Book Review: Outside the Box: Rethinking ADD/ADHD in Children and Adults

Simply put, there are two types of books about specific social/cognitive issues that publishers market to parents and professionals. Entries from both categories attempt to answer a couple of very broad questions. The first category is one that I’ll call the “What’s the deal with ______?” genre. These books try to provide the reader with information about the characteristics, underlying causes, […]

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Book Review: ADHD Nation, by Alan Schwarz

“Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder is real. Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise.” Thus begins ADHD Nation, a challenging, thought-provoking book, written by Alan Schwarz, an investigative reporter from The New York Times. Taken as a whole, this eminently readable book traces the development of the ADHD diagnosis, the discovery and growth of medications aimed at treating it, and the emergence […]

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The Side Effects of Doing Nothing

“Well, I’m not giving my baby any more dangerous drugs. From now on, it’s nothing but fresh air, lots of hugs, and good old-fashioned Ritalin.”      –    Marge Simpson          To medicate or not to medicate, that is the question. It is, at any rate, for scores of parents of kids and adolescents with ADHD. Paraphrasing the […]

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