Princess,

Is that woman nuts? The situation is even worse than it first sounded. Bad enough a non custodial parent would do this without checking with the doctor, but for a grandparent to do this without your consent is an outrage.

Whenever my XH does anything, it is usually at her urging. He was simply her messenger.

When oh when will he move out?!

I was listening to my local PBS channel tonight. They have a program called "Frontline" which nationally syndicated. Next episode is about herbal supplements and the fact that there is no law, apparently, mandating that these things even be safe. Sounds like just the show for you.

Our younger son is now in 3rd grade. We started him out in kindergarten knowing we would have to have him repeat it. (June birthday.) Basic problem was he needed to mature emotionally. He was having problems concentrating and making decisions on his own. He repeated kindergarten and went to 1st grade. He did ok but was gradually falling behind the rest of the class. He went to 2nd grade and by Thanksgiving, teacher was all ready talking about holding him back. During this whole time we were working with the school with possible solutions with these problems. Tutoring, counseling, etc. By thanksgiving his 2nd grade year, we went to his pediatrician. He wanted to try other options but we told him all of the things we have tried and were ready to try drugs. We did not have time to try other options because he was on the verge of failing another grade. We tried the first type of medication for 3 weeks, no change. The second type of medication was an answer from god. Within 1 month, he progressed 4 months of learning and was caught up with the class. His beginning of the year test for 3rd grade, he tested at 78% for reading and 93% for math. He still has issues. After not being good in school for 3 years, he does not think he is very smart but his grades now show he is. It will take him some time to place school as a positive thing when it was a negative for such a long time.

I forgot the pills Wednesday so I gave XMIL the note, but not the bottle back. Ooops.

Haven't heard anything from XH. I let him pick up the kids and keep them overnight for Halloween even though it is my weekend. It would have been soooooo nice to get a thank you. I know, I expect too much.

I'm waiting for a little kitchen timer I mail ordered. He always does A+ work when he's focused.

Here is a very LONG article that even includes info on some of the ingredients in the stuff my XH sent home...

from the Washington Post

I am sending it to XH (with a few edits of non-relevant parts for length) along with this other note I found:

Before giving your child a dietary supplement, be aware that many dietary supplements, especially herbal products, have not been tested in kids to determine their safety or effectiveness.
• Dietary supplements in this country are not held to any set of federal standards for quality or purity.
• Your best advisor is your child's pediatrician or another health care provider. Be sure to check with them before starting your child on a supplement. And keep them informed of your child's continuing use of the product.
• Supplements advertised as "natural" are not necessarily safe. In fact, herbs, like other so-called natural products, can have powerful drug-like effects. Some of these effects can be especially risky for people who take other medicines or have certain medical conditions.

hi I am happy you won't allow your son to take those..one off the ingreidients gets processed
through the liver..

so run things past his doctor and just keep on keeping on..

sometimes..kids are just kids not lil grownups to sit and vegitate..they love to run, jump, also they NEED to be expresive. So hubby is just going to put up with a normal child is all.
they do need to burn off energy..

my youngest wise a real handful seemed like he was two kids in one..

when he played he played like there was no tomorrow and when he slept he slept hard too..
but today he is normal bright and can fix and do lots of things..he is amerdexteric can use both hands at a time..gets that from me..lol..

but mine was beat out of me..I was allowed to only use right hand. by nuns..

I hurt my right arm and shoulder..and guess what..used left arm for a year..I AM now amerdexteic again..whoo hoo..

anyway you probably have bright children and things seem boring is what my grandson said..he could do stuff and be through it fast and was antsy sitting waiting for others..to finish.

but guess what..your son if he needs vitamins tell the ow that YOU will see he gets a prescription for them..some supplements are drugs..in themself. get a book and study or go to

a vitamin site.and learn what they are used for
I do not beleive children need them.
I take lots of supplements but even I have learned to be careful..

take care and
be safe keep those kids safe too..
EarthAngel

ADHD and Meds

There are a number of studies on ADHD children taking Ritalin. Pharmacetical companies have made sufficient money selling Ritalin, that they could afford to fund research grants, hoping to sell more Ritalin.

One funded study compared children on a placebo, some on Ritalin, and some on Vitamin B-6 with magnesium. The placebo had no effect, Ritalin showed the expected improvements, but Vitamin B-6 students out-performed the Ritalin students. I have a copy of the study someplace, but have not come accross it recently, but I found the study indexed in Index Medicus, the study was done in about 1970. No further studies on B-6 were funded by Ritalin manufacturers, as that was not the results that would sell more Ritalin.

This is not to take a position on all the ingredients in the supplement you are describing.

The medication now being subscribed for ADHD is Straterra. It is not a stimulant, but does have depressive and other side effects. Chadd.org is a website that has a fairly active discussion forum for members, $40.00 per year.

ODD, or Oppostional Defiant Disorder is aften a component of ADHD, and is a separate DSM diganosis category for youngsters. Parents and teachers can affect the ODD of youngstgers. James Sutton has a CD and Book on ODD, 2003. Sutton suggests that more than ordinary punishments and rewards, that the relationship between the youngster and authority figures in his life, is a key and variable factor.

It sounds like the supplement issue is interfereing with your relaltionship with your son. If you want more detailed information on suplements, you might try curezone.com, free, which has a Forum on adverse effects of supplements.

There are advantage and disadvantages of a formal diagnosis of ADHD. You may wish to ask your doctor for a trial on Straterra, or some other pharmaceuitcal. But if the supplement is working, I would imagine that side effects of the suppplement are less dangerous than Straterra, as Straterra requires a perscription.

Hope things are smoothing out for you.

If a child is ADHD, the parents should look at their own tendencies for ADHD or ODD charactersitics. oaching my ADHD son has been a revealing self-analysis for me. But denial is a strong protection mechanism. My wife refuses to acknowlege any of her ADHD or ODD qualities. ODD is ofetn masked with strangers, and only operational with close friends and family members. The Oppositional quality is something that I worked on a long time ago, and still acknowlegdge room for improvement. But my wife just kicks in the oppositonal attitude, thinking that I am completely wrong, and there should be no comppromise on many issues.

If you find yourself thinking that family members are wrong, and there should be no compromise, you might take that as a signal for a topic for further evaluation. You will find many posted responses on this MB forum that support oppositional approaches to marriage relationships.

Whaler

<small>[ February 22, 2004, 11:37 PM: Message edited by: Whaler ]</small>