I chose to complete the Psychology 1000 Mental Disorder Project on Attention Deficit/ Hyper Activity Disorder because I was diagnosed with Predominately Inattentive Attention Deficit Disorder at age 5 which caused me to struggle academically all through grade school and into high school. I was given an Individual Education Plan for mathematics in grade school that was supposed to help me succeed but hardly did that because to this day I still cannot do math at a college level. Around age 5, I was put on the methylphenidate Ritalin to help me concentrate in school but it caused stomach ulcers and I lost a lot of weight due to me getting a stomach ache after taking the pill. Even though according to Timely Data Resources Inc. they say …show more content…
For every mental disorder there are several varying theoretical perspectives that account for the differing causes of each disorder, and as stated on About.com “Researchers who take a biological perspective on psychology might look at how genetics influence different behaviors or how damage to specific areas of the brain influence behavior and personality. Things like the nervous system, genetics, the brain, the immune system, and the endocrine systems are just a few of the subjects that interest biological psychologists”. Another explanation for the cause of ADD/ADHD is Sigmund Freud’s Psychodynamic perspective which focuses on the necessity of the unconscious mind and early childhood experiences that help shape the individual’s personality and life choices which may be what ultimately caused the disorder to materialize.
When talking about mental disorders, treatment is almost always paramount to the diagnosis and in most cases it is vital to the person’s recovery or long term mental health. The Center for European Child & Adolescent Psychiatry states that “Methylphenidate (MPH) is the most commonly prescribed stimulant for children with ADHD,” and although this is the treatment strategy that worked for me, it does not work for everyone due the wide range of side effects and is not the only option. Exercise, adequate sleep, a
An older study conducted by Dr. Brian Reichow, adjunct professor at Yale University School of Medicine, and his colleagues discovered similar findings, “Methylphenidate, [a psychostimulant medication, was] effective for treating ADHD symptoms in children.”
Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is a psychiatric disorder that causes children to have problems with paying attention, trouble with following instructions, have impulsive behaviors and become easily distracted. Medications, such as Adderall and Ritalin, are used to treat the symptoms of this disorder by helping the patient to focus and pay attention while also curbing their impulsive behavior and hyperactivity. Side effects of these medications are, but not limited to, anxiety, addiction and in some cases psychosis. Proponents of giving ADHD medication to children argue that ADHD is a real disorder in children and the medication does improve the symptoms of the disorder by a large margin as well as being cost effective.
There are various facets of the ailment that lots of people aren 't even conscious of. ADD/ADHD is a neurological problem which impacts the CNS, along with the inspirational system. ADD/ADHD impacts two significant elements of the mind which are linked with all the capability to pay attention along with the capability to modulate motor action. ADD/ADHD is due to a chemical imbalance in the mind. There exists a lack in the brains ' capability to make neuro-transmitters. ADD/ADHD is thought to be hereditary.
Many drugs have been developed to treat ADD and ADHD. One of these drugs is Methylphenidate otherwise known as Ritalin. It is one of the most commonly prescribed drugs for treatment of ADD and ADHD. Use of Ritalin is up 700 percent since 1990 (ABC News). Other drugs also used in treatment of ADD and ADHD include Zoloft, Praxil, and Cylert. Ritalin is a drug that is used to restore neurotransmitters in those that lack or have malfunctioning nerve impulses in the
It is estimated that roughly 11% of children and 4.1% of adults are diagnosed with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). This is a 40% jump in diagnoses in the past decade. Stimulants such as amphetamines are prescribed to treat ADHD to increase focus and as college students are becoming more overwhelmed by workloads, stimulants are becoming very commonly abused to make it through an all-night study session. Because of this there are several instances of students exaggerating symptoms in order to receive the prescription they desire to improve in their classes. Many people believe that ADHD is becoming over diagnosed and in most cases it is simply kids being kids or stress-induced distractibility. This paper will address the idea presented by Dr. Richard Saul in his book ADHD Does Not Exist that Attention-deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) has become an easy diagnosis with an easy treatment, however ADHD is not the disorder, it is the symptom of various other physiological and psychological disorders that have been misdiagnosed.
The noon bell rings at an elementary school in the United States. The children walk in a supervised line from their classrooms to the cafeteria. Their smiles and voices reflect their anticipation and excitement after a long morning of learning. Once inside the cafeteria, they find their friends, sit down, and examine their lunches. I hear laughter and the typical lunch trading by those who didn't get what they expected in their brown bags. In the school office, a short distance from the cafeteria, a large group of children somberly wait in line for their medication. The school secretary is dispensing Ritalin. I'm told this medication will help them manage their attention behavior until they go home.
