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Litzi_Hartley
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Name: Litzi Hartley
Gender: Female
Interests: animals, nature, science, good books
Expertise: Counseling youths between 11-22 and their families
Occupation: Adolescent therapist
Industry: Mental health, counseling
Message: message me
Website: visit my website
Member Since:
8/30/2006
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| I've never really understood bigotry and prejudice even though I was raised by two deeply prejudiced parents. (Note--my parents were born in 1921). They'd lecture me to be open-minded and not decide I didn't like a new food before trying it, but they'd make sweeping generalizations about Blacks, Jews, Asians, gays, etc that they'd never met. What really added to the irony was that my mother was a Mexican immigrant. Even though people were racist towards her, that didn't prevent her from being racist towards others. I guess the reason why I'm not a bigot is because I've known both good and bad people who were White, Black, Hispanic, Asian, Christian, Jewish, gay, straight, male, female, rich, poor, educated, uneducated, professionals, blue collar, etc. In other words, I can't generalize about an entire group because I've seen far more differences within a group than between groups. And if I can't identify a consistent pattern within a group it becomes hard to generalize about that group. I have to wonder how many people are bigoted not because of direct negative experience with a group, but because their parents or grandparents told them Blacks are this and Mexicans are that, and they just accepted it without questioning. It makes you wonder. | | |
| A few things-- I had adverse reactions to Vyvanse. But just because it was bad for me doesn't automatically make it bad for someone else. Likewise, I could do well with Adderall and someone else could have adverse reactions. This does NOT mean that a particular drug or psychiatric drugs in general are categorically bad or categorically good. Each of us is unique. Here's a different example: Penicillin type drugs have helped me many times. They've saved countless lives worldwide and they've probably saved my life at least once. But, if you gave my sister penicillin she'd be dead within minutes. She's severely allergic. So, if you are taking ANY medication, not just for ADHD or a mood disorder, and if you experience sudden, inexplicable changes in mood or behavior, such as anger, hostility, irritability, paranoia, depression, etc, CALL YOUR DOCTOR AT ONCE! | | |
| Hello! Long time no see. I've been a bit busy working on building my practice, so no time to blog. Recently something happened to me that I think people should be aware of. I am an adult with ADHD, inattentive type. I was diagnosed about 5 years ago and I have taken Adderall for this, quite successfully. It worked beautifully with no side effects. You may have heard of Vyvanse. It's being marketed very heavily these days as the latest and greatest treatment for ADHD. And it may work beautifully for many people who take it. For me it was awful. this is what happened. Back in late August, my doctor told me he was switching ALL his ADHD patients over to Vyvanse. (How's that for personalized health care?) I had no complaints about my Adderall but he changed me anyway. There was no real discussion, no mention of side effects to watch for, and no transition time between meds. I literally took Adderall on Monday and Vyvanse on Tuesday. After about a week on the Vyvanse, I started getting very moody and irritable. I was premenstrual at the time and I chalked it up to PMS, although I've never really had PMS much in the past. I figured once I started my period the moodiness and irritability would resolve. It didn't. The moodiness got much worse. I could go from angry to crying sad to OK in minutes, for no apparent reason. I developed PTSD symptoms--flashbacks, intrusive thoughts, aversion to particular stimuli--regarding childhood issues I'd worked through YEARS ago. And I'd NEVER had PTSD symptoms before. I became progressively more angry, hostile, verbally aggressive, moody and irritable. I went around feeling as if my fingers were stuck in light sockets. I noticed the symptoms were at their worst about 4-6 hours after taking the Vyvanse and they got better as the day wore on. I also noticed the symptoms began somewhat abruptly after my med change. I suspected my mood problems were medication induced. To test my hypothesis, one day I took half a dose. I still had the symptoms but they were less severe. The following day I didn't take it at all and I felt better still. I was reading a magazine and saw one of the ubiquitous Vyvanse ads. Listed very clearly in their black box warnings were the symptoms I experienced. I found a different doctor who put me back on Adderall. I'm about 10 days post-Vyvanse and now feeling like myself. I don't know why I was fine on Adderall but unhinged on Vyvanse. I suspect it has something to do with their respective half-lives. A drug's half-life refers to how long it takes for half of a dose to leave your system. If a drug has a 12 hour half life, then 12 hours after taking a dose half of it is gone from your system. Per their ads, Vyvanse is supposed to give "more