In light of the fact that this has been a busy week at First Baptist, thus hindering me from writing a full-fledged blog of my own ... and in light of the fact that my last posting was so "soothing" in nature and elicited no responses ... I thought I would generate a discussion (start off a firestorm?) by linking you to the most recent posting of prolific blogger Al Mohler, who also happens to be the President of The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky.
Mohler is sure to generate some heat over his thoughts on ADHD. What are your thoughts? Read Al's article, then return here to TruthWalk, and leave a comment!
I am kind of confused. He writes about an opinion of which he has no research and no educated basis. I will say that perhaps he is right, although I have ADHD as an adult and the medication has changed my life for the better. The problem we are facing is that too often the PRIMARY CARE PHYSICIAN (?!) is writing the script based on the parents description of the symptoms. This is irresponsible medicine. Every child suspected of such a diagnosis should have a thorough neurological and psyhological evaluation.
ReplyDeleteLastly, try a good spanking for bad behavior first and then see if the situation doesn't change HOMEOPATHICALLY!! LOL!
Britt
I don't think it's just boys, or even just children. If we sit down and list our "isms" each one of us qualifies for some new drug or therapy that will miraculously release us from our troubles and responsibilities. We have depression, road rage, social anxiety disorder, oppositional defiance disorder, various levels of sensory integrations disorders... for goodness sake, even our bowels are irritable, while I do not deny that there are actual physical and psychological issues involved, it sounds remarkably like 2 Timothy 3:1-9...
ReplyDeleteWhile I understand Britt's hesitation because Dr. Mohler is an academician, it is pretty clear from his blog that any layman can evaluate the "symptoms" of ADHD. Recognizing that this is pure anecdote, I nevertheless tend to agree with him (insofar as he was not saying that "ADHD" is always an incorrect diagnosis), based on my experience, that the vast majority of the time, lack of behavioral propriety is simply "boys [being] boys."
ReplyDeleteI sent the link to Dr. Mohler's article to a friend of mine, a Christian pediatrician. These are her words: "[S]o, who is this moron? Well, I happen to be a medical professional and agree that some kids are way over diagnosed but there are some kids who are way out there and need help!!"
ReplyDeleteI can testify that her kids are QUITE rambunctious, and yet she's never once hinted that they need "treatment." Thus, I think best to perhaps soften my, what might have been, too harsh words, and say that there is medical truth behind (at least some) ADHD diagnoses.
We are far from Eden. How do you think "boy behaviour" would look in Eden?
ReplyDeleteAccepting that sin is in the world and we do now have to deal with it, we have to check our priorities. Are we trying to make our children look good or look to God? Are we trying to keep a peaceful home or grow children of grace? I'm not suggesting that we can't have a peaceful home, just that that cannot be the primary goal.
How does that passage in Ecclesiastes read? "...there is a time for a hug and a time for a spank...time for laughter and time for discipline... time for games and time for responsibilities.
Interesting topic. Several years ago I went to classes for Neuthetic couseling. From those classes I was under the impression that everyone (or almost everyone) who was diagnosed with ADHD was due to a lack of biblical parenting. This stayed with me and I thought that this must be true.
ReplyDeleteThen I came across a boy who has been a gift from God. One who has a great desire to do right in the eyes of God and his parents. He has days when he can not sit down, can not stop moving, and bounces unlike anyone you have ever seen.
There are a number of studies on the subject that kids born very premature are at a much greater risk of having ADHD and sensory issues. Many Doctors say that this is a due to the childs brain not being fully developed and they were not ready for the stimulus of the outside world. According to Al's blog this would mean that bad parents have premature kids.
I noticed that Pastor Matt's quote of the week comes from James Dobson. James Dobson's web site has some very interesting material on the subject (http://family.custhelp.com/cgi-bin/family.cfg/php/enduser/std_adp.php?p_faqid=683). In one of the articles "Is ADD/ADHD a real disorder?" they point out many intersting points. "...in a well-publicized case involving the detractors and proponents of ADHD diagnosis, a group of physicians claimed it would make as much sense to throw out the diagnosis and proven treatments for ADHD as it would to do so for schizophrenia or epilepsy. Further, denying that ADHD is a real diagnosis of a real condition may be potentially dangerous to the people who live daily with this disorder".
John 9: 1 Now as Jesus passed by, He saw a man who was blind from birth. 2 And His disciples asked Him, saying, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?”
Interesting that we are still in a similar position today. Who is sinning the boy (or girl) or there parents? I think that I will take Jesus's answer in John 9:3 "Jesus answered, “Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but that the works of God should be revealed in him."
Another quote from the "Is ADD/ADHD a real disorder?" "Bottom line? Parents with ADHD kids know it’s real and they need help. Those of you who have a hyperactive, easily distractible youngster, you know that ADHD is a very real condition".
I believe that children with ADHD are not handicapped at all. I think they are born special. Studies have shown that there brain waves are different and that they have checmical differences. While they may have difficulties in some settings, in other settings they are better equiped to think and respond different then someone without ADHD.
By the way, I was once a boy. That does not make me qualified to answer all of the answers about ADHD. I think that Al should have kept quiet on the subject as well and stayed with things he knows, like being a great bible teacher. Or maybe his next article may be that blindness does not exist.
