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Yves Hamilton

School: University of Louisiana at Lafayette
Major: Physics

My name is Yves Hamilton and I am an African American female ready to pursue my dream as a Physics Researcher. I am an only child and was raised by a single mother. I have been diagnosed with ADHD since the second grade, and I recently was diagnosed with anxiety and depression during my senior year of high school. I have always taken medication for my ADHD, and has aid me to get through middle and high school with the honor roll. Additionally, I successfully graduated high school with honors, scholar award, and being a member of the National Honors Society in May of 2016.
When I was in the fifth grade, I went through a traumatic event. Since that time, my mother and I have faced many struggles. My mother exhausted all of her resources in her attempt to restore the normalcy of my life. My mother and I have never received any assistance from my birth father.
I began my college career during the summer of 2016 at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette. Since the second day of the summer semester, I have been part of the Cajun Advanced Picosatellite Experiment (CAPE), which is a student organization that aims to launch educational satellites with the assistance of NASA. CAPE is currently in the process of creating their third satellite. In addition to my affiliation with CAPE, I am also assisting my current Physics professor with his research efforts. He is also training me to operate the particle accelerator on UL Lafayette's campus. I am excited to say that I have been doing many wonderful things already that involve my major of Physics. In the fall semester of 2016, I joined the Society of Physics Students (SPS) and was the Treasurer for to spring semester of 2017. I also joined the National Alliance of Mental Illnesses (NAMI) On Campus organization due to my battles with ADHD. I think this organization is a great fit for me and it will allow me to advocate for the disorder.

Essay: How Stimulants for ADHD Patients Should Be Prescribed

As a person diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) who takes prescribed stimulants for treatment, I have always wondered why some people who are also diagnosed with this disorder react to stimulants differently.There needs to be an improved medical technique on how to diagnosis ADHD and what stimulants should be prescribed to these patients.
According to the International Encyclopedia of Rehabilitation, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is a neurobiological condition involving behavior dysfunctions and cognitive distortions. ADHD is a disorder that affects the central nervous system in many children. There are three types of ADHD: hyperactivity-impulsivity, inattentively, and combined. In most children, ADHD is genetically passed down, or triggered by their environmental background. Some conditions that are tied to ADHD are learning disabilities, behavioral problems, depression, anxiety, and other psychological problems.
There are many treatments for ADHD, but the most common is the use of stimulants. Ritalin was the most prescribed stimulant in the United States when it first came on the market in 1956. Other stimulants used are Vyvanse, Adderall, and other psycho stimulants. According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, stimulants are used to have a calming and focusing effect on people with ADHD. Many people fail to realize that these stimulants can help those only with ADHD in their ability to learn. Research shows that people who abuse ADHD medication and do not have the disorder would perform poorly (National Institute). When using ADHD prescription stimulants properly, it improves the patient's comprehension, confidence, and social skills.
Most times doctors will have to experiment when starting stimulants because not every stimulant will be effective, and most of the time there are major side effects from them. Stimulants increase the chemical levels of the neurotransmitters dopamine and norepinephrine in the brain. If too much of these chemical levels are in the brain, the brain would stress out and cause negative side effects (Boorady). The two groups of ADHD stimulants that patients respond to are methylphenidates (MPH) and dextroamphetamines. There are different release formulas that control the speed in which the medication enters into the bloodstream (Boorady). The short-acting medications last about four hours, and the long-acting medications lasts about 14 hours (Boorady).
The three pharmaceutical formulations of methylphenidates: immediate release or short-acting MPH, sustained release or intermediate-acting MPH, and extended release or long-acting MPH (Cumyn, Golfinopoulos, Hechtman, Keller, Kolan, and Syer). Some immediate-release MPH products, like Ritalin, are commonly abused, so the use of an oral osmotic release system (OROS) reduces the amount of abusers. An OROS methylphenidate (OROS-MPH), like Concerta, is a long-acting MPH that has three compartments to the capsule, and is sometimes taken with a short-acting MPH to better symptoms.
The three pharmaceutical formulations of dