Do you think some parents and docs just use ADHD as an excuse for brats with bad parents?

I am not sayin all add and adhd diagnoses are fake, but i have some friends who I know for a fact are bad parents. When their kid is at my house and hits my kid, the mom just says don't do that and goes back to conversation! It is an excused behaviour ever since this diagnosis! I know some kids have legitimate problems and need mental help, but I am wondering if it strikes anyone else as entirely too convenient in most of the cases they see? My brother could probably have been diagnosed this way, he could never in his entire life sit still. My mom would have tanned his hide if he had pulled something like that, or some of the other things i hear about theses kids getting away with on the news. Like the one who brought a knife onto the bus today here in Houston. Isn't there something to be said for a parent who just won't put up with this stuff?

Oh Yes--Teachers too!!!! Most ADHD cases are diagnosed in boys. Some boys get away with more than girls in the same household and are taught they can be wild, so it is convenient to label them ADHD.

I agree with you. I think they should do an evaluation of the parental behavior before they diagnose these kids. They should still be disciplined too. I have relatives whose children have been diagnosed as add/adhd and you look at what they have been thru and u know that is what caused them to act the way they do not a disease. Its sickens me.

I agree, I think society has become so convenience-oriented that some parents (and teachers!) would like to mould kids into manageable zombies and take all the work out of parenting or supervising them. We are drugging our brightest kids. It's sad. And, it makes it so much more difficult to actually help the ones who really do need it. I hope this trend ends soon. :)

I think it is over diagnosed and overtreated. But their are kids with ligit adhd problems. As far as parenting goes I would think kids with adhd would need even more parenting help then kids without. So it is definately no an excuse to let your kid get away with things.

I think about 90% of the kids are misdiagnosed. Consistency in the discipline is the key not Ritalin or other drugs.

I agree, see it everyday.

Oh yeah! I beleive this is soooooo true!

Yes, but some don't.

Of course, I am from a different country and I have never heard of such disease!

I do agree with your statement some kids do get misdiagonised yes there are lazy parents out there who thinks letting them sit infront of the tv playing comp games eating suguary crap an no fresh air exercise. In my opinion kids needs exercise, good diet, firm boundaries, strict discipline. with them you cant go far wrong. I do and my children are fairly young but they do not run ammock i am not saying they are angels as they are not.

Yes! Kids are overly medicated these days. I am only 26, but know that when I was a kid, we were outside all the time, running around, playing in the woods, etc. My hubby grew up in the city (he's 33) and it was the same thing for him. The kids would get home, get on their bikes, work off all that energy. Kids nowadays are in front of the tv, computer, or video games..and have WAY too much excess energy. Not to mention the over-consumption of sugar.

I think there's definitely some cases where the parents are happy to jump straight into a diagnosis of ADHD rather than look at the environmental factors, ie, parenting styles, for sure.

I know there are genuine cases, but I've personally known children who are in desperate need of discipline, not Ritalin.
I also think another big factor is that kids are often labelled 'hyperactive' when they're actually just normal kids needing to get their energy out. If a child's sat in front of a tv or video game all day then naturally they'll have some pent up energy.
Add that to the daily diet a lot of kids get of junk food, sugar and additives, and you've got some very out of control kids!

straight up YES. My son was diganosed at 2 and ahalf with ADHD, he is now 7, i dont belive it, how at that age can anyone tell if it is that or not.. I dont medicate him as i think it is a load or crap and addictive. He has really bad concetration and that is why i think ppl say he is ADHD when his not. I tell him off when he is naughty. I explain to him why he cant do things. He is ok at school, they no i dont medicate and they just have him moving round doing diffrent things . All parants are diffrent. I think it has more to do with if your child is diganosed with ADHD they can recive aditional money from the govenment. All their doc has to do is fill out a form.

One of the problems in todays' society is not even so much bad parenting, it's NO PARENTING!!! Yes, I agree with you, it's almost like something's in the water, all of a sudden, there are an overwhelming number of cases of ADHD and ADD. I believe it's a misdiagnosis an many cases, as the children are not taught at an early age how to behave. Parents don't discipline their children like they used to. Children should never be beaten, battered or abused, but there should be rewards and positive attention for good behavior an unacceptable behavior should not be tolerated, and if punishment is in order, then the parent should carry it through. I know of a time when a Mom or Dad only had to give the child "a look", and the child knew to stop what they were doing. Didn't even have to say a word, or raise a hand. Sometimes today's parents expect others to raise their children. Many mothers are out working and their children are in day care with someone else all day long. It's not that this is terribly bad, lots of people have to do that, like one parent households, unless you prefer to raise your children on welfare and food stamps. The thing is, that those parents have to give a lot of their off work time to the attention of their children in a positive way. They can't just pick the child up and drop them off like you would your laundry, and expect it to all come out fine. It won't. Yes, some parents are bad, they are lazy and can't be bothered disciplining a child, or giving them the attention they need. It is too convenient to let others take care of your children, and ignore the things that the children do wrong, as if they're just going through a stage. They have to LEARN, they need to be TAUGHT proper behavior, it doesn't just happen. They need love, and nurturing, they need to feel safe and secure, and they need to feel wanted by their Mom and Dad, or whoever their PARENTS are, since a number of children don't have or know their one or both real parents. You don't get that from day care or a babysitter. It has to begin in the home. Sure, their are kids with problems, but their are also parents with problems raising their children who would rather blame it on someone or something else, and doctors who either don't know better or just take the easy way out to oblige them. We should not be so quick to raise generations of children on drugs.