Disclaimer
I have no expertise whatsoever
in this area. However, I am not entirely without personal experience. Psychological
disorders and their medical treatment is a subject of interest to me. Further,
I am only trying to briefly summarize certain thoughts that came to me when
reading various articles related to this complex subject. I have intentionally
not sourced this article very well for sake of brevity and time.
An Increasing Trend
It appears there has been an
increasing trend in recent decades to diagnose children with different forms of
psychological disorders (e.g. ADHD, Autism, psychosis etc.). One can almost get
the impression of an ongoing, unprecedented epidemy or is it a phenomenon.
I have included Autism here as
well, because the unusual outward behavior and the significant expansion of its
definition to autism spectrum disorder. Latter development is usually a sign
that doctors are clueless when they attach terms like “spectrum”. In my
opinion, there is a significant chance for misdiagnosis. Yes, the US government
describes Autism on their PubMed website as “… a physical
condition linked to abnormal biology and chemistry in the brain. The exact
causes of these abnormalities remain unknown, but this is a very active area of
research. There are probably a combination of factors that lead to autism.
Genetic factors seem to be important.”. Well is this not true of other
psychological disorders as well?
Possible Explanations
Doctors have over time become
better in diagnosing such disorders, which have been in the past very difficult
or impossible to diagnose or children went simply untreated. Latter assertion is
quite true for psychology/psychiatry in general and not only in the past. Ambiguous
disorders like psychological disorders are great business for doctors. To use a
hyperbole, doctors since time immemorial like to expand and deepen their
diagnostic tools almost to the point to declare everyone in need of medical
treatment who enter their offices. Illnesses are infinite.
In recent times, more focus
and money was assigned to this subject. Huge media attention has spread,
parents are primed to be alert. Stigma, taboos are reduced, acceptance is improved.
E.g. in the US, special needs education has proliferated receiving lots of
money and special teachers. The more special needs children the better for
school funding and teacher salaries.
There is the distinct possibility
that a self-feeding vicious or virtuous cycle was entered in connection with
this subject. And it will take perhaps decades before reasonable judgment
returns.
Genius And Madness
I believe, most people have
heard about the close link between genius and madness. Two recent movies “A Brilliant Beautiful
Mind” (about John Nash) or “The Aviator”
(about Howard Hughes) captured this topic quite well.
I highly recommend to watch
both movies, in particular the first one, because it shows you how this
brilliant mathematician and his wife suffered from the medications he was given
and how he himself defeated the demons. The way he defeated the demons is, I
believe, sometimes also prescribed by doctors even for children to learn how to
cope with demons etc. in a playful way.
Children that are perceived as
not “normal” may have special talents and gifts unlike other children. Early,
aggressive treatment may only achieve forced conformity to “normal” and kill
these special talents or gifts that would otherwise develop to the benefit of
the child and the world. As they say if you can dream it you can achieve it.
Vivid imagination or unusual behavior may after all be completely harmless and
beneficial for the child’s development.
I am far from implying here that
any child with a diagnosed or perceived psychological disorder is going to be
the next genius. This would be a colossal misunderstanding.
Suggestions Or Food For Thought
Parents are naturally very
concerned if they observe anything perceived to be not normal about their
children. Naturally, parents seek help from a doctor. Given the great ambiguity
of this subject, more than one doctor should be consulted and doctors of
different specializations or of different approaches.
Keep in mind, psychology and psychiatry
still remain very inexact fields of medicine. It’s more charlatanry than
medicine.
It is very understandable that
parents seek a rational explanation and the best medical treatment for their
children, but be alert to the pitfalls. Yes, parents are very concerned about
the possibly negative prospects of their child like antie social life/behavior,
unsteady professional career, alcoholism, drug abuse, failed relationships,
crime etc. that are commonly associated with psychological disorders. However,
an overreaction to the diagnosis may have the same or similar outcome.
Depending on the severity or
circumstances, I would not easily have my child being treated especially not over
an extended period of time with certain psycho pharmaceutical medications, e.g.
mood stabilizers, anti convulsants. Sometimes just close observation, change of
daily routines, or other behavioral approaches etc. are perhaps better.
Some research seems to
indicate that abnormal, psychotic like behavior in childhood disappears even
without any treatment as they reach adulthood or later in life.
What are the long-term
implications for our children if so many kids are classified as having a
disorder and are in need of treatment? I do not mean to be in denial, but I
want to caution.
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