Are Medications Really Necessary For My Child?

One the most frequently asked questions I receive relates to whether or not a child really needs medication for his or her behaviors - or behavioral problems - depending upon how you look at it.

The unfortunate answer I have to give parents is: "It depends."

I have often said that I am against medications as a first line of defense or treatment in behavioral disorders, particularly in young children and adolescents.

While medications certainly have their use, I have seen far too many cases where children, adolescents, and even adults are medicated when they might not really need to be.

Diagnoses and illnesses like ADHD, depression, and bipolar disorder are far too real. Their implications are also far too real for couples, families, and children.

However, they exist in very small percentages of the population. Yet these diagnoses are popular today and frequently assigned to people with behaviors and symptoms that mirror the classifications and criteria for diagnosis.

"The Real World"

I would like to share a brief story with you about why it is so important to consider what else is going on before making the leap to medicating your child.

While working at a hospital, I was assigned the case of an 18 year old African American male. He was recently transferred from an adolescent unit, to the adult criminal section of the hospital among career criminals and persons diagnosed with persistent major mental illness.

He was diagnosed with Depression, and his treatment staff was concerned about his withdrawn behavior, unwillingness to participate in groups, and his apparent lack of interest to interact socially.

All classic signs of depression.

Yet, when I met with him, he was outgoing, energetic, connected, and all too real. I tried to explain this to his treatment staff, but I was apparently the only person who recognized the additional circumstances that led to my understanding of his situation.

I asked myself one simple question:

"If I were 18 years old, how would I respond in this situation?"

What I realized was that even at my age (older than 18), I would have likely responded the same way as he did.

The Moral:

My patient was anything but depressed.

Instead, he was an 18-year-old male who was likely frightened by his surroundings and the sudden change from being surrounded by his peers and friends (that he had made) to a population of criminals who had spent most of their adults lives behind bars.

While my patient did need a specific regiment of medication, he was grossly misunderstood.

As I always, I encourage you to first ask yourself: "What else might be contributing to my child's behavior?"

Look in the mirror if you have to, even if it hurts to acknowledge that your life might be impacting your child.

It's not to say you are to blame.