consistent effects through the day". According to the manufacturer patient information, peak concentration occurs within 1-3 hours in children, but gave no such information for adults. They stated the half-life is one hour, although I'd really like to know how they achieve "more consistent effects throughout the day" if it's in and out of the bloodstream in an hour. The patient information also stated there is no buildup of Vyvanse in the body, but once again, if there's no buildup then how does it maintain its effect if it's supposedly cleared from the body in an an hour. I think there's something they're not telling us. According to the ADD Warehouse, a dose of standard Adderall lasts 4-5 hours and Adderall XR (extended release) lasts 10-12 hours. Per the manufacturer patient information, a dose of Adderall XR gradually reaches the bloodstream and its peak concentration occurs 5-7 hours after a dose. The elimination half life of Adderall XR is 10-13 hours in adults, meaning that in 24 hours, there should be no Adderall XR left in the body. This jibes with my experience as a patient. I am not anti-medication. I feel if someone needs medication they should take it, but if they don't need it then don't take it. ADHD meds have greatly improved the functioning of millions. I was helped tremendously by Adderall, but for me Vyvanse was a nightmare. I needlessly spent a month in pharmaceutical hell. The bottom line is this: if you take any stimulant medication for ADHD and if you experience aggression, agitation, irritability and mood swings--SEEK MEDICAL ATTENTION AT ONCE. It may be because of your medication. | | |
| Adults can get so weirded out over how teens dress. They panic and
predict all kinds of dire consequences if their kids dress goth,
hippie, punk, grunge, etc. It's like they conveniently forget how much
THEIR parents hated the way THEY dressed as teens, and how their
parents jumped to all kind of ridiculous conclusions that didn't pan
out.
Here's an example. My sister is 12 years older than me. She came of age
during the hippie era, during which I was a young child.. She adopted
the hippie look, complete with tie-dye, raggedy bell bottoms and long
straight hair. Back then young women didn't like wearing bras. Some
feminists saw them as a sign of patriarchal oppression. I also suspect
they were much less comfortable than bras today.
Anyway, when my sister went braless, our mother went ballistic. "Your
breasts will sag down to your waist," she threatened. My mother also
felt the braless look was whorish. I'm sure she envisioned some
streetwalker with nipples protruding and breasts bouncing everywhere.
Did my sister turn into a whore because she went braless? No. She got a
bachelor's degree, with honors, and then a Master's in Social Work. She
married and had two wonderful children, who are now both grown and
successful. She's been in Social Work for about 30 years. Oh, and going braless didn't make her breasts sag either.
I think parents weird out over appearance for a couple of reasons. The
first issue is control. I think the second issue is insecurity. I think
they worry about how THEY will look, about what others will think of
THEM if their kids go around as braless hippies, goths, etc.
In a previous entry I discussed how experimenting with appearance is
developmentally normal for teens, and how parents need to gradually
relinquish control during these years.
As for "what will Grandma/the neighbors think", the parents need
to get over it. Parents, your kids are not your appendage, they're not
"mini-me". They're individuals. Your teen's need for self-expression
and individuality should trump distant third parties' opinions. And if someone
is so shallow and judgmental that they'll conclude you're a bad person
or a bad parent because of how your kid dresses, do you want this
person in your life anyway?
And parents, if this person is Grandma, then firmly but nicely remind
her that YOU are the parent, NOT her, and YOU determine your teen's
upbringing, NOT her. Remind Grandma of the things that you wore as a
teen and the world didn't end because of it. Also kindly remind Grandma
that this is the 21st
century and times change. In her day Black people couldn't eat lunch in
a restaurant with Whites. Now we have a Black Secretary of State and a
Black Supreme
Court Justice.
Think about it.
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| If you read my first entry, you might be wondering "why will you
understand me? What makes you different than every other lame adult I
know?"
I understand you because I used to be you! Are you severely
depressed? Suicidal? Drinking behind your parents' back? Smoking weed?
Not eating and vomiting up what you do eat? Have you been abused? Do
you feel worthless? Like no one understands you? Like your parents are
tyrants? Like an outcast at school? Like your life is hopeless?
I've been there and lived through it. I spent a lot of time seeing
therapists. I came to understand what went wrong and what to do about
it. With a lot of help I turned myself around. So I went back to school
and learned how to help people turn themselves around. I managed to
become a happy, healthy, functioning adult without sacrificing my
individuality. If I can do it you can too.
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