Over Diagnosed
There are people out there who say that a sure sign of creeping old age is the fact that you can remember clearly what happened 30 years ago but you can't remember what you had for breakfast this morning.
Now that works for me. Who in the hell cares what I had for breakfast anyway.
I do remember some of my grade school days. I wonder what it would have been like if back then we had all these mood altering drugs, pseudo syndromes and named disorders.
I think I would have at least qualified for some behavior modification. Maybe they would have given me a set of initials like ADD or ADHD. Nope...instead I got a rap on the back of the head with a ruler. You see, I would sometimes stare out the windows and stop paying attention to the teacher as she droned on and on about something. She would tell my parents at every conference that I was a "daydreamer"
Actually I was totally bored out of my head. But no special programs. No initials.
No fancy drugs. Just "whack".
Or how about this. I was always bullied in school. All the bigger kids took great delight in making my life miserable. I think it was my ears. Back then I had full grown adult ears that stuck out like to open barn doors. Some of my school pictures I looked like a 1949 Buick with its doors wide open.
Ron Allen took special delight in sitting on my back and flicking my ears. Left, right, flick, flick.
If that happened today Ron would have been yanked out of school, given some form of anger management class, probation and some designer drug to help control his need to pick on some one smaller that him. I would have been taken to a counselor and made to believe that I had some form of PTSD. Maybe some cool drug to calm my nerves and to help me sleep. Maybe even sent to a special class with special teachers with all the other special kids.
No. What really happened was the PE teacher got tired of watching this poor pathetic little kid get his ears flicked every day so he took him aside and taught him how to box.
The first time I bloodied Ron Allen's nose was the last day my ears were flicked. Ron turned out to be a pretty nice guy, opened a car dealership and was a pretty successful businessman. Neither one of us became mass murderers or any other menace to society.
So what's my point? My point is I think that society now days is way too quick to slap a catchy name to child behavior. Too quick to drug them into acceptable behavior. Too lazy to take the time to just accept the fact that this kid may be different or he may be marching to the beat of a different drummer. Too consumed by our own life to stop and watch as these students grow and learn at their own pace and style. It is really something to watch. A youngster learning something new. You would be amazed.
I wonder what life today would be like if the drugs and programs of today were available say a 100 years ago. What if Albert Einstein was drugged. What if Beethoven was told to stop daydreaming. Maybe the world would be different if Eisenhower and Patton were counseled about aggression and slammed into a special program for anger management.
But thats just me.
Now that works for me. Who in the hell cares what I had for breakfast anyway.
I do remember some of my grade school days. I wonder what it would have been like if back then we had all these mood altering drugs, pseudo syndromes and named disorders.
I think I would have at least qualified for some behavior modification. Maybe they would have given me a set of initials like ADD or ADHD. Nope...instead I got a rap on the back of the head with a ruler. You see, I would sometimes stare out the windows and stop paying attention to the teacher as she droned on and on about something. She would tell my parents at every conference that I was a "daydreamer"
Actually I was totally bored out of my head. But no special programs. No initials.
No fancy drugs. Just "whack".
Or how about this. I was always bullied in school. All the bigger kids took great delight in making my life miserable. I think it was my ears. Back then I had full grown adult ears that stuck out like to open barn doors. Some of my school pictures I looked like a 1949 Buick with its doors wide open.
Ron Allen took special delight in sitting on my back and flicking my ears. Left, right, flick, flick.
If that happened today Ron would have been yanked out of school, given some form of anger management class, probation and some designer drug to help control his need to pick on some one smaller that him. I would have been taken to a counselor and made to believe that I had some form of PTSD. Maybe some cool drug to calm my nerves and to help me sleep. Maybe even sent to a special class with special teachers with all the other special kids.
No. What really happened was the PE teacher got tired of watching this poor pathetic little kid get his ears flicked every day so he took him aside and taught him how to box.
The first time I bloodied Ron Allen's nose was the last day my ears were flicked. Ron turned out to be a pretty nice guy, opened a car dealership and was a pretty successful businessman. Neither one of us became mass murderers or any other menace to society.
So what's my point? My point is I think that society now days is way too quick to slap a catchy name to child behavior. Too quick to drug them into acceptable behavior. Too lazy to take the time to just accept the fact that this kid may be different or he may be marching to the beat of a different drummer. Too consumed by our own life to stop and watch as these students grow and learn at their own pace and style. It is really something to watch. A youngster learning something new. You would be amazed.
I wonder what life today would be like if the drugs and programs of today were available say a 100 years ago. What if Albert Einstein was drugged. What if Beethoven was told to stop daydreaming. Maybe the world would be different if Eisenhower and Patton were counseled about aggression and slammed into a special program for anger management.
But thats just me.
posted by Rob | 8:57 AM
4 Comments:
I came over from Bev's blog and just wanted to tell you that I completely agree!
Wonderful post! I have three boys and we now homeschool ( for 4 years) after trying the public school. Boys need space to run, wonder and explore. Sitting at a desk for 6 hours a day just doesn't cut it for some kids. Anyway, I read your wife's blog (I'm not much of a commenter) and thought I'd surf over and see what was on your mind. Good stuff!
Rob,
You have summed up so well many of the thoughts and conclusions that my husband and I have drawn over the years. It is one of many reasons why we homeschool. I agree with you. My youngest daughter would definitely be labeled ADHD and probably medicated and a host of other treatments, but how would that have quenched her spirit? For now, we work on behaviors. Talk in a lower voice, help her recognize when a tone of voice or an action is inappropriate and then (God Forbid!) there are consequences when she does something she KNOWS she shouldn't do. (Notice the "KNOWS" because too often our kids are held accountable for things that are beyond their age ability to understand). Our kids are outgoing and friendly. They are polite and have good manners. These things are too often missing in the other kids their age (or even older) that we see at church or in the neighborhood. My son, who is 7, holds the door for people. My daughter, who is 5, told me the other day that I was beautiful and "stylish" which was so funny. But would she have had the capacity to know how to use the compliment if she was on ritalin? Understandable and age appropriate boundaries are the key, along with patience, understanding, and love. Thanks for the thoughtful post. Oh, and congratulations for quitting smoking!
Tammy
I agree 100% with you. I can't tell you how many times I have called a parent about their kid's behavior, and their response is, "Well, he can't really help it because he is ADD. Maybe we need to up his dosage." I could just scream! Kids need to learn to control themselves and "manage" their behavior, but they don't learn these skills because we have magic pills out there that manage it for them. It drives me batty!
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