Yes

5 of 11

by Mysriannah

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Certainly today I truly believe that the use of drugs to fill in the void of our lives that we cannot seem to fill is in fact of the making of societies own creation. The creation of a life-style I believe could be called "on demand" or simply "do"! Society as a whole by majority seems to know of only one response, that being "instant gratification" or everything has to be now! It has been my experience to hear some doctors say to me when I inquire of this sensitive and vital issue of sociology that in fact it is their patients who pressure them into the growing trend for drug therapy. The doctor is expected to deliver the miracle pill! Let's face it, western nations in particular live in a high-speed world that leaves little or no time for living. Some adults; and I am one of them, have actually forgotten how to relax, my, things are really bad when no matter how hard one tries, one simply cannot relax. It has been suggested to me that I suffer from the adult-form of ADHD. How absurd! What I suffer from and my children followed suit you might say, is a zest for living! Oh, dear how sick are we! I don't like to sit still, I can't still, I am always on the move, I can't sit still even watching TV. Does this make me abnormal or ill? I doubt it. However, what it does give rise to is an opportunity for medical exploitation in giving fancy and false labels for people who simply want to truly live, especially children. If I seriously look into the initials ADHD in a childlike manner it actually spells the so-called problem of the day - it reads outs phonetically "a day ahead"! Wow! The kids are healthy, wow! How awful! Give them a pill to slow them down, why? So they can become lazy or stop enjoying themselves for the sole convenience of adults who find they cannot keep up with their energetic kids? God in heaven, show these sick people what life is really all about! People, take a reality pill! With that aside, food additives are a real problem in today's society, fast foods, junk foods, sweets that used to be called treats! Additives, especially colour additives, are chemicals no matter what scientific terminology is used. I doubt many of you would pick up a bottle of poison and add it to the cooking process and then serve it up on the table, however, because the process is "out of site out of mind" people readily are willing to ingest them without so much as a thought of the impact to either the mind or body. Children are even more sensitive to chemicals added to their food intake than most adults. As for sweets containing high amounts of sugar, these are just as damaging especially to young children. Once upon a time, sweets were a treat to be earned and regarded as a luxury! Today, sweets can be found almost constantly in a child's possession as part of their regular daily food intake. Sweets have a damaging affect on teeth as well and thus should be regarded as they were supposed to be "a treat" to earn! The discipline code of today's parenting skills must also be a factor to be considered in the war against so-called "problem children" who display signs of behaviour disorders and should be honestly assessed as opposed to being labelled "medically and mentally impaired". At an unconscious level children bi-nature need discipline administered in a caring, loving and controlled manner. It is here in this instance a child can often feel secure in the knowledge they are indeed being given attention! This type of old-school parenting if you like gave children a sense of worth as their movement and behaviour was obviously being monitored by onlookers such as parents, aunts, uncles and so on. Then, of course, finally, after exhausting avenues of possibilities within life-style and diet, we consider children who may genuinely have a medical or mental condition that might impact and impose on their brain function that might see them behave in an extraordinary manner. These children, once their home-life and diet has been thoroughly investigated and proved beyond doubt not to be the source of the problem for such unruly behaviour, I believe they may then seriously be considered for drug therapy in trying to provide a better life for the child or adult, whichever the case may be. Sadly in today's society, doctors, therapists, counsellors, psychiatrists etc., are only too quick to lay blame with the brain! When in fact one only has to observe the behaviour of today's parenting skills to realize much of the blame lay with society itself in creating problems that children simply were not designed to be subjected to. Old-school parenting, whilst it may have had its downfalls, did by far the majority on the whole provide what I believe to be better role-modelling environments of which children would mimic as children do, it is their nature, this is in part how they learn. Thus the old-adage; "monkey see monkey do"! By in large society must accept responsibility responsibly for the so-called problem children of the day in that truly in many cases one only has to observe the child's home-life and role models they are afforded with in their lives to see where the problem truly lays with; what I see are more cases than not of adult-borne fantasy in covering their own short-comings. Children are bi-nature creatures abounding with energy, they need to run, play, jump, climb, scream, shout and sing for much of their time as youngsters. Think seriously, how many children live in "cage-style" environments such as high-rise units and homes with tiny backyards etc., Children need constant supervision, they get lonely, they need to know parents and carers are attentive to their needs. How many children would get up in the morning to a note left with instructions on the day's events and what and how to deal with them and then to arrive home after school to much of the same thing. Really, parents, carers, doctors, psychiatrists, therapists and counsellors and the like, give serious thought before administering drug therapy as opposed to simple and healthy living standards. Governments spend millions of dollars each day on drug education to break the drug-taking cycle and here we have so-called professional organisations doing the opposite in so many cases that need only need serve the basics of any child's needs. Those being - genuine and interactive love, care, attentive parents or carers, lots of sunshine, a healthy diet and less sweets. So, let's see if society as whole, as it is the responsibility of society to care for all children, can take an honest reality check. For the many of you parents and carers who might be highly-strung, take a chill pill yourself and leave your children drug free to enjoy life to the fullest and teach and equip them for life independently - drug free! I truly feel as a mother of 5 children, parenting over 3 generations feel that adults have for too long blamed unruly behaviour upon their children when in fact the truth of the matter in many cases is that society as a whole has not fulfilled their own responsibilities and allowed them to fall upon the children who cannot possibly fill such a role of child/parent inclusive. In addition to this, look around, how many people smile and say hello to you when you pass them in the street, how many people have suffered from loneliness in their own home and died, not being found for days or weeks! You don't have to be an Einstein to see plain old-school loneliness that adults and children alike suffer from a lack of attentive love and care. I have seen some people attend their homes and cars better than their own children. If only people were as attentive to their children as they are in serving themselves material possessions and slaving for the privilege and the children pay the price, ADHD! In so many cases, children starving for love! Children are a gift, not a right!

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