Renowned Adlerian, William Glasser calls the DSM (Diagnostic and Statstical Manual of Mental Disorders) "The Big Red Book Of Unhappiness". Adlerians do not embrace the now popular quick-and-dirty DSM diagnosis followed by fast pharmacotherapy. Too often meds are used as a bandage to mask symptoms with no attempt at resolving the underlying issues.
Apparently Leslie Diller author of "The Last Normal Child - Essays on the Intersection of Kids, Culture and Psychiatric Drugs" is of the same opinion.
Here is a review in the American Journal of Psychiatry that every one should take a moment to read. We live in a culture that gives infants anti-depressants if they cry too much, and we are massively over-dosing our children with amphetamines to calm them down and get them back into their school seats. I hope this makes you take pause and think about ADHD and other diagnosis with more skepticism and appreciate the complex factors that have lead our culture to this point.
Comments