I just read Annette's blog and she had an interesting article linked at CNN about high IQ and drug use.
Us parents are always looking for the answer of "Why". There may not be many answers as to "why" but there may be indicators and predictors that we haven't yet noticed or examined.
Just like Annette's daughter, our son was smart. We always struggled with the question of, 'He is so brilliant and smart, how did he not understand what drugs would lead to in his life?" Maybe this answer isn't to be known.
I can't just throw every smart kid that seems different or is struggling for attention, must be the center of attention and hyper competitive under the addiction bus but as parents it is not wise to ignore the signs. Alex was very smart, hyper competitive and had a strong need to be center in attention as a child.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
7 comments:
My son fits that description as well. I have often wondered if there are particular indicators of the addictive personality that parents could be aware of. My son also had recurring ear infections from age 6 weeks until he was 3 years old. These infections were treated with antibiotics and Tylenol with codeine. I have often wondered if there is a correlation there as well. This thing we call addiction is confounding on so many levels. Makes my head hurt!
my son fits your descriptors as well,....Ron's,...but not the ear infections one. That(the ear infections) was my other son, and daughter too...the non addicts.
And as I always say, how many of our addicts have either ADHD or ADD and anxiety ? a LOT of them ! That impulsiveness seems to be a thread running through them,...I want what I want and I want it now,...and that was even before addiction,....although not at the same selfish level. Sigh.
Keven is the opposite of Alex. I'm not saying he wasn't smart, but he wasn't "school smart", totally non-competitive (hated most sports), I don't know about attention - he was the only child so he got all of mine.
Yet, I still think there are some signs to look for. But not every kid can fit into a description.
But once they ARE addicts they seem to ALL have the same characteristics :(
I guess I wasn't thinking the ear infections as much as I was the early exposure to narcotics. I could tell that even at a very early age that my son liked the way it made him feel. He does suffer from anxiety and depression and was medicated in elementary school and middle school for ADD.
I wonder what one does with the information. I think that Lear ing disabilities are also correlated with drug use and alcoholism. What to do though if a child is smart and has ADD?
Children treated with medication for ADD are much LESS likely to become addicts than those who aren't treated with medication. And my son was treated with medication for ADD, but still became an addict,....but there were other factors, such as childhood trauma not related to the ADD. :( But untreated ADD also has side effects,..that's what parents often don't think about, that are so opposed to having their child take medication to normalize their over active /unfocused brain. The main side effect is low self esteem, very correlated to developing an addiction.
I once told my son while he was in recovery that all of my friends and family are constantly asking me why. "Why do you think he became an addict?". My son paused and looked at me and said with great conviction...."Mom, tell them because I took the first pill". I think that is it. I really do because there are many smart kids with ADD that don't become addicts.
Post a Comment