The over-diagnosis of ADHD leading to overmedication of children has lead to much controversy among doctors and parents. ADHD is a disorder that I have seen in my family and I am very interested in the process of diagnosis. I have seen the challenges that it can cause but I have also seen the change in a child's demeanor when on medication. My experience as a babysitter and also as a camp counselor allowed me to see first hand how medicine affects the way a child behaves and also how they are when they forgot or choose not to be on medication. This subject does not particularly affect my beliefs or my values; however, it is something that may directly affect other people's beliefs. For example, many people do not believe in using drugs and choose to use holistic or natural approaches to treat illnesses. These approaches are somewhat popular in treating ADHD and some people choose to use them for young children who cant always accurately be diagnosed or don't need to be bombarded with heavy medications. I take an interest in the alternatives people can choose to use on their children. I believe that unsure parents of children who may be misdiagnosed with ADHD by doctors who have jumped to conclusions without using all the facts should have an opportunity to attempt less invasive treatment options before running to medication. My first hand experience with ADHD as well as seeing my younger brother go through the diagnostic process recently have driven my concern with the way the disorder is being treated. As a young child, it was suspected that I myself had ADHD. My mother chose not to medicate me but when my brother also was suspected to have the disorder with much more severe inattentiveness, medication was the recommended treatment.  

The article "A True Epidemic of ADHD or an Epidemic of Over-Diagnosis" by Sandford Newmark claims that ADHD is over-diagnosed, and medicines are overprescribed and the context of the child's environment should be evaluated with the diagnosis in order to accurately determine if a child had ADHD. Doctors are rushing to prescribe medication and not taking the time to individualize the children. Demands of children have changed as education has progressed, and what may be ADHD in one child or in children of previous generations is not consistent with today's standards of ADHD. The issue of over-diagnosis has become almost as big of an issue as childhood obesity and to many people's surprise, is almost as frequently diagnosed. Sanford Newmark a medical director of a medical clinic in California says "we will have to decide whether to treat more of our children with long-term psychostimulants or work together to find a different approach to this persistent problem." (Newmark, n.p.) In his profession he gets a lot of experience working with children and sees a lot of ADHD being diagnosed within the practice. The frequency that he was seeing the disorder being diagnosed made him wonder if this was truly what the children were suffering from. His credentials and education give him a background and platform to express his concern as well as reason to question the authenticity of ADHD.

"Should you medicate your child who has ADHD?" is an informative article written by Kate Ashford and geared towards parents to guide them regarding the choice to medicate or not to medicate their children who are suffering from ADHD. The article shows both sides with pros and cons of medication as well as holistic and behavioral interventions. Some parents and doctors believe that the process is trial and error and that the side effects of the medications outweigh the benefits. Others think that without the medication their children are suffering from self esteem issues, and their grades are plummeting. Even with at home treatment and parent counseling, the non-medication options are not enough to control the disorder. Specifically, Kate speaks to another mom, Katherine, who chose to medicate her son "not only for him, but also for all the other children in the class around him," (Ashford, n.p.). This is a stance that many parents take due to the advice from doctors and the feelings of being a burden to other parents because their inattentive child is taking away from the education of other children. This article was informative; however, I still felt a slight bias towards being pro-medication while reading it because the author gave all the facts about both perspectives, yet had more explanation and support for the cause of medicating children. The author, Kate Ashford, is a freelance writer and mom who has written for Health and Women's Health magazines. She has a great parental standpoint of the controversy and her stance and occupation gives her a great platform to express her concern as a parent. 

Thomas Inel, author of "Directors Blog: Are Children Overmedicated?" argues that children are being medicated too frequently with antipsychotic and psychostimulant medications which they may not need. Psychiatrists and parents are too busy to properly handle the issue, and jump straight to extreme measures and medication. . In reality, the problem is not the parents, schools, drug companies, or psychiatrists but rather the way they are diagnosing their children. The author believes the diagnosis of ADHD has become too common, and without proper testing a doctor readily assumes that ADHD is affecting or is the sole factor causing a child to be inattentive and goes straight to medication, without trying other alternatives or finding a conclusive diagnosis. Thomas Insel believes that "the problem may be both over-treatment and under-treatment," (Insel, n.p.). The argumentative genre of this article allows the author to support his claims about the effect that medication and false diagnosis have on children with lots of facts and graphics. In an informative article the author simply gave facts, while here the bias adds to the argument and allows the author to get his point across. 

The question of whether or not ADHD is over-diagnosed is arguable because some believe that doctors aren't doing well in the form patient care or taking the time to properly diagnose disorders. Others believe that ADHD has actually increased in frequency over time due to some generational factors. Both of my argumentative sources believe that the problem may lie within diagnosis, therefore leading to overmedication in young children. The varying perspectives make me think about the broader aspects of the problem. That the singular problem isn't just that children should or should not be medicated for ADHD but rather the reasons the parents are choosing to medicate their children and that doctors are not doing their jobs in depth or giving parents all the information they need. 

