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no, i don't think so, you are the parent and ultimately you decide if your child takes medicine like that. it is often risky for kids to take adhd meds so you are certainly entitled to refuse.

Im a parent of a child with BP. First how old is your child????

I can tell you that you would be doing a lot of harm to him if you choose not to medicate him if he is ADHD. If he isnt the meds wont work right and you will know... if he is they will work and you will see a differance even if just slightly... the first time I ever saw my child play constructively was the first day he took his meds... he was 3 and a half. After 3 months I chose to deal with the behavior until school and stoped meds because he would crash badly... but at 4 he started them again and was medicated on all school days until last year when he was put in a special class that was tailored for ADHD kids

i live in mo, and the law says i have to medicate my child or i could be prosecuted for child endangerment and neglect if i dont give him his meds.

Have you looked into his diet? Could he be hyper sensitive to something in his diet? Certain chemicals can have adverse effects on childrens behaviour. You can have a strand of hair analysed to determine any toxins or heavy metals that could be affecting him. I think a blood test can also determine chemical levels. It could also be hormonal. I would get his bloods done.

Just a few thoughts Goodluck :))

he is 8 in third grade and is in his teachers words the smartest 5th grader she ever met. he is extremely intelligent reading at a senior high or college level (no joke).
his biggest problem in school was social inclusion but he was homeless and homeschooled until 1st grade and still has no children living in the neighborhood to associate with,
the first month of school the teacher thought adhd because he would tap his feet, not stay in his seat, and tap his pencil to the point of annoyance. to me just acting out for attention and to occupy his bored brain. he has no challanges in school acedimics.

michigan has an open homeschool law. you don't even have to report that he is being home schooled you can just keep him home and school him. there are no regs or rules.
I might just keep him home if they really cant handle him or mabye just try another school with a more motivated teacher.

there are 2 sides to adhd, some kids who really are and need the meds, some who aren't and really should not be on the meds. my nephew is on them, and in my opinion a little more structure at home would solve the problem much better. i have spent a lot of time with him and when i am around to offer a little structure and discipline, he is not a behavior problem at all. but, i guess you need a good doc for the right dx.

Kids that suffer from ADHD often are ETREAMLY SMART and is a reason why they are antsy in school. It makes you wonder if Intellegence isnt a cause of adhd as the schools have to meet the masses.

I would say that if he has trouble appling himself to his work for more then a few minutes despite the diffulculty that you do need to take the idea of ADHD seriously. A very smart sudent with out ADHD will accomplish all thier work and then be bored... a kid with ADHD will be bored befor they get very far if at all started on thier work.

ADHD kids commonly do multiple thigns at once... excell with video games and tv. They often have impulse control problems... but not always if its passive.

Its sounds like a passive ADHD if anything. Agressive ADHD there is well agression and very poor impulse control... My sons favorite was rocks... and where he could throw them too... followed closely by sticks.

Im gonna write this a tad different then my last past just to help clarify...

After 14 years of education in ADHD and ADD now they are combined in the terms department and being ADD my self I hope I can clarify it some.

ADHD kids tend to have all the ADD symptoms plus exttreamly poor impulse control and usually 'behavior' problems. This is known now as ADHD agressive.

A Kid that is ADD has problems focusing on things that do not stimulate them. They are intellegent and so it is hard to stimulate them. this is now titled ADHD passive

You can have a combination of the two.... and varing levels. Usually by puberty if having been medicated and taught better coping skills kids dont need thier meds anymore to perfom to the standars expected of them.

My brother is ADHD combined. He was not medicated at the age of 5 when I told my mom what I saw... at 10 he was diagnosed and by puberty he refused his meds and had not enough time to learn good coping skills while he could actually concentrate. My mom regretes not giving him the tools as early as possible.

I am ADD I was unmedicated.. they didnt have ADD when I was young. I was the little girl whose desk was on the side of the room. I was not agressive and I didnt have impulse control... I managed but never did start to learn skills til I was an adult and needed to really focus... it affected my life in ways I cant even begin to explain...

If its minor then meds arent always needed but coping skills still need to be taught. If they cant even study and complete an assignment with out prompts then they need tool... even if meds... to learn befor they get to old.

If they just have behavior problems and can focus on anything they are given... then sounds behaviorial and well ya adjust the house... ADHD shouldnt be an excuse for behavior... but ADHD should be used as a reason to teach better skills. Pills dont fix a kid with ADHD's behavior the parents disapline does...

I hope that makes sence... by the way I have gotten a lot of my info from many sessions with a pediatric neropsycologist....

One other thing.. I suggest seeing a psycologist for evaluation and if they say see a psyciatrist then do so... psycologist will tend to want to treat with talk therapy first so if you are weary of a drug pushing doc... thats the best way to go.

sorry for such a long pust but I just feel so passionant about kids that suffer and those that dont truely suffer... and its an area that I have had to dedicate my life to inorder to help my son succeed. I hope my info helps you decide if your son needs to see a psyciatrist...

you mentioned pulling him out of school and homeschooling him again. Have you looked into charter schools? MI does have the schools of choice program and charter schools are usually more willing and better equipped to handle children with behavioral issues.

The school is pushing for a ADHD paperwork, I forget what they are called. They are doing this because an IEP is worth more in legal terms than the stupid ADHD paperwork.

Demand to see the head of Special Ed at the district office and tell them about your son's problems. If need be get an advocate for your son's rights.

I work with IEP's and my son has ADHD and the same district ignored most of the paperwork from ADD.