment

Oh yeah...If you would prefer a summary of what he said instead of reading the whole thing, go here.

Author

LatashaWillis

Date

2006-03-24T23:33:04-06:00

ID

105469

Comment

I mean here.

Author

LatashaWillis

Date

2006-03-24T23:33:47-06:00

ID

105470

Comment

I have parietal lobe brain damage that makes spatial mapping difficult, but in my earlier years this was blamed on ADD. So I've been prescribed the following drugs at various times. Here's what they feel like: Ritalin: I'm laughing at the insect hallucination thing because, on 5mg of Ritalin per day, I was a STONER. I still remember staring at a fly on the wall for 5 or 10 minutes, studying its features intently until my mother asked me what the heck I was doing. And the worst part was that I wasn't entirely sure what I was doing. There was a fly there and I just kind of locked in. Oh, and I also got headaches. Moving on to... Dexedrine: I was actually on this, 10mg, for a few years. It seemed to help my concentration a little, but mainly it just revved me up. When it became apparent that this wasn't doing wonderful things to my pulse, I came off of it. Haven't taken anything for the alleged ADD since then. That said, I'm with L.W. here. While we do overmedicate kids, and obviously these rare but extreme side effects are not particularly encouraging, the truth is that these drugs can be used to address legitimate chemical imbalances. Unless they actually stone the kids, and if there's a clear neurochemical problem that needs to be addressed, then I'm all for using them. There is no evidence that Ritalin, Dexedrine, antidepressants, et. al. retard emotional growth, leaving atrophied thought processes in their wake when use of the medicine is discontinued; on the contrary, they may very well help folks train their minds to work in healthier, more productive ways. Cheers, TH

Author

Tom Head

Date

2006-03-25T01:57:08-06:00

ID

105471

Comment

Prescription drugs don't make me violent and I'll kill anyone who says otherwise.

Author

Nick

Date

2006-04-07T21:50:26-06:00

ID

105472

Comment

Prescription drugs don't make me violent and I'll kill anyone who says otherwise. Man, I think you missed a dose. LOL

Author

LatashaWillis

Date

2006-04-07T22:36:04-06:00

ID

105473

Comment

Prescription drugs don't make me violent and I'll kill anyone who says otherwise. Man, I think you missed a dose. LOL

Author

LatashaWillis

Date

2006-04-07T22:36:04-06:00

ID

105474

Comment

"There is no evidence that Ritalin, Dexedrine, antidepressants, et. al. retard emotional growth, leaving atrophied thought processes in their wake when use of the medicine is discontinued; on the contrary, they may very well help folks train their minds to work in healthier, more productive ways." Tom Head You've erred once again Tom. "Methylphenidate is a Schedule II stimulant which is structurally and pharmacologically similar to the amphetamines (cocaine, etc). It is indicated for the treatment of Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorders (ADHD) and narcolepsy. Approximately 85 to 90 percent of all prescriptions for methylphenidate are written for young children and adolescents for the treatment of ADHD. Methylphenidate is available as the brand name product, Ritalin, manufactured by Ciba-Geigy, and as generic products manufactured by MD Pharmaceuticals." (excerpt from U.S. Dept of Justice Drug Enforcement Administration, October 1995: Drug and Chemical Evaluation Section Office of Diversion Control) for more info see: http://ritalindeath.com/Methylphenidate.htm This has been known by the federal government for decades.

Author

Joerob

Date

2006-04-08T09:48:22-06:00

ID

105475

Comment

Joerob, can you provide a link where this is actually said by the DEA?

Author

LatashaWillis

Date

2006-04-08T18:35:17-06:00