What would you think if your child received advice to “tune in, turn on, and drop out”? Would you think it was Timothy Leary, Ken Kesey and the ‘Merry Pranksters’ Haight-Asbury Bay hippies era revisited?
What would you think if your child’s attention span issues were being treated by well-intentioned district psychologists with a known hallucinogen from a mushroom called psilocybin?
Think again, because that’s almost the case in many American schools, as the pharmacy kit-bag opens further with speculative treatment therapies for teen attention deficit disorder. Wide spread medication of American kids and adults is based on use of amphetamines and stimulants, which in recent clinical research are shown to mimic some of the hallucinogenic properties of mushroom psilocybin.
Over 6 million Americans each day receive behavior modifying medications like Ritalin for alleged attention deficit disorder. Perhaps no wider spreading trend, beyond over-budgeted and under-performing schools themselves, should cause parents to wonder than the medicating of teenagers in the pursuit of “normative standards”.
Straight Talk On Attention Disorder In Young People. Asking whether teens have attention span issues is like asking whether the Pope is Catholic? Of course they do…but it’s a matter of degree when comparing “Jody can’t concentrate on her class work” to increasingly obtuse and theoretical concepts of the “normative standard” for teens.
Here’s the current list of “usual suspect” symptoms to look for if you think your child may have attention deficit disorder. He’ll be fidgety, squirmy, evidencing low concentration, bored, unable to complete assignments, forgets what was taught in class.
Psychiatric Meds – Anti Depression And Anti Anxiety… Once you “prime the pump” and commence use of neural-blockers you’re playing in a complex arena. 4 million miles of nerve fibers are imbedded within your brain’s neural architecture of over 10 billion cells. Is it any wonder that “psychiatric theory” comes unstuck in the “reality” of this complexity and the necessary uniqueness of each person?
Stimulants And Amphetamines – Major Chemical Interventions. Remarkably, a clinically observed “over-active” child showing alleged attention deficit hyperactivity disorder receives mood-altering powerful stimulants from the class known as methylphenidates under brand names including Ritalin and Concerta. Now to the stimulants add another potion from the class of legally approved amphetamines under labels such as Dexedrine or Adderall.
Ritalin Side Effects. It’s true that 70% or more of the “standard population” will respond favorably to Ritalin for attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder. However, that leaves a “big chunk of statistical change” or 20% or more of the same medicated population that runs the risk of becoming seriously and psychiatrically unglued by the experience.
* Hyper-Nervous Jitters. Physical manifestations of Ritalin abuse can include profound states of agitation and “jittery feeling”. Doctor’s response? Take another intervention drug or beta blocker blood pressure med…so you now have two powerful drugs interacting.
* Irritability And Relapse Depression. As powerful attention disorder meds wear off, people can experience anger, irritability and a form of ‘rebound’ short-term depression. Solution? Other drugs may be prescribed such as serotonin or the class of alpha agonist medications.
* Stomach And Digestive Disorders And Headaches. It’s a known fact that amphetamines and stimulants, including Ritalin, can cause appetite suppression. Solution? While avoiding Ritalin abuse, users may be asked to time their meds, in order to “wear off” just before meal times. Other Ritalin users experience stomach irritability that takes months to control, accordingly are instructed to “take your meds with your meals”.
* Sleeping Disorder. “Short” and “long” acting stimulants remain neural-blockers, not matter which way you look at it. Not surprisingly, the chemically induced stated of “controlled stimulation” carries some unwanted baggage, such as sleeping disorders. Reduced meds may be a partial solution.
* Increased Blood Pressure And Blood Glucose. Borderline diabetics may trigger adult onset diabetes due to elevated blood glucose. Similarly, these stimulants and amphetamines meds stimulate all sorts of metabolic activity, including blood pressure.
* Nervous Tics Exacerbated. If a patient normally exhibits the sort of patterned nervousness and “tics”, then these drugs will amplify these tics as well as the underlying attention span disorder complex.
Non Pharmaceutical Alternatives. Fortunately, families can now turn back into time, and begin selective use of various herbs like St. Thomas Wort, nature’s valium, rosemary, ginseng, centella asiatica as well as to an evolving class of exercise and visual programming aids that allegedly can actually train the ADD-HD person to create new neural pathways (think brain right and left hemispheres) to adjust for certain imbalances.
An Introduction to Dosing With Valium
The dose of Valium® (diazepam) your healthcare provider recommends will vary, depending on a number of factors, including:
- The medical condition being treated
- Your age
- Other medications you may be taking
- Other medical conditions you may have.
As always, do not adjust your dosage unless your healthcare provider specifically instructs you to do so.
Valium Dose for Alcohol Withdrawal
The recommended starting dose for alcohol withdrawal is Valium 10 mg, taken three or four times during the first 24 hours. After the first day, the dose is usually lowered to 5 mg, taken three to four times daily as needed. Usually, you will not be on Valium long-term; instead, it is taken just long enough to help your body deal with the initial symptoms of alcohol withdrawal.
