Here ya go guys.
Ritalin, and Adderall, and Concerta etc are either amphetamine or ampthetamine like drugs. First lets define what ADD/ADHD does in everyday terms. For the technically picky I am not going to quote DSM-IV, because I am not. I have some problems with that reference for my own picky reasons. Anyway, the basic theory goes somethng like this. There is a portion of the brain that acts as a filter to the outside world. It's primary function is to allow you to focus on one thing instead of being overwhelmed by all the things going on at once
Example:
"Normal" person in a room at a party can talk to someone without much difficulty (assuming less than 10 zillion dB of music).
The ADD/ADHD in the same room has difficulty doing this. Why? because someone in the corner someone is talking. And someone else. And someone else, and the neighbors dog is barking and the music IS too loud, and someone coughed,and....
In the second case, ALL of what is going on registers and cant be "turned down" The mind is assaulted equally by every distraction. This is bad. What Ritalin etc. does is stimulate that center, in essence turning it up. That allows the individual to focus on a particular person or task.
So what is wrong with Ritalin? basically nothing. The problem seen is when someone brings in a kid to an physician and TELLS them their kid has ADD because they are not behaving. Sometimes true, but too often what is really going on is poor parenting skills. Perhaps the TV is getting boring and the little tyke wants some of the parents attention. Must be ADD because that "babysitter" is not working now and the child wants (gasp) the attention of the parent. Sometimes it is age appropriate behavior, normal low attention span in a 6 year old compared to older children or an adult. Enough examples for now. Historically, the doc gives a "trial" of the medication, and low and behold it works! So the child has "it". Onto the Ritalin. The problem with this "scientific" method is that it is not. Almost everyone can focus better on this stuff. So what happened was a backlash against these drugs because of it. That is why generally, it is much harder to get onto it these days.
So is Ritalin good or bad?
Yes.
It is not the drug, but the patient who determines that. If the childs basic socal interaction at home is the TV, then what is needed are parents with skilz (that how we spell it these days?) and medication is not the solution.
If you have the condition, then it is a good thing. Imagine being a child at school. "Johnny what is the answer to the question?" Johnny is saying WTF in his own way, because the bird outside the window is building a nest and the clock is ticking to loud and it is too hot inside, and he would rather be playing outside, and two kids are passing notes... too much information to process. So he missed something, namely the lesson. Now Johnny is bad. At least in his own eyes. Stupid, worthless eventually. Kids pick on him, he is branded a "problem" Parents and teachers have meetings. He is not stupid, just distracted. He KNOWS they are talking about him. His ego goes in the dumpster, and all the negative social behaviors start. Well, since Johnny had this at birth, he probably came to school with some. Now he gets medication. It works. For the first time something good happens to him. People react better to him and with good guidance and support, he gets back on track.
Now who among you wants to throw Johnny back into misery, besides the obligatory smart-asses? Messing with brain chemistry? You bet! For the better. Did we survive without medication for millenia? Yep. Without insulin or antibiotics too. Cure for a bullet wound in the leg during the Civil War? Amputation. Why? because you WERE going to get gangrene. So off with it. Oh the pain killer/anesthetic was whiskey. Ether was down the road a bit. Oh but that cripples. Leaves it impossible to be "normal" Guess what ADD can do that too, but in a way you do not see, in physical terms.
Do we have it solved now, at least a working solution? Not entirely. Still is the potential for misdiagnosis. Recently it was found that a large number of children being treated for ADD who had their tonsils and adenoids removed were cured of ADD! I mean a LOT of kids. Why? because they never had it. Turns out that the problem was obstructive sleep apnea. Some of these tissues get swollen to the point where they block breathing, especially at night when the structures in the throat relax. These kids are really chronic victims of sleep deprivation. When they get good rest, they are "cured". That's how medicine goes though.
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