My daughter had some problems in junior high. I was called to school where the counselor recommended my daughter be screened for ADD-ADHD. I talked with my father who had a PhD in psychology, child psychology to be exact, and he said the counselor was crazy. He was of the opinion that ADD is way over diagnosed and is used as a catch all for any problem behavior exhibited by a child.
He was also of the opinion that medicating otherwise healthy children was a bad idea, and that it was no wonder that drug use was more widely accepted by a generation that grew up learning that drugs were the easy solution to solve problems.
His thoughts on ADD were that only a small percentage of the children diagnosed with it actually had it, and in treating it, drugs should be the last option when all else has failed, not the first as is so often the case.
The school also recommended my daughter go to an alternative school. My answer to them was that when she graduated, would she be able to find an alternative job, structured to her individual needs? I didn't think so and I told them in a nice way that I didn't believe that alternative schools were a viable solution.
My daughter had a couple of rough years where I went to school every week to meet with the teachers and discuss a strategy for educating my daughter. I got to know the teachers on an individual basis and found it to be a very pleasant experience.
My daughter graduated last week from high school and she plans on going to college. She has been teaching piano and guitar at the local music store since she was 15. She played in the jazz band, the orchestra, and a 5 person group. None of these opportunities would have existed had I followed the schools recommendations of drugs and alternative schooling.
BTW, I was a single father and raised my kids by myself for over 10 years.
