The Great Medications Scare

Make no mistake. Parents have every reason to be concerned with their children being misdiagnosed and wrongly medicated for behavior that is perfectly normal for kids their age. A previous article noted that despite the medications that are being given to kids to treat depression, there is precious little knowledge as to how these drugs work on their brains, which, incidentally, are not miniature versions of our own.

It is not surprising, then, that there should eventuate a strong backlash against both psychiatrists and the drugs they prescribe, with ADHD and the stimulant Ritalin standing in as convenient guest villains in the drama being played out on a number of stages. Unfortunately, those who could be enlightening us have a way of playing on our worst fears. By way of example:

On Sept 29, a House Subcommittee convened by Bob Schaffer (R-CO) and supported by Chairman Peter Hoekstra (R-MI) held a hearing to arrive at a foregone conclusion - that children are being falsely diagnosed and treated for a mythical mental illness. Two prominent antipsychiatry witnesses testified, and only at the insistence of a congressional representative not on the subcommittee was Dr David Fassler, representing both the American Psychiatric Association and American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, called.

Dr Peter Breggin, who has achieved celebrity status for his opposition to Prozac and Ritalin, stated that all kids need is "discipline and better instruction." He went on to say that ADHD is not an illness, just normal child behavior. Media accounts of the hearing, not surprisingly, featured Dr Breggin's comments to the near-exclusion of Dr Fassler.

Fred Baughman MD, described in a subcommittee press release as a neurologist who studied "real, bona fide diseases," called both ADHD and mental illness "a neuro-biological lie."

There were three other witnesses at the hearing: one a parent with a legitimate horror story, another a member of the Colorado State Board of Education who asserted that violence was a side effect of medication, and that "children need recess and challenges, not psychologists and psychotherapy." She also demanded that federal funding be withdrawn to disabled students. The last witness, the Assistant Secretary of Education for Special Education and Rehabilitative Services, Judy Heumann, defended federal funding to kids in need, but Rep Schaffer said he was not elected to Congress to spend more money.

According to a NAMI account of the hearing: "The subcommittee members made no effort to

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