The usual antipsychotic drugs sold at pharmacies and prescribed by local doctors can be more dangerous to children than people expect. Prescribing antipsychotic drugs to children is controversial because antipsychotic drugs can help children if taken with care, but they can also have strong side effects for children. Antipsychotic drugs should not be prescribed to children and adolescents because they can interfere with their development and growth, there are less dangerous medications and treatments that can be used as a substitution, and children might have been mistakenly diagnosed with a disorder. Children are still developing and growing, prescribing them with an antipsychotic drug will cause them to have an abnormal development. Risperidone, Aripiprazole, Quetiapine, and Olanzapine, are all known as atypical antipsychotic drugs which can cause children to …show more content…
Even though supporters state antipsychotic drugs can help treat children with schizophrenia and bipolar disorders, some doctors prescribe these drugs to children that do not meet the requirements from the FDA. Critics of modern Psychiatry state “the profession has invested too heavily in technologies such as brain imaging and psychotropic drugs, leading many psychiatrists to the false conclusion” of diagnosing a mental illness in a child. (Psychiatry) Children are most likely to be prescribed with antipsychotic drug for aggression and disruptive behavior rather than for hallucinations and hearing voices. Torsten Weisel, a neurologists, states they need many years to accurately diagnose a mental illness. (Children and Antipsychotic Drugs). Often children enrolled in Medicaid have a greater chance to be prescribed with an antipsychotic drug than private insured children because it would be less expensive than
...apine, quetiapine, aripiprazole, risperidone, and may include ziprasidone) to treat psychotic symptoms, and mood stabilizers such as lithium or valproate to control manic episodes.
Clozapine and the Treatment of Schizophrenia Clozapine, marketed by the trade name of "Clozaril," is a member of the dibenzodiazepine class of antipsychotic medication, and is one of many types of neuroleptic drugs. Clozapine is an atypical medication because it differs from the older conventional drugs such as Halodol or Lithium. The difference between atypical and the older drugs is because there less neuroleptic activity as a result of more specific receptors utilized. The atypical drugs work effectively to treat psychotic illnesses and tend to have fewer side effects than their predecessors. Clozapine has been found to be the most effective antipsychotic drug for treatment resistant schizophrenia.
The disorder which is being treated is actually strengthened to the point of a serious mental illness. Similarly, in today’s society, medical and psychological advice may have the same effect. Medical technology and practice have progressed considerably since the time of the “Yellow Wallpaper.” This is not to say that today’s physicians are infallible. Perhaps some of today’s treatments are the “Yellow Wallpaper” of the future.
-Lieberman JA, Stroup TS, McEvoy JP, Swartz MS, Rosenheck RA, Perkins DO, Keefe RS, Davis SM, Davis CE, Lebowitz BD, Severe J, Hsiao JK. Effectiveness of antipsychotic drugs in patients with chronic schizophrenia. N Engl J Med. 2005. Web.
In today’s society, a lot of emphasis is placed on administering drugs and medicating people with psychological issues; however, most of these ailments and issues have the ability be treated through the use of talk therapy rather than medication. Americans are particularly guilty of over medicating when it comes to our more common mental health diagnosis such as, ADHD, depression, and anxiety. We as a society expect things to be done at the snap of a finger; in our advancement of science, we have been able to discover ways of offering the results we want quickly, inexpensively, and with little effort. Unfortunately, although the use of medications, also known as psychoactive drugs, occasionally remove the symptoms, but they do little to remove the causes of these mental health issues. In addition, to the lack of solution that the use of psychoactive drugs offer, they can also have unwanted and dangerous side effects. These can include simple physical irritants such as dry mouth and head aches, and can range up to dependency and substance abuse, and in some cases even death. Moreover, there are cases of inappropriate prescribing, where doctors are authorizing the use of medications that don’t work or are not pertinent to the issue the patient is experiencing. Furthermore, some of these doctors are issuing these medications without subjecting the patient to a proper mental health evaluation by a psychological professional.
Medications are also the fastest way for parents to see results in their unruly child. Ever
As science has evolved, so have treatments for mental illnesses have over time. The medical model is described as the view that psychological disorders are medical diseases with a biological origin (King, 2010, pg. 413). Abnormal behavior that categorizes some disorders can be impacted by biological factors such as genes, psychological factors such as childhood experiences, and even sociocultural factors such as gender and race (King, 2010). Treatments such as psychosurgery (lobotomy) , drug therapy (pharmaceuticals), electroconclusive therapy, and psychoanalysis are used to treat a wide range of psychological disorders. Back then, the public’s negative views on mental illnesses also went as far to associate with the people who treated it; psychiatrists. “Nunnally (1961) found that the public evaluated professionals who treated mental disorders significantly more negatively than those who treat physical disorders,” (Phelan, Link, Stueve, & Pescosolido, 2000, pg. 189). People back then didn’t see the point in “paying to be told that they were crazy”. However, in today’s society, it is now acceptable to seek help from psychiatric professionals; we are seeing more and more people seek mental health treatment. “In terms of facility-based records of utilization (Manderscheid and Henderson 1998), the data suggest that the rate of utilization of professional mental health services has at least doubled and maybe tripled, between the 1950’s and today,” (Phelan, Link, Stueve, & Pescosolido, 2000, pg. 189). In the 1950’s, neuroleptic drugs like Thorazine were introduced to treat the symptoms of schizophrenia. These drugs block a neurotransmitter called dopamine from getting to the brain, which in turn reduce schizophrenic symptoms, however there are some side effects such as substantial twitching of the neck, arms, and legs, and even dysphoria or lack of pleasure. (King, 2010, pg.
