I wouldn't say they boost grades, but they did allow me to actually finish my homework (or start, in most cases)
ADHD Drugs Don't Boost Kids' Grades, Studies Find
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Re: ADHD Drugs Don't Boost Kids' Grades, Studies Find
#12As someone who grew up with ADHD managed by stimulant drug therapy since age 7, I can earnestly say that my experience was that ADHD drugs did boost my grades and were a crucial factor in my career success, to date (and still are).
I completely agree.
I was diagnosed and have been treated since around age 7.
This was before ADHD was 'popular', and at a point in time when they thought it just went away when you got older.
At least, as written, the article talks about something different from the study. The article says "However, a growing body of research finds that in the long run, achievement scores, grade-point averages or the likelihood of repeating a grade generally aren't any different in kids with ADHD who take medication compared with those who don't. "
It then says "A June study looked at medication usage and educational outcomes of nearly 4,000 students in Quebec over an average of 11 years and found that boys who took ADHD drugs actually performed worse in school than those with a similar number of symptoms who didn't. Girls taking the medicine reported more emotional problems, according to a working paper published on the website of the National Bureau of Economic Research, a nonprofit economics research firm."
Nowhere, does it say they study studied kids with ADHD, only kids taking ADHD drugs.
I could entirely believe it does not improve grades or cognition in students who are not actually ADHD, but believe it "helps them focus" or whatever.
THe article seems to mix up these things all over the place, in some cases talking about ADHD kids, and in some cases talking about kids taking ADHD drugs.
If the study really only studied kids with some verified accurate ADHD diagnosis, it would be nice to know that.
While, back when I was diagnosed 27 years ago, kids taking ADHD drugs and kids with ADHD were likely much the same group of people, they haven't been for a long time.
Re: ADHD Drugs Don't Boost Kids' Grades, Studies Find
#13Yes it won't boost their grades, but it will actually make them be able to be "normal" people. People haven't lived with someone with actual/bad ADHD if they think drugs don't work.
As somebody who grew up with "actual/bad ADHD," I find this statement, frankly, insulting. As a result of being drugged with Ritalin/Adderall throughout my childhood, I've had this notion of being somehow "wrong" or "broken" ingrained in my psyche, an effect with which I still struggle to this day. There are plenty of schools in which to enroll children with ADHD, and there are a ton of career paths - generally relat…
Adderral does not have an intense narcotic effect for me.
You can also nowadays take straterra, which is a non-stimulant.
Honestly, if your ADHD is so low level that you can function well without drugs, more power to you. There are plenty of ADHD people who literally cannot, and to imply they could just take career paths involving "creative thinking" is, IMHO, somewhat wishful thinking.
Re: ADHD Drugs Don't Boost Kids' Grades, Studies Find
#14Yes it won't boost their grades, but it will actually make them be able to be "normal" people. People haven't lived with someone with actual/bad ADHD if they think drugs don't work.
As somebody who grew up with "actual/bad ADHD," I find this statement, frankly, insulting. As a result of being drugged with Ritalin/Adderall throughout my childhood, I've had this notion of being somehow "wrong" or "broken" ingrained in my psyche, an effect with which I still struggle to this day. There are plenty of schools in which to enroll children with ADHD, and there are a ton of career paths - generally relat…
The "intense narcotic effect" of Adderall is due, by the way, to the immediate, large amount of it made available in the bloodstream. The whole point of newer-generation drugs like Vyvanse and Concerta is to change the bioavailablity of the drug to a small, steady stream, by effectively having the liver process and "activate" it at whatever speed the body prompts it to.
I'm sorry for what you went through, but it's not the same thing kids today go through.
(I say this as someone who was diagnosed with ADD after 23 years being unaware of it, doing very badly in school, letting relationships fall apart, losing jobs, etc. In retrospect, given the drug technology at the time, I think my parents made the right choice--when a teacher suggested they look into my neurological condition--that the treatments available at the time were worse than the disease. However, this is no longer the case.)
Re: ADHD Drugs Don't Boost Kids' Grades, Studies Find
#15http://www.aasa.org/SchoolAdministratorArticle.aspx?id=5642
article on the feminization of schools. boys (even those without learning 'disabilities' are not set up to succeed in 21st century school systems.
Re: ADHD Drugs Don't Boost Kids' Grades, Studies Find
#16Earlier quoted context omitted.
