ADHD medication : does it work and is it safe?

Karniski, Walt 1950- (author.).

Summary: In ADHD Medication, Dr. Walt Karniski uses his 40 years of experience as a developmental pediatrician to address important concerns that parents have about the use of medication for the treatment of ADHD.Because there is no medical diagnostic test to definitively “make a diagnosis” of ADHD, it is easy for critics to dismiss ADHD as a disorder fabricated by doctors, teachers, and pharmaceutical companies. Some parents blame themselves, and react with guilt, believing that they should have raised their child differently. So when you are presented with the diagnosis of a medical disorder in your child, is it any wonder that you might react with confusion, guilt, or denial? It doesn’t have to be that way.Parents are surprised to learn that there are almost 50 different medications used to treat ADHD, representing only two primary medications. This book addresses such issues as how to determine if medication is needed, how to decide which medication is the right fit for your child, whether children can outgrow ADHD, how to eliminate medication side effects, and how you can discuss the need for medication with your child. Most importantly though, this book answers the questions: Does ADHD medication work, and is it safe?This bookis a powerful resource for parents and practitioners alike seeking to understand the treatment of ADHD in children.

Record details

ISBN: 9781538155776
ISBN: 153815577X
ISBN: 9781538155783
Physical Description: print
viii, 321 pages : illustrations ; 23 cm
Publisher: Lanham : Rowman & Littlefield, [2022]

Content descriptions

Bibliography, etc. Note:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Formatted Contents Note:

Chapter 1: What Is ADHD and How Has It Evolved? -- Standing in Line -- Who Am I? -- ADHD Seems Like a Recently "Invented" Diagnosis. Where Did It Come From? -- So How Is ADHD Diagnosed? -- Diagnostic Criteria: Blessing or Curse? -- Day of Judgment -- Chapter 2: What Is ADHD and How Does It Feel? -- Celebration -- Chapter 3: From Silk to Ritalin: A History of the Medical Treatment of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder -- From Tears to Calm: The First Use of Medication to Treat ADHD -- Pharmaceutical Companies Get Interested11 -- From Obetrol to Adderall -- Ritalin Owes Its Existence to Tennis -- Ritalin Goes Mainstream -- Chapter 4: Is ADHD Really Real? -- But Wait! Isn't ADHD Overdiagnosed? -- Overdiagnosis Explanation #1: ADHD Lacks an Objective Diagnostic Test -- Overdiagnosis Explanation #2: ADHD Is a Collection of Normal Behaviors That Occur in Everyone, Occasionally -- So ADHD Behaviors Are Neurologically Based. But Couldn't ADHD Be a Normal Personality That Evolved over Time? -- What Causes ADHD? -- What Is Happening in the Brain of a Child with ADHD? -- How Does ADHD Medication Work? -- Chapter 5: Could ADHD Medication Help My Child? -- How Effective Are ADHD Medications? -- How Could ADHD Medication Help My Child? -- Can ADHD Medications Help My Child's Core ADHD Behaviors? -- What Does Research Tell Us about the Effectiveness of ADHD Medications? -- Can ADHD Medications Help When My Child Grows Up? -- Can ADHD Medications Have Long-Term EFFECTS on the Structure of My Child's Brain? -- Are There Any Non-Medication Treatments That Can Effectively Treat ADHD? -- Can ADHD Medications Help My Child? -- Chapter 6: Why Are There So Many Different Medications for the Treatment of ADHD? -- One Prescription, Five Meds -- Why Are There So Many Different ADHD Medications? -- Why Are There So Many ADHD Medications? -- Why Are There So Many ADHD Medications? -- Can Generic ADHD Medications Be Substituted for Brand-Name Medications? -- What Is the Difference between a Generic Medication and a Brand-Name Medication? -- Chapter 7: Which Medication Is Right for My Child? -- Four Medication Characteristics That Differentiate All ADHD Medications -- Medication Duration Time -- Delivery Mechanisms -- Medication Mirror-Image Molecules -- Medication Cost and GoodRx -- When Medication Is Indicated, Which Medication Should Be Started First? -- What Should I Say to My Child before Starting Medication? -- Chapter 8: Stimulant Medication Side Effects -- Three Types of Side Effects -- Appetite and Growth -- Sleep -- EMOTIONAL LABILITY (Time Related) -- Mood Suppression ("Zombie Effect") -- EMOTIONAL LABILITY (MEDICATION RELATED) -- Headaches and Stomachaches -- Tics -- Cardiac -- Chapter 9: Comorbidity: ADHD Does Not Dance Alone -- ADHD with Oppositional Defiant Behaviors -- ADHD with Dysphoric Mood -- ADHD with Anxiety -- ADHD with Compulsive Behaviors -- Medication Treatment for ADHD with Comorbid Behaviors -- Chapter 10: Twenty Brand-Name Methylphenidate Medications to Treat ADHD -- Chapter 11: Sixteen Brand-Name Amphetamine Medications to Treat ADHD -- Chapter 12: Ten Non-Stimulant Medications to Treat ADHD -- Afterword -- Medication List -- Notes -- Chapter 1 -- Chapter 2 -- Chapter 3 -- Chapter 4 -- Chapter 5 -- Chapter 6 -- Chapter 7 -- Chapter 8 -- Chapter 9 -- Chapter 10 -- Chapter 11 -- Chapter 12 -- Index -- About the Author.