Dream World #2

More and more people want to believe that we are all born with equal talents and that life will always be wonderful for all of us.  If someone lacks a talent, we think taking a pill will remedy that lack.  

When I went to school, there were students who liked school and those who, for whatever reason, did not function well in school.  Others were good athletes, some of us were not.  Some were good looking, some were not.  Some were leaders, some were followers.  There was a variety of talents among us as schoolchildren.  And there is a variety of talents among us as adults.

In the 20th century attempts were made by teachers, parents and friends to help those kids for whom school was a problem.  Not all of these attempts succeeded, primarily because the raw material was just not there.  The 21st century believes that the raw material exists in everyone; if it doesn't readily display itself, a pill will bring it out.  And pills are being used more and more to improve the school performance of our kids.  They are being prescribed for treatment of A.D.H.D., which, in my opinion, is another indication of the cult of over-diagnosis, as in 2007 almost 10% of kids aged 4 to 17 were diagnosed with ADHD.

The problem with Adderall, Risperdal and the other drugs being used is we don't know what the long term effects of extended use will be.  We do know that they are particularly addictive.  One doctor's thoughts, “These children are still in the developmental phase, and we still don’t know how these drugs biologically affect the developing brain.  There’s an obligation for parents, doctors and teachers to respect the authenticity issue, and I’m not sure that’s always happening.”