While there is no permanent treatment for ADHD, there is medication out to help manage and control it. Central nervous stimulants, CNS, are most commonly used for ADHD. Stimulants are used to improve concentration and also decrease fatigue in children. There are many different types because not every medication will work with each diagnosed case. Non-Stimulants are also used when CNS side effects are thought to be harmful to the child. Some side effects from CNS are increased heart rate, trouble
To add to that, the research that has been conducted on the disorder has led to a variety of effective treatments. According to the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) (2014) the most widely used medication is a stimulant. There is a wide variety of stimulants available for ADHD subjects. Although, with these stimulants come side effects including sleep problems, decreased appetite, anxiety and other diverse uncommon side effects (NIMH, 2014). Stimulants tend to calm children with ADHD. However, these medications can be detrimental to the patient in many ways. Certain medications have been subject to abuse, including Adderall and Ritalin. These medications are in some cases abused by patients who are over diagnosed. Since these patients do not have the disorder they can feel the side effects and use the drug to achieve a certain kind of high. When using these drugs for non-medical purposes they can seem to replicate the effects of cocaine
Is there a correlation between ADHD and diet? ADHD or also known as Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder is a behavioral disorder that can affect both children and adults. It is a condition that involves active substances in the brain which starts off as a mental disorder in children. ADHD affects only certain parts of the brain that allows us to solve issues, control ourselves, and understand the actions of others. Doctors have found that the frontal cortex is much thinner in patients who have ADHD. Researchers discovered that children with ADHD have a lower brain volume and less grey matter on average. It is the area that is responsible for attention, memory, and reason. This disorder is a children’s disorder which can continue on to
According to CMAP (2007), atomoxetine and methylphenidate have both been approved and have been associated with efficacy in comparison to placebo in treatment of ADHD in children. However, due to the public health concern of the risk of adverse effects such as cardiovascular events and/or abuse potential, research has been conducted to investigate the efficacy between atomoxetine versus methylphenidate.
Attention deficit hyperactive disorder (ADHD), is a neurobehavioral disorder of the brain. Textbooks typically depict an individual with ADHD as one who is inattentive, highly distractible, unable to contain stimuli, disorganized and exhibits excessive motor activity (Townsend & Morgan, 2017, p. 636). It is easy to define a person by their impulsivity; however, it is difficult to try and understand the reasons behind the behavioral patterns that come along with this disorder. Blake Taylor, in his book, ADHD & Me, offers a thoughtful insight into the life of an individual diagnosed with ADHD. Topics he covers are: being distracted, impulsive, disorganized, hyperactive, unpopular, bullied, isolated, misunderstood, blamed, rigid,
Children are the future. As children develop throughout life there suppose to be themselves; play and not be as attentive as an adult would be. As of today, many children are starting to be misdiagnosed with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder due to certain characteristics that children are exhibiting and this is exacerbated by: behaviors that are developmentally appropriate, cultural differences between home and school, and the lack of knowledge of the symptoms and disorder that is ADHD.
This a major aspect in ADHD with the attention span being so short, in most cases it means that the person has low dopamine levels and is treated for it accordingly. The stimulant are also designed to increase your focusing abilities and decrease the impulsive behavior. A new stimulant was recently used in a 1 year trial called methylphenidate, with this stimulant 80% of the adults tested said that the symptoms had reduced significantly. This stimulant did show a lot of promise 6-9 months after the experiment, but some patients began to develop cardiovascular problems that were unrelated to the stimulant, but with our knowledge today we couldn’t be sure that the stimulant didn’t play a role in the cardiac problems that followed, but these patient did previously have cardiac problems prior to the experiment so nothing to conclusive was made off of that. More evidence did show up proving the stimulants effectiveness, after comparing before and after charts of the brain through neuro-imaging you can see that the brain became more active sending out more electrical signals compared to before the experiment. Non-stimulants were approved by the FDA in 2002. Non-stimulant just like the stimulants proved effective against the symptoms of ADHD. A popular non-stimulant is Atomoxetine, this non-stimulant job is target a neurotransmitter norepinephrine and make this transmitter more available to the brain cells. Helping improve academic performance, classroom behavior, and
For a child to be diagnosed for ADHD, the child or adult has to have the symptoms for 6 or more months before the doctor can diagnose the child or adult.Certain medicines can help people with ADHD by improving their focus and attention and reducing their impulsiveness and hyperactivity. Some of the medications are Adderall, Adderall XR, Concerta, DAytrana, Desoxyn, Dexedrine, Dextrostat, Focalin, Focalin XR, Metadate ER, Metadate CD, Methylin, Ritalin, Ritalin SR, Ritalin LA, Strattera, amd Vyvanse.
Those children that are diagnosed with ADHD are usually prescribed psycho-stimulant medications, such as ‘methylphenidate’, otherwise known as ‘Ritalin’, as the primary method of treatment. (Chandler, 2010).