Dose of Valium for Anxiety
The recommended Valium dosage for anxiety treatment is 2 to 10 mg, taken two to four times daily, depending on the severity of your symptoms.
Valium Dosage for Muscle Spasms
The recommended dose of Valium for treating muscle spasms is 2 mg to 10 mg, taken three or four times daily.
Valium Dose for Seizures
The recommended dose for controlling seizures is 2 mg to 10 mg, taken two to four times daily. Valium is intended to be used along with other seizure medications.
Can I Drink Alcohol While Taking Valium?
Both alcohol and Valium® (diazepam) are central nervous system depressants (CNS depressants), which means they both can slow down brain activity. Drinking alcohol while taking Valium may increase your risk of serious reactions. This is why, according to the Valium prescribing information, drinking alcohol while on Valium is not recommended. Additionally, for many people with mental illness, it is usually recommended that alcohol be avoided.
Alcohol and Valium Side Effects
Drinking alcohol while taking Valium may increase your risk of certain
Valium side effects, such as:
- Unusual behavior
- Memory problems
- Drowsiness
- Dizziness
- Problems with coordination.
It may also slow both the heart and breathing, which can cause you to pass out, have difficulty breathing, or even lead to death.
You may also be more sensitive to the effects of alcohol if you are taking Valium. You may not be able to safely drink as much alcohol as you were used to drinking in the past.
Valium is approved to treat anxiety, as well as several other conditions. Generally, it is best for people with mental illnesses (such as anxiety) to avoid drinking alcohol. Alcohol may worsen mental illness and is often a form of “self-medication.” Additionally, people with an alcohol abuse problem may be more likely to abuse Valium.
Can I Drink Alcohol While Taking Valium?
Both alcohol and Valium® (diazepam) are central nervous system depressants (CNS depressants), which means they both can slow down brain activity. Drinking alcohol while taking Valium may increase your risk of serious reactions. This is why, according to the Valium prescribing information, drinking alcohol while on Valium is not recommended. Additionally, for many people with mental illness, it is usually recommended that alcohol be avoided.
Alcohol and Valium Side Effects
Drinking alcohol while taking Valium may increase your risk of certain
Valium side effects, such as:
- Unusual behavior
- Memory problems
- Drowsiness
- Dizziness
- Problems with coordination.
It may also slow both the heart and breathing, which can cause you to pass out, have difficulty breathing, or even lead to death.
You may also be more sensitive to the effects of alcohol if you are taking Valium. You may not be able to safely drink as much alcohol as you were used to drinking in the past.
Valium is approved to treat anxiety, as well as several other conditions. Generally, it is best for people with mental illnesses (such as anxiety) to avoid drinking alcohol. Alcohol may worsen mental illness and is often a form of “self-medication.” Additionally, people with an alcohol abuse problem may be more likely to abuse Valium.
An Overview of Valium and Breastfeeding
Valium® (diazepam) passes through breast milk and may cause serious problems in a breastfed infant. Therefore, if you have been prescribed Valium and are breastfeeding or thinking of breastfeeding, make sure to let your healthcare provider know.
What Does the Research Say About Valium and Breastfeeding?
In previous studies, Valium was shown to pass through breast milk in humans. Because Valium can cause serious side effects, it is often recommended that women stop breastfeeding while taking Valium. Valium can cause drowsiness, feeding problems, weight loss, and other problems in breastfed infants. If your healthcare provider recommends taking Valium while breastfeeding, be sure to watch for any side effects in your child.
Talking With Your Healthcare Provider About Valium and Breastfeeding
You should talk with your healthcare provider about Valium and breastfeeding.
Everyone’s situation is different, and your healthcare provider understands your situation best. After considering what you want and expect, as well as your current health situation, you and your healthcare provider can make a shared decision about Valium and breastfeeding for your particular situation.
An Overview of Valium and Pregnancy
Valium® (diazepam) is generally considered unsafe for use during pregnancy. In animal studies (and a few human studies) that looked at the effects of Valium during pregnancy, the drug caused birth defects.
Valium and Pregnancy Category D
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) uses a pregnancy category system to classify the possible risks to a fetus when a specific medicine is taken during pregnancy. Pregnancy Category D is given to medicines that have shown clear evidence of risk to the fetus in studies. Pregnancy Category D is a stronger warning than a pregnancy Category C classification. A pregnancy Category D medicine may still be given to a pregnant woman if the healthcare provider believes that the benefits to the woman outweigh the possible risks to the unborn child.
Valium was given a pregnancy Category D rating because of problems in animal and human studies. These studies suggested that Valium may increase the risk of various birth defects and may cause other problems, such as withdrawal symptoms after an infant is born. However, this is a controversial issue, since some studies have shown that the risk of birth defects may be very small.
Since taking Valium is rarely absolutely necessary, many healthcare providers suggest that it should always be avoided during pregnancy.
If you are taking Valium and pregnancy occurs (or you are thinking of becoming pregnant), let your healthcare provider know. He or she will consider the benefits and risks of using the medication during pregnancy before making a recommendation for your particular situation.
