Back to the Basics: My Politically Incorrect Opinion

At the present time, it is estimated that 20% of the children in any public school classroom have been diagnosed with a mental health disorder. 20%! That's five children in an average-sized class of twenty-five.

This statistic doesn't include those children who, for one reason or another, have never received a diagnosis for their unconventional behaviors. As a former teacher, and as a parent of children with mental health concerns, I don't doubt this number at all. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if the number were higher. But, the question remains: Why are there so many kids with mental health diagnoses, like ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder), autism, depression, bipolar disorder, reactive attachment disorder, and numerous other behavioral disorders?

I don't remember having any classmates who routinely disrupted classes when I was a child. Children with special needs were usually sent away to some kind of special school, but even so, there just weren't as many children with diagnosed mental health disorders. Now, though, almost every class includes several children with a variety of physical, emotional, and academic needs. And, I truly believe that all children should be able to attend school with their peers, regardless of ability or behavior. However, I've found that many schools and teachers are not equipped to handle the outbursts that have become so common in every classroom.

With so many children affected, there can't be just one simple cause for this upsurge in mental health diagnoses among children. After checking many trustworthy sources, and discussing this topic with teachers and therapists, I have reached the probably politically incorrect conclusion that the current glut of mental health disorders in children can be the result of several causes, or combinations of causes, including the following:

Lack of adequate prenatal care and education:

• Some women can't afford it, while others just don't care.

Improved prenatal care, and less infant mortality: 

• Weaker children who would have died in the past are now kept alive through improved neonatal medical care.
• "Survival of the fittest" is no longer the rule.
• Preemies who are kept alive through extreme artificial means are necessarily denied ample bonding time with parents. In other words, they can't be held until their health is stabilized.

Mothers' use of drugs and alcohol during pregnancy:

• This is arguably the single most preventable cause of birth defects in infants.

Lack of strong bonding with parents:

• Too much time in infant seats, and not enough time being held.
• Too much time in daycare with under-trained workers who really don't care or who don't have time to give every infant the attention needed.
• Too many parents who drink alcohol or use drugs.
• Too many parents who have to work too many hours to make ends meet.
• Too many single parents with an insufficient support system, living at the poverty level.
• Too many teen parents with inadequate parenting skills.
• Too many kids who are bounced from one caregiver to another, whether in daycare or foster care, or between parents and assorted relatives.

Schools are often unpleasant places to be: 

• Too much stress. 
• Too many standardized tests.
• Too little recess.
• Not enough time to build relationships between teachers and children.
• Little opportunity to form strong, lasting friendships with peers.
• Time is too structured, lacking free time for play.
• Too much time, at school and home, using electronic devises, including TV, video games, phones, i-pads, and computers.
• Too little interaction with real people.

Sometimes, mental health disorders "run in families," meaning that genetics lead to a snowball effect, in which the children are likely to have even more severe disorders than their parents.

The whole autism-is-caused-by-early-childhood-immunizations theory has been proven to be a scam; there is absolutely no proof that immunizations cause autism. In my opinion, the benefits of immunizations far outweigh any possible side effects! However, anything unnaturally introduced into the body may have the potential to trigger an unnatural response like a change in brain function. It is inevitable that some children have been adversely affected by environmental agents such as food additives, pesticides, lead in paint, polluted air, and impure water.

No one knows for sure how to totally prevent mental health disorders in children, but some of these things won't hurt, and some may even help immensely:

• Hold your babies, and talk to them; carry infants in front packs instead of baby seats.
• Spend time with your children and grandchildren; read to them and talk to them. 
• Provide plenty of physical activity for your children; encourage outside play.
• Studies show that ADHD can be directly linked to excessive use of electronic devises and TV! Limit use of electronic devises to less than an hour a day for school-age children. Infants and toddlers should never use electronic devises, and preschoolers should have very limited use.
• Parents should limit personal use of electronic devises, including phones, when their children are present. Instead, play with your children, and engage them in meaningful conversations. 
• Parents should never use illegal drugs, should limit alcohol use, and should never drink alcohol or use drugs during pregnancy! 
• Parents need to carefully analyze finances and work schedules so they can stay home with their children as much as possible when they are young. Personal care and attention is worth much more than anything money can buy. 
• Choose daycare carefully; home-based daycare, especially by a relative, may provide more appropriate, one-on-one attention than center-based care, especially for infants and toddlers.
• Avoid frequent daycare changes.
• Avoid over-scheduling your child's after-school activities; provide plenty of time for free play.
• Encourage your children to build relationships with grandparents, relatives, and friends.
• Provide nutritional food for your children. Avoid foods and drinks that are high in sugar, salt, fat, artificial dyes, and other food additives.
• Make sure that your children get enough sleep; institute a regular bedtime, and don't let children give up naps too soon.
• Provide spiritual nourishment for your children and grandchildren: read Bible stories and pray with them, and take them to church. A relationship with God is the most important relationship any child can have!

This blog only begins to scratch the surface of a serious problem that is often overlooked by families and schools. Sometimes, there is no apparent reason why a particular child is diagnosed with a mental health disorder. But, it isn't unusual for parents and teachers to get so wrapped up in the daily demands of our chaotic lives, that we sometimes overlook the essentials that were once so common in less-frazzled times. 

I think it's time to get back to the basics, at home and at school, the basics of bonding and building relationships. If people will put as much effort into those two things as they do with their electronic devises, I suspect that we will see fewer children--and adults--whose mental health diagnoses dictate their behavior.