As somebody who grew up with "actual/bad ADHD," I find this statement, frankly, insulting. As a result of being drugged with Ritalin/Adderall throughout my childhood, I've had this notion of being somehow "wrong" or "broken" ingrained in my psyche, an effect with which I still struggle to this day. There are plenty of schools in which to enroll children with ADHD, and there are a ton of career paths - generally relat…
Adderral does not have an intense narcotic effect for me. You can also nowadays take straterra, which is a non-stimulant. Honestly, if your ADHD is so low level that you can function well without drugs, more power to you. There are plenty of ADHD people who literally cannot, and to imply they could just take career paths involving "creative thinking" is, IMHO, somewhat wishful thinking.
While I'm happy to hear that some have found a way to control their "affliction," I've never tried Straterra and have no plans to start. As I alluded to in my original post, my ideological objections to drugging our "broken" children are more than simply pragmatic. And, even though I'm a mid-twenties male in college, I hardly ever go to class as I still can't manage to sit still long enough to listen to a 50 minute lecture. I read the textbooks instead and ace the tests.
Anecdotally (I use that word conservatively as I've read studies to this effect but don't care to look them up), I've found that those with ADHD, including myself, are more creative than "normal" people. Something about the non sequitur way in which our minds work. So it's a difference in strengths, not a difference in mental quality.
I also noticed I'm using a lot of quotes in my reply. I guess my cynicism is expressing itself through my sarcastic tone.
Re: ADHD Drugs Don't Boost Kids' Grades, Studies Find
#17Yes it won't boost their grades, but it will actually make them be able to be "normal" people. People haven't lived with someone with actual/bad ADHD if they think drugs don't work.
As somebody who grew up with "actual/bad ADHD," I find this statement, frankly, insulting. As a result of being drugged with Ritalin/Adderall throughout my childhood, I've had this notion of being somehow "wrong" or "broken" ingrained in my psyche, an effect with which I still struggle to this day. There are plenty of schools in which to enroll children with ADHD, and there are a ton of career paths - generally relat…
Re-reading that does sound a bit insulting, I'm sorry that it came out that way, I don't mean any disrespect.
I grew up with a brother who had to take dexamphetamine or he wouldn't be able to do anything, he was a totally different person under it.
Re: ADHD Drugs Don't Boost Kids' Grades, Studies Find
#18So we're going to look at grades as an indicator of success here? Grades, which have been shown time and time again to have very weak, if any correlation with success? I've dealt with ADHD my entire life. As a kid people could see I was smart, but "if only he could apply himself!" One of the most pivotal decisions I ever made was to seek counseling, and ultimately medication, when I was flunking out of college. My gr…
Honest question: could your success be at all attributed to placebo? IOW, is there any question at all as to whether or not you could have made a conscious decision to "buckle down" and have met the same result?
I fear for myself that when facing similar hardship that acquiescing to meds could just be "dealing with the situation" and not properly processing what the actual hardship is, why it exists, and how else it could be dealt with.
I suppose that in the end, solutions mean progress. And I'm all for working smarter, not harder. Perhaps it's stigma. At any rate, I'd appreciate your perspective. Also, awkward high-five for doing what you're doing.
Re: ADHD Drugs Don't Boost Kids' Grades, Studies Find
#19Earlier quoted context omitted.
As somebody who grew up with "actual/bad ADHD," I find this statement, frankly, insulting. As a result of being drugged with Ritalin/Adderall throughout my childhood, I've had this notion of being somehow "wrong" or "broken" ingrained in my psyche, an effect with which I still struggle to this day. There are plenty of schools in which to enroll children with ADHD, and there are a ton of career paths - generally relat…
Re-reading that does sound a bit insulting, I'm sorry that it came out that way, I don't mean any disrespect. I grew up with a brother who had to take dexamphetamine or he wouldn't be able to do anything, he was a totally different person under it.
Totally understand, thanks for the clarification. Obviously this is something I'm passionate about ;)
Re: ADHD Drugs Don't Boost Kids' Grades, Studies Find
#20So we're going to look at grades as an indicator of success here? Grades, which have been shown time and time again to have very weak, if any correlation with success? I've dealt with ADHD my entire life. As a kid people could see I was smart, but "if only he could apply himself!" One of the most pivotal decisions I ever made was to seek counseling, and ultimately medication, when I was flunking out of college. My gr…
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