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Nathan Harris

Ms. Jorgensen

English 10H

7 May 2018

A-D-H-Really?

The rise of fidget spinners, toys, and other miscellaneous gadgets, designed to help

children and adults alike who have problems with constantly moving around or paying attention.

These toys were designed to help people who were thought to have some sort of case of the

disorder, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, more commonly known today as ADHD.

Many children and adults alike are claiming that they or someone they know is affected by

ADHD, but can these claims sometimes be falsified? Those who are falsely diagnosed are given

expensive medication, and in the process putting more money in the pockets of the doctors and

the manufacturers of the medicine, they are losing money on unnecessary things they are being

told they just have to have. This rise in reports connects to the amount of “cases” of ADHD that

are being currently reported are arguably too high compared to what they should be, and there is

some reason to believe that some of these claims are false or misdiagnosed.

In modern day contemporary society, most parents are taking their children to a medical

specialist to find out if their children may or may not have some sign of ADHD. What people are

not seeming to understand, is that these symptoms are not only prevalent in children, but can also

be present in anyone of any age and lifestyle. In turn, it becomes apparent that these parents are

being misinformed about a condition their child may or may not have; but they themselves might

have some sort of condition but they’ve never bothered to try and get it diagnosed (even you, the
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reader may have some case of ADHD). What people and doctors alike need to try and

understand is that “ADHD is not just a childhood disorder. Although the symptoms of ADHD

begin in childhood, ADHD can and will continue through adolescence and adulthood” (Madsen

1).

Many people who do not have a confirmed case of ADHD, choose not to pay attention

through their own accord. This rule can especially be prevalent in the modern day education

system, during a time when children would rather be staring at their cellphones or talking to

friends in these important times, than pay attention to whatever is going on in their classes.The

lack of attention is sometimes seen as a misjudged possible symptom of ADHD with the person

in question, yet this is not always the case. It is proven that while “ADHD is a disorder that

makes it difficult to pay attention, this is also seen in someone who exerts signs of laziness”

(​Office of Science Policy, Planning, and Communications 1).

With the modern day threat of the opioid crisis sweeping the nation, why would

Americans still want to begin supplying even more drugs to people who don’t need them, and

will end up being negatively impacted by them? Pumping kids full of drugs that will supposedly

help them focus in their day to day lives, is definitely not the way they should be treated,

especially considering that most of these kids don’t even have a confirmed case of ADHD from a

medical professional. When the mind begins growing from infancy to being fully developed after

adolescence, it is an important time for the brain, and it must be insured that nothing can hinder

or halt the development of this process, unless of course it is required for someone with a case

such as ADHD. Not only will these medications be putting a strain on the kids with having them

have to constantly stay on track and take them on schedule, but also a strain on the wallet of
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whoever is buying the medication. The most common type of medication prescribed to those

who have ADHD is adderall, which just so happens to also be easily obtainable by those who

don’t want to use it for its intended purpose, but instead for the performance enhancing

properties. It’s proven that “Recent data indicated that almost two-thirds of college students were

offered prescription stimulants for nonmedical use over a four-year period, and 31 percent had

used stimulants for nonmedical purposes” (Richardson 1)

It may be concluded that while there are just over 3 million (and rising) “reported” cases

of ADHD, this does not entirely mean that all these cases are validated. Parents gaining an

increase of concern over whether or not their child may have some sort of disorder is also on the

rise, partially due to the increase of negative things shared about the way the medical system

operates and how it harms children rather than helping; when on the contrary taking their

children to the doctor to be diagnosed for something they don’t have causes just as much trouble.

Those people who are not paying attention when they’re supposed to be, it’s not good to

automatically assume that they automatically have a disorder and begin giving them things they

don’t need, as there’s the chance they are doing it on their own accord. Pumping children full of

drugs at such a young age when they aren’t needed is sure to cause problems down the road, and

may even get them addicted to such an easy to access drug. Don’t always assume that someone

has ADHD just because of the signs that they’re showing, what is found online should not

always be trusted, and children should be brought to a trained professional if it truly believed

they may have a disorder like ADHD.

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Works Cited

Madsen, Kathrine Bang, Arnfred Holmelin, et al. “Characteristics of Undiagnosed Children with

Parent-Reported ADHD Behaviour .” ​European Child and Adolescent Psychiatry,​ ​Vol. 1,

EBSCO, Consumer Health Complete, Feb. 2018,

web.a.ebscohost.com/src_ic/detail/detail?vid=5&sid=23435194-93b1-46f9-8659-a487191f35f

c@sessionmgr4006&bdata=#db=cmh&AN=128360240.

Office of Science Policy, Planning, and Communications. “Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity

Disorder (ADHD): The Basics.” ​National Institute of Mental Health,​ U.S. Department of

Health and Human Services, 2016,

www.nimh.nih.gov/health/publications/attention-deficit-hyperactivity-disorder-adhd-the-basic

s/index.shtml​.

Parekh, Ranna. “What Is ADHD?” ​American Psychiatric Association,​ July 2017,

www.psychiatry.org/patients-families/adhd/what-is-adhd​.

Parens, Erik, and Josephine Johnston. “Facts, Values, and Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity

Disorder (ADHD): an Update on the Controversies.” ​Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and

Mental Health​, Vol. 1, BioMed Central, 19 Jan. 2009,

www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2637252/​.
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Richardson, Elysia. “Recreational Adderall Use: Adderall Effects on People Without ADHD or

Narcolepsy.” ​Arete Recovery​, 13 July 2018, areterecovery.com/blog/recreational-adderall/.