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TIME: Almanac 1990
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1990 Time Magazine Compact Almanac, The (1991)(Time).iso
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021389
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02138900.053
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1990-09-17
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LETTERS, Page 8Hyperactive Youngsters
Your report "Worries About Overactive Kids" (BEHAVIOR, Jan.
16) probably strengthened the determination of many parents of
truly hyperactive children never to "drug" them. That's a tragedy
for some of these youngsters. As a school psychologist, I have
learned to view hyperactivity as monstrously destructive in all
areas of a child's life -- social, emotional, academic. When
medication works, there can be a miracle of happiness. Adults
praise instead of punish, classmates who formerly rejected him now
accept him, and the child is able to experience the joys of focused
learning.
Patricia Budney
New Windsor, N.Y.
As a physician and the mother of a child some might have
labeled hyperactive, I agree that "drugs should be a last, not a
first, resort" for treating so-called hyperactive children. By
controlling my son's diet and taking a more personal interest and
active role in his education, I have helped him become a healthy,
happy young boy. We need to support our children so they can cope
with life, not give them medication that leaves them depressed,
listless -- or teaches them that drugs are a solution to their
problems.
G. Megan Shields, M.D.
Los Angeles