The undesirable behavior patterns in the classroom which have been subsumed under the rubric of Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) or, more recently, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) have been getting the focused attention of the press in recent days.  TV magazines have done an expose, and parents seem to be left at the mercy of the establishment which is taking  a purely humanistic approach to the issue at hand.  Many reports are given by parents where the so-called malady is diagnosed by the classroom teacher solely on the basis of behavior; and, all too frequently, a physician obligingly writes a prescription for Ritalin or Adderol with no scientific foundation for such a diagnosis.  Production of this drug is skyrocketing, and the medical/pharmaceutical industry is profiting at the expense of our children and their families.



Yes, the medication does alter behavior; but so did the medication handed out by ungodly psychiatrists in the former Soviet Union when a person’s behavior was substandard relative to standards of the Communist state.  Shouldn’t it be cause for alarm when our state schools, which are steeped in secular humanism, are accorded the privilege of medicating our children to accomplish behavioral goals—theirs?  While there seems to be some physiological involvement in a fraction of that diagnosed as ADHD, using medication without simultaneous evaluation and treatment of the psycho/spiritual dimensions of the behavior is irresponsible, to say the very least.  When will the state decide that homophobia, for example, is an undesirable trait and begin to medicate children and/or adults for this mental/social aberration—to put it another way, those who are out of step with the politically correct or humanistic way of looking at things?

During my counseling ministry spanning more than 40 years, there have been many instances where children were hyperactive, not due to organic etiology, but because of their exposure to unstable conditions in the home and to a steady diet of TV with all of its ungodly and psychologically destructive input.  I don’t believe I recall a single instance where a child was reported to be hyperactive while under the mesmerizing influence of video games and TV.  However, when exposed to a setting in school where he is supposed to think, rather than having his thinking done for him, he is charting unfamiliar territory; and it is relatively easy for his body (and emotions) to rule his head.  Behavior which is spontaneous, based on past programming (no pun intended) and passive response rather than meaningful behavior stemming from intellectual input, is now seen as an attention deficit disorder!  Add to this a heavy dose of emotional conflict based on emotional or physical abuse, or merely being subjected to the trauma of a broken home and all that this connotes; and it is fairly simple to exercise common sense and see that he has so much emotional noise going on inside that he could have a little difficulty hearing and maintaining a reasonable attention span regarding external input!  When the behavior emanates from that which has been pre-programmed by several years of emotional and intellectual deprivation because of lack of proper parenting and spiritual training, not to mention the more severe negative circumstances, bring on the Ritalin!