Still, making sweeping generalisations is something I'm the first to tick other people off about. Quite out of character for me to indulge in it. Sorry, don't know what came over me. Let me rephrase it, Ritalin is something that many (perhaps most) people have found to be less than helpful. The inducing of a zombie-like state is far from rare, it seems. If OTOH Ritalin seems to help in a particular case then of course I wouldn't say its use should be stopped simply on principle.

Sorry, but I disagree. Those people who dont give their children medication (whatever their reasons are they are their own) are entitled to their choice, but why make such a sweeping statement like that? Trust me, having a child with ADHD is bloody hard work & there is already enough stigma attached to it without people who dont know any better making comments like that, even if it is only on an internet forum.

Thank you, although I do disgree on the *most* part, there are many many kids who take Ritalin & for them (& their parents!) its literally lifesaving.

I know how hard it is, I've witnessed it as I say. I don't understand why you think it necessary to label me as "someone who doesn't know any better" and I don't see why what I said increases the stigma. I also don't see why it should only be the long-suffering parents who are allowed to express an opnion on the subject. Perhaps you would like the doctors to keep quiet too?

I take my hat off to all the parents and the children. I have nothing but admiration for your never-ending efforts and your battle against those medics who think they know better than either they or you do. But I see no reason not to express my feelings on a particular matter if I think they may be helpful.

Of course none of this is particularly relevant to the original question, which was whether it would be seen as a problem for the medicals. I think we've firmly established that the answer to that is "no", and I hope all the long-suffering parents can cross that one off their list of things to worry about!

Ok, that's probably enough crossed postings. Can we kiss and make up now?

Mrs Dagboy,Thankyou for your support on this,
any parent giving their kids Ritalin or any other type of medication go through turmoil making that decision in the first place,we struggled for over a year & finally made the decision to try him on Ritalin,I have never seen any signs of zombie like behaviour from Andrew,every child is different however & ive heard so many horror stories.
Having a child with ADHD,you go down every route possible,hoping for a solution,medication was a last resort for us,but certainly not a cure,you still live with it everyday & cope best you can.
I honestly dont know what kind of state our family life would be in if it was,nt for Ritalin.
Donna.

Ok, ok, I wish I'd never mentioned the stuff now. I was only passing on other people's experiences. I thought it might help. I mean that's what this forum's for, isn't it, trying to be helpful?

Madsad, no worries. :)

Mark, honestly, I know that you were trying to help, but there is a serious stigma attached to not only the disease (although it does depend on the form it takes), but mostly on parents that *drug* their children ( Im talking about ADHD here, not the others). Sorry for jumping on you, but it is a very very emotive issue for most of us & most of us feel that constantly having to defend our decision & field comments that the medications are somehow *bad* doesnt really help.

Im just telling you how it feels from my side, now wheres that kiss you promised me? :p

Madsad, FWIW, I have 6½ year old twins with severe ADHD, the full spectrum from behaviour problems to attention deficit & everything in between. Medicated at 4½ years used Ritalin for quite a while, but have now switched to Dexamphetamine. We found that Ritalin very much affected their sleep patterns & wasnt quite as effective on their behavioural problems as the Dex, although its not perfect either & I would like to try a couple of the other drugs to see if theres any improvement. But I know exactly what you mean by your last sentence about not knowing where your family would be without Ritalin.


No help with DIMIA & the visa though, sorry, we are all Aussies, so havent had to go through that :) .

Our boys have only started school this year, so I cant help with the secondary schools etc but if you want any help/support/general info just drop me a PM :) .

Apology gladly accepted. I can sleep more easily now. (See I do hate to upset people.)

I didn't mean to suggest that all medications are bad, far from it, just that I did get an overall impression that Ritalin was something to be approached with extreme caution.

I was asking for a kiss, not offering one. Well ok maybe that's two sides of the same coin! Er, how do you spell that squelchy kissing noise? Mmmmspppwww!

*mwaaaaaaaah*

Now, if you are off to bed, thats sure to give you nightmares all night :scared: :p ;)

Missed it, so it was a good morning kiss. Now I'll get daymares instead!

Er, sorry madsad, in danger of hijacking now. I'll hush.

What a fab thread, you read our minds, we have a son of 7 who was diagnosed 6 months ago with ADHD, and has been on concerta first, which was fab for school, but too strong for appetite and sleeping, so we have just switched to ritalin 5mg morning and lunchtime. The school thinks a miracle has occured because now Adam can sit and write.
I have just secured a job and will get a LBTV but we were worried we may be turned down for PR, good news it seems
Louise:p

Hi everyone,

We have a number of children in our school who have ADD and ADHD. All are currently on various doses of Ritalin. Some took to it like a duck to water, others had to have the doses juggled around a bit. All I'm glad to say are different children on it. They can actually have some sort of normality in their lives. I personally have taught 2 of them (one of which I pushed for an assessment as he was 'just a naughty boy' sad but true) and from a teacher's point of view it makes life so much easier, also the parents of these children seem less worn out. It must be hell for you all living with children who have this condition, I really do take my hat off to you. As much as you love your children I bet there are days when you think why us. I wish you all luck when you get to Oz, your children should all be fine, as I said on a previous post most schools have a policy on how children with ADD and ADHD should be treated.
Hugs
Sarah

Sarah,
Thanks for your post its great to hear positive remarks and as I said our son is doing great on his ritalin
Louise x