How Many Children are Misdiagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder?

A recent Time Magazine article titled Center for Disease Control: Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder Increasing in Older Kids indicates that researchers are wondering if this trend is due to the marketing of stimulant medication by the pharmaceutical industry.

Many of these children are being misdiagnosed. How many of them actually have diagnoses of depression, anxiety or post-traumatic stress disorder? One of the symptoms of these mental health disorders is difficulty concentrating which is supposed to be a hallmark for the ADHD diagnosis. Children and teenagers should be fully evaluated for depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress disorder before a diagnosis of ADHD is considered.

ADHD is the mistaken label given to many children who regularly demonstrate impatience. How many kids simply have not developed the important life skill of exercising patience? We live in a society where demand for instant gratification is the norm and taking one's time to figure out some of life's dilemmas is not taught or valued.

The lack of patience that happens when a child is waiting for something he feels entitled to happen immediately is expressed intensely. He becomes angry, anxious, hyper-focused, defiant and can become tearful.

The increase in the use of video games where action always is occurring and the strong desire to go to the "next level" promotes the lack of patience. Children tend to spend huge amounts of time playing these games. This teaches them to have intolerance for anything that appears to be boring, like conversation or reading a book.

This lack of patience can appear to be ADHD when it maybe a phenomena that is being created by modern day American life. The use of video games needs to be greatly curtailed and parents have to be strong and not give in to their demanding children.

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