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Re: 'Growing Up Bipolar' in Newsweek » B2chica

Posted by yxibow on June 10, 2008, at 18:35:08

In reply to Re: 'Growing Up Bipolar' in Newsweek » yxibow, posted by B2chica on June 9, 2008, at 14:05:56

> that was an interesting article. thank you for sharing.
> and i must say i agree with a lot of the comments.
>
> i have a child not even 2 and i'm hesitant to even give her the antibiotics the doctor Rx for chest colds...
> but i do sympathize with being a parent and not knowing what to do and turning to a doctor for help. but i guess i'm in a position that i know these meds, and i just see so many issues with giving them to a child (as above mentioned).
> possibility of increased suicidality, increased mood shifts, the slu of side effects, and most importantly the child being too young to truly tell you how the meds are effecting them.
>
> and for the record this is not a judgemental statement. these parents did what they felt they had to do.
>
> but if the choice were mine, i would expire every other option first. before the heavy meds...i would ALSO question the diagnosis...very hard.
>
> b2c.


And you're perfectly entitled to your own view from a parent's point of view. Some people wish to explore other options -- there is always the option of a second opinion, which I forget if they eventually sought or not.

I do agree that only a trained -child- psychiatrist with some experience should be determining diagnoses and possible drug regimens.


One has to remember though, over the counter substances are also not innocuous for children -- acetaminophen, which has serious consequences for exceeding its range not much more than the therapeutic dose, the child's formula, which is necessary because children can tend to get very high fevers actually, has to be dosed much lower, so its averaged by bodyweight and put on the package of Tylenol or whatever.


Antibiotics have been time tested in children, at least the ones given to them, and there runs a risk also of not giving them when they are warranted, because while it has disappeared for the most part in this country, strep throat can lead to rheumatic fever, which is a serious long term condition. The same, for people who are worried -- and again, entitled to their own opinion -- about mercury in vaccines and vaccines outright, are entitled in most places not to use them, but will not be admitted to schools. Why? Because unvaccinated chilldren can be carriers for diseases that have been eradicated in this country for decades.

Anyhow just a comparison, I know psychoactive substances are a much more complicated issue in growing children, at least say up to 16 or so, or until past puberty -- but there at some point is a balance. Yes, in this case mentioned it was their only child -- but even the mother questioned "having another" because what if their genetics, recessive or whatever turned out to create another child that would be brought into the world with another unknown disorder.

Its a hard thing to think about when one oneself has a biochemical imbalance -- of course you wanted to be brought into this world, but without the symptoms, and after all what is really "normal" and why should there be a stigma.

Yet there are realities, and both the parents were hard working to support their child, as the instinct is, but even there you could see the tearings of a marriage as a possibility, and that would be even worse.

All these things I'm sure still go through their minds and would go through the minds of any parent in that situation.

Fortunately where they lived, they could have special schooling up until a certain point, and finally made the decision after many trials not to medicate the child but to basically use therapy (the school) as a solution. And the child has grown more responsive as any child growing up, more aware of themselves. But as we know now about biochemical disorders they are a moving target -- there's no guarantee that it will get worse or better, so at some future point some medication may be necessary again, or maybe not.


-- something to ponder

-- tidings

Jay

 

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