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Attention Deficit Disorder

DSM-5: Where Do We Go From Here?

Allen Frances | Posted 05.16.2013 | Science
Allen Frances

My recommendation for clinicians is simple. Don't use DSM-5 -- there is nothing official about it, nothing especially helpful in it, and all the codes you need for reimbursement are already available for free on the Internet or in DSM-IV.

Crazy on You

Tom McNichol | Posted 04.17.2013 | Comedy
Tom McNichol

DSM-V, the fifth edition of the American Psychiatric Association's Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, is due for publication in May. Here's a sneak preview of some new mental disorder categories.

The Obama Plan -- Spending Mental Health Money in All the Wrong Places

Allen Frances | Posted 04.12.2013 | Politics
Allen Frances

This well-meaning program is a serious mistake for two reasons. First, it is no more than a politically correct, cosmetic solution that distracts attention from what really needs to be done. Second, it will likely wind up doing much more harm than good.

Obama Needs to Roll Boulder for Mentally Ill

Robert David Jaffee | Posted 04.03.2013 | Politics
Robert David Jaffee

On Friday I attended an exhibit opening for a young artist who has schizophrenia. If only President Obama could have attended, because events like these would go a long way toward decreasing the stigma surrounding those with mental illness.

WATCH: Could ADHD Give You A Career Edge?

Posted 01.23.2013 | HuffPost Live 321

Studies have shown that individuals with attention deficit disorders have difficulty focusing at work, but could ADD or ADHD actually be good for your...

One Last Chance for the APA to Make the DSM-5 Safer

Allen Frances | Posted 02.16.2013 | Science
Allen Frances

Is there a last-minute way for the DSM-5 to restore some of its lost credibility? A great deal of irrevocable damage has been done, but I have four simple suggestions that would help reduce the harm done by the DSM-5 and demonstrate that the APA has regained its integrity.

The Syndrome Syndrome and the Rise of the New World Disorder(s)

Mitch Ditkoff | Posted 02.03.2013 | Comedy
Mitch Ditkoff

Here's my guide to 14 of the most recently identified medical conditions, like PID (Premature Intervention Disorder): the hallucinated belief by war-mongering politicians that invading other countries for ridiculously long periods of time will increase national security.

DSM-5 Is a Guide, Not a Bible: Simply Ignore Its 10 Worst Changes

Allen Frances | Posted 02.02.2013 | Science
Allen Frances

My best advice to clinicians, to the press, and to the general public -- be skeptical and don't follow DSM-5 blindly down a road likely to lead to massive over-diagnosis and harmful over-medication. Just ignore the 10 changes that make no sense.

School Nurse Stole Kids' ADD Drugs, Replaced With Prescription Painkillers

Posted 12.25.2012 | Home

Dallas school nurse Rebecca Baily-Long is on paid administrative leave after allegedly stealing prescription drugs from students. Bailey-Long is ac...

Sometimes ADHD Is Real

Zinnia Jones | Posted 12.16.2012 | Healthy Living
Zinnia Jones

Regardless of what anyone else may think, this is a personal decision to be made by the family based on their situation and their needs, and I don't find it at all appropriate to issue blanket condemnations of medication for ADHD when this may be exactly what someone's child needs.

Think of Children as an Investment, Not an Expense

Michael Piraino | Posted 12.11.2012 | Home
Michael Piraino

When government spending for education is heading down, what are people who care about children's success supposed to do?

Give Me My Adderall!

Lawrence Diller, M.D. | Posted 12.10.2012 | Healthy Living
Lawrence Diller, M.D.

There's certainly a place for these medications in the treatment of ADD. But I think we've done too good a job of "selling" ADD and Adderall as the answer to many teenagers who are in a normative struggle toward maturity.

Bronwen Hruska's Dystopian Vision of Attention Deficit Disorder

Robert David Jaffee | Posted 12.10.2012 | Books
Robert David Jaffee

Hruska's fine debut novel, Accelerated, offers a cautionary tale not only of the pharmaceutical-industrial complex but also of the high-pressured, high-powered world of privilege in Manhattan's elite private schools.

Inclusion: Is it Confusion, Intrusion... or Delusion?

Jerome Schultz | Posted 11.25.2012 | Home
Jerome Schultz

The Hybrid Teacher is guided and energized by finding out what facilitates effective learning and what gets in the way.

When Is More Not Always Better? Advances in Science That Raise Important Questions

Vivian Diller, Ph.D. | Posted 11.13.2012 | Healthy Living
Vivian Diller, Ph.D.

While advances in science no doubt help us in countless ways, and in no way am I suggesting we impede the development of medicines that improve the quality of our lives, we need to keep a watchful eye on the cultural pressures some unwittingly create.

Damage Control for Learning Disabilities: The Hybrid Teacher

Jerome Schultz | Posted 11.06.2012 | Home
Jerome Schultz

This is not a solution for the dearth (or death) of self-contained specialized programs in which intensive specialized instruction can take place (clearly my preference), but perhaps a way to do some damage control.

Catherine Pearson

Alarming New Study About Girls And ADHD

HuffingtonPost.com | Catherine Pearson | Posted 08.16.2012 | Parents

Boys are more likely than girls to be diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, a condition characterized by difficulty paying attentio...

A Bright Shiny Objects Proclamation

Spencer Green | Posted 09.16.2012 | Comedy
Spencer Green

For too long, the bright shiny object has been exploited by people for their own greed and corrupt agendas.

Getting from Point A to Point C with ADHD

Mark Bertin, M.D. | Posted 09.16.2012 | Parents
Mark Bertin, M.D.

Someone with ADHD will often find themselves in the middle of one activity and mentally involved in the next.

What's it Like to Have ADHD?

Edward M. Hallowell, M.D. | Posted 08.27.2012 | Healthy Living
Edward M. Hallowell, M.D.

We who have ADHD need your help and understanding. We may make mess-piles wherever we go, but with your help, those mess-piles can be turned into realms of reason and art.

ADHD and Marriage: An Interview With Melissa Orlov

Stephanie Sarkis, Ph.D. | Posted 08.18.2012 | Healthy Living
Stephanie Sarkis, Ph.D.

Melissa Orlov is a marriage consultant and one of the top experts in how ADHD affects relationships. "An evaluation is the gateway to a wide variety of resources that can help you improve your lives together."

The ADHD Maverick: An Interview with Jennifer Koretsky

Stephanie Sarkis, Ph.D. | Posted 08.01.2012 | Healthy Living
Stephanie Sarkis, Ph.D.

Adult ADHD doesn't have to be a bad thing. When you manage it properly, you can use it to your advantage.

Wonderful News: DSM-5 Finally Begins Its Belated and Necessary Retreat

Allen Frances | Posted 10.31.2012 | Science
Allen Frances

Sigh of relief. The DSM 5 website announced Wednesday morning that two of its most controversial proposals have finally been dropped. We have dodged bullets on "psychosis risk" and "mixed anxiety depression." Both are now definitively rejected as official DSM 5 diagnoses.

Lynne Peeples

Lead Poisoning Prevention Funds Slashed, Costly Consequences For Children's Health

HuffingtonPost.com | Lynne Peeples | Posted 03.16.2012 | Green

When Devon Owens checked his then 2-year-old daughter, Dallas, into the hospital last year, he wasn't sure what to expect. He just knew that routine m...

Taming the ADD Epidemic

Allen Frances | Posted 10.31.2012 | Healthy Living
Allen Frances

Martin Whitely offers a proven public health cure for this false "epidemic" of diagnosis and treatment, one that has already worked wonders in his native state of Western Australia.