To Medicate or Not To Medicate Your Child or Teenager

"Every day, many thousands of parents across the U.S. face the difficult question of whether to place their child or teenager on a psychotropic medication. Receiving a diagnosis of a mental disorder can be scary and confusing, for the youth as well as their parents/caretakers. What is ADHD? Depression? Anxiety? OCD? Bipolar? What are the available treatments? Do we have to use medications to treat the symptoms?"

"Indeed, Americans take a lot of meds. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), about a quarter of the U.S. population takes medications daily, and two-thirds used prescription medications at least at some point during the past year. In the older age group (age 65 and over), about 90% of Americans take medications. But rates are also high among kids and teens - about 20% use prescription medications."

Many parents must decide whether to place their child or teenager on psychotropic medication. Accurate diagnosis by a highly skilled mental health diagnostician is essential. Families should find providers experienced in various treatment approaches, including pharmacologically trained psychologists. For disorders such as ADHD, OCD, and bipolar disorder, medications will likely play a role, though initiating medication does not necessarily require lifelong use. Medication information is ubiquitous across television, streaming, and social media. Overall medication use in the U.S. is high: about a quarter of the population takes medications daily, two-thirds used prescription medications in the past year, and roughly 8–16% of children and teens take mental health medications.

Read at Psychology Today