http://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/03/us/concerns-about-adhd-practices-and-amphetamine-addiction.html?hp
A Virginia family is speaking out about their son, Richard, who committed suicide due to an addiction to Adderall. The story begins with Richard, a highly successful college student, who was lying to doctors to gain Adderall, which is medicine used for people who have ADHD. After taking this medicine for some time, it became hard for him to think straight, so he was put into a hospital to help him. After being released from the hospital he got more Adderall. When this new dosage ran out, he hung himself in his dorm room.
This is just one of the many stories of kids lying to gain access to Adderall and other drugs. According to IMS Health, in 2011, about 14 million young adults in America were prescribed medicine for ADHD. The young adult ages ranged from 20-39 years old. This large number is from the people who actually have ADHD, but the number also includes the people who are free from parents and smart enough to gain medicine for a condition they do not have.
When I first read this article a couple things stunned me. The first thing that was very surprising was how young adults can lie their way through a doctor's visit and convince the doctor that they have a condition they have never had in their life. These students have to be very smart and savvy to have achieved this. Another thing that surprised me was that doctors do not notice that these students are faking a condition that can be very serious. I would think that a doctor is trained enough to notice whether or not someone is lying to them. So, either the doctors aren't very smart, or the students are just good actors. Either way, I think that there needs to be something done about the people faking their way through an appointment at the doctors to get a drug for their own personal needs. It's scary that people can get suicidal tendencies from taking these drugs, and the last thing anyone would want is another death. Somehow doctors need to be taught how to spot out the fakers and be more careful when distributing drugs to their patients.
This is a growing problem in our country. Brett is right, we need to get help.
ReplyDeleteI do like his solutions, but I think the problem comes from from the parents than the doctors. I think most parents would recognize that their child doesn't display common symptoms of ADHD, or if they do that it only recently became an issue in their child's life. Also, the inability to focus after taking the medicine may hint to possible deception by their sons or daughters.
Now, I certainly do not mean to insinuate that parents do not care about their children: that is absurd. But, it seems to me that more and more parents emphasize the entertainment and distraction of their kids, as opposed to teaching them life lessons. Again, this is a generalization, and not specifically true, and that doesn't mean that parents don't teach kids life lessons. The focus just seems to be shifting.
Thanks Brett for bringing up this important issue. By raising awareness perhaps we can put a stop to these senseless deaths.
God Bless America