Brian
I'm kind of curious. I don't know a lot about this topic. The ad at the beginning of the article did seem kind of vague. What is the difference between a kid daydreaming and not paying attention, and one with ADHD? Did the ad referred to accurately convey the symptoms of ADHD?
ReplyDeleteThose are good questions, Eddie. I think they're the kind that Brian wishes people would ask. The ad is vague. It also assumes that boys with those symptoms must have ADHD, which may or may not be the case. Tomorrow I will offer some comments on the subject. After all, I too was a boy. :)
ReplyDeleteI myself was a skeptic of ADHD. I was hit with it personally when my son was diagnosed with ADHD. I did not want to believe it and felt that through discipline we as a family would be able to get through this. As discipline did not seem to work I took it upon myself to do research about this disorder that was consuming our lives. What I found was that most Christians seem to link it to "bad parenting" and that a little discipline would help the matter. This was very discouraging. To think that people would be judging our parenting!!! Doesn't the Bible talk about judging your brother? We started to think we were doing something wrong. But we had other children who were not having the same issues as our son. Our son is extremely loving and God-fearing. Then one day we heared Dr. Dobson from Focus on the Family was doing a series on it at the time. He believes in discipline, as did we, but he also believes that ADHD is a real disorder. He suggested a book called "Why ADHD Doesn't Mean Disaster" It is a good read. It talks about how all kids are a gift from God and that ADHD should be viwed as a Dividend not a Disaster. ADHD brains just funcion a little different. Through my research I did a complete 180 and came to the conclusion that this is real and there is real help out there. ADHD is considered a brain-based biological disorder. Low levels of a chemical called dopamine are found in people with ADHD. This chemical controls attention, movement and judgement. When brain scanners are used on people with ADHD, they show different than those of a person without ADHD. There are three categories of symptoms of ADHD - inattention, hyperactivity and impulsivity. Some people only show symptoms in 1 area, while others show symptoms in all three. The medicines given for ADHD give more of this chemical and therefore help sustain attention. As a parent should I deny my son a chemical that he needs??? Medicine is not a cure-all. There are many strategies and skills that people with ADHD need to aquire in order to function in this extrememly busy world. With medicine comes side effects as well - weight loss, insomnia, headaches just too name a few. I think that children are not as overdiagnosed as in years past. There are series of tests that you go through before medicine is given. This overdiagnosis of the past may contribute to why it gets such a bad rap today. I think like all things, until you have experienced it first hand, you can have your preconceived opinions, but that is just what they are, opinions. I felt similar to Al before I experienced it first hand. Now I know differently.
ReplyDeleteI was also a skeptic of ADHD until the topic hit home. I am a parent of multiple children, one who has ADHD and several who do not. I believe many children have been medicated by primary care physicians because parents have complained repeatedly regarding behavioral issues. In these cases some good biblical parenting is probably in order. There are other cases where proper medical and psychological testing is completed before diagnosis. Neurologists and neuro-psychologists are more educated regarding ADHD and in my opinion should be consulted before medicating a child.
ReplyDeleteChildren with ADHD can exhibit inattentiveness, impulsivity, and hyperactivity. All three symptoms or just one or two symptoms can be present in ADHD children. Children with ADHD do not have enough dopamine and when given a stimulant their bodies produce more dopamine which compensates for the chemical deficit. It is important to note that often premature children or children with traumatic births are affected. Specific learning disabilities are often also present.
My child in particular suffered a traumatic birth. He also displays severe inattentiveness coupled with
moderate impulsivity but mild hyperactivity. His ADHD does not stand out as a behavioral issue but his inattentiveness makes it extremely difficult to learn in a traditional classroom. How anyone could blame this medical condition on parenting is beyond my understanding.
The Psalms clearly state that "we are fearfully and wonderfully made
and that we are knitted together in our mother's wombs." These children are special their brains have been equipped for tasks we will probably never understand but many of these children require medication to learn and function in a traditional classroom. I also believe children are a gift from God and these special children have been entrusted in the care of parents who have been equipped with the means to parent them.
Sometimes it is just better not to comment on things you have never experienced or do not fully understand.
Julie
I think it is our job as Christians to be building each other up in the Lord. Trying to have understanding toward one another and helping each other. As the Casting Crowns song says if we are the body where are the feet going, where are the arms, etc. I personally watched a young boy who is now 28 years old go through ADHD. He could not sit still in school, do his homework, etc. His parents were told by their pastor and his teachers (in a Christian school) that he was a bad kid. He has a very kind heart, but because he was different than the other kids, he was labeled. That label has scarred him deeply, even today. The attitudes of other adults around him were really sad. There perception of him was that he was a troubled kid. He told me his story one day and my heart just cried out for him. He told me that it really bothered him the label his teachers and Christian adults put on him. He never showed his pain, but put a bold face on his inability to perform as other children did. I am glad to see that as this is more widely investigated that people are more accepting that these children are not misbehaved or bad children. Oh to walk a mile in their shoes. We need to try to have understanding of each other, even when it is beyond our understanding because we are not in the same place as those children or families with this diagnosis.
ReplyDeleteMary