At least one in four families in the U.S. is affected by mental illnesses. Unfortunately there is no cure for this range of illnesses, which have been around for thousands of years. Of the American adult population, 5.4 percent have a serious mental illness. These health conditions are characterized by alterations in thinking, mood, behavior, or some combination of these. They are also associated with distress and sometimes impaired functioning. In 1990 the total cost of mental health services in the U.S. was $148 billion. According to a new report by the Mental Health Foundation, one in five children suffer from a mental health problem. Attention deficit hyperactive disorder is a mental illness that is diagnosed mainly in young children and doesn’t always disappear in adulthood.” All we know is that this genetic, inherited condition [ADHD] is not due to brain damage at all but rather a variation in how the brain functions.” Attention-Deficit/ Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) includes symptoms and characteristics that can be placed in one of three categories: inattention, hyperactivity and impulsivity. These characteristics commonly leave a person with ADHD with lack of attention span, easily distracted, fidgety, struggling to stay seated, having trouble engaging in calm activities, impatient, and talking excessively or out of turn. A new study by researchers says that hyperactive children have behavioral differences due to under active parts of their brain, a biological malfunction, rather than due to way they were brought up. This was revealed by a magnetic scanning device that allowed researchers to look at the brains of children diagnosed with ADHD. These studies and statistics reinforce the claim that mental illnesses are not invented simply to justify drugging of children and a disease that needs be educated to the public for better understanding. Rather, ADHD is an illness that affects many people throughout their lives. This topic is often misunderstood by the public. The media and medical community need to educate the positive side of this controversy and not just show the opposing view, which often times misrepresented by the media.
Psychotropic medications, also referred to as psychiatric or psychotherapeutic medications, are used to treat psychiatric disorders, such as: depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, anxiety disorders, and attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). They have been used for many years and oftentimes come with dangerous side effects. The side effects that often occur in children taking these medications can include: fainting, blurred vision, vomiting, extreme weight gain, and even death ("Seroquel information,” n.d.). The use of psychotropic medication to treat mental disorders in children and adolescents is highly controversial because of ethical viewpoints (i.e. parents “drugging” their children to calm them down) and potentially harmful side effects, but one has to take into consideration whether the risks outweigh the benefits when deciding whether or not to give this type of medication to children.
Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is a psychiatric disorder that causes children to have problems with paying attention, trouble with following instructions, have impulsive behaviors and become easily distracted. Medications, such as Adderall and Ritalin, are used to treat the symptoms of this disorder by helping the patient to focus and pay attention while also curbing their impulsive behavior and hyperactivity. Side effects of these medications are, but not limited to, anxiety, addiction and in some cases psychosis. Proponents of giving ADHD medication to children argue that ADHD is a real disorder in children and the medication does improve the symptoms of the disorder by a large margin as well as being cost effective. Also, not only are the parents happy with the outcome of their children taking the prescribed medication but so are the children themselves. Proponents also argue that by not letting parents of the children, young adults and adults choose to take these prescriptions when diagnosed with ADHD that the medical and psychiatric communities would be in violation of the principle of autonomy. Justice as well would be violated since most of the burden of dealing with all the symptoms caused by this disorder would fall onto those with ADHD and partly on their families. Opponents of giving ADHD medication to children point out that it is not only going to children with ADHD but also being prescribed to those not diagnosed with the disorder as well as the pills being given or sold to other children and young adults. They also claim that the full side effects of ADHD medication are still not known and could have harmful long- lasting side effects on the children taking the medications. In this case, the princip...
Walkup, J. T. (2012, January 26). Best Medications for Kids With Anxiety . Best Medications
Wigal, Sharon B. "Efficacy and Safety Limitations of Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder Pharmacotherapy in Children and Adults." CNS Drugs 23.(2009): 21-31. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Web. 27 Mar. 2011. Helmke Library, Fort Wayne IN.
This disorder can begin to create problems when they are involved in structured situations or those that require attention for an extended period of time. However, a common concern that many experts must remain cautious about is, when or when not to give ADHD medication because the parents of the child or the adult may have other motives, such as wanting the medication to advance their skills and abilities to beat their competition.
Doward, J. (2013), Medicine's big new battleground: does mental illness really exist? The Observer 12 May.
Children, like any other age group, have their numbers steadily increasing with time. They too face the same issues as adults and need an intervention to help them recover. Children have the right to be prevented from mental health complications and the families and health systems should work together to enhance that. Enhanced systems should be able to detect such conditions early enough and provide interventions that solve the problem in the long run. Efficient detection systems can also help establish causes of mental issues among children and provide an opportunity for preventive health approaches.