Overdiagnosed Adhd In Children Summary

In Manuel Mota-Castillo’s article “The Crisis of Overdiagnosed ADHD in Children,” he reinforces the on-going controversy within the field of clinical psychology of excluding major, but often subtle symptoms in exchange for making the easier diagnosis of ADHD, and treating it with dangerous pharmaceuticals. In Dr. Castillo’s article, he contends that the overuse of ADHD as a diagnosis has far reaching implications and repercussions. He goes as far as to blame the institutions that are charged with overseeing such inaccuracies, that is the American Psychiatric Association (APA) and the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (AACAP). He also goes in depth about the repercussions felt by the misdiagnosed patients. Dr. Castillo shows

A prime example of this is in the initial description of her symptoms, “Maria and her mother came to me because the girl had been experiencing hallucinations, racing thoughts, insomnia, elevated mood, and grandiose ideation.”(12), and to explain further the context of these symptoms Dr. Castillo brings the family history into account when he mentions that “what Maria’s mother told me: “Maria is acting exactly like her father, and you know that I have a bad temper and my mother is schizophrenic.””(12). He goes on to explain throughout the article how these are misinterpreted by physicians, social workers and school authorities as being ADHD and the only solution is to medicate

The use of subtle suggestive wording and questionable phrases can be seen throughout the article, sapping some of the credibility that he gains from his credentials. The use of wording such as, “I think” and “I believe” at the end of the article to form a broad conclusion, such as “I believe this denial has indirectly contributed to high rates of school dropouts and unnecessary commitments to juvenile detention centers.”(12) With his target audience such far-reaching statements could be construed as unprofessional and extremely subjective considering that his credentials state that he worked in a juvenile detention center for 10 years. He limits himself by placing his article on a professional website, and explains the case in an overly subjective manner without any reason. It’s very confusing why he address’s professionals in such a simple manner, but there is no question that the content of the article is excellent and it was enjoyable to