On Thursday, September 2nd, the New York Times published an article about a young boy who had been prescribed anti psychotic drugs since he was 18 months old for his "severe temper tantrums," attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, bipolar disorder, and sleeping medicines. The mother herself even said that she felt like she didn't have her son anymore -- that she would look into his eyes and just see blankness. Not only was he practically sedated all the time, but he gained weight as a side effect of the medicines. His mother also admitted that she simply couldn't handle her son and that she was at her "wit's end" -- unprepared for motherhood at the age of 22. This to me is absolutely appalling and disgusting. As a topic discussed in class on social issues, I personally think this is complete negligence to personal responsibility. His mother chose a poor, selfish decision as a parent to resort to giving her infant drugs rather than simply just giving him the attention that psychologists and counselors later say was all he needed and craved. It makes you wonder what the heck the doctors, pediatricians, and his mother were even thinking to find it in any way acceptable to give a BABY medications that in most cases only strictly adults should be taking. It makes me question health regulations, the personal responsibility of all "professionals" involved in the prescribing of these hardcore medications to an innocent infant who really only needed more attention and care from his mother -- something he should have been getting in the first place. Thankfully, through a therapy program called Early Childhood Supports and Services, he was able to be weened off of the drugs by the age of six. Makes me question a lot about our medical and health care.
Link to a video on this article:
http://video.nytimes.com/video/2010/09/01/business/1248068952581/medicating-children.html?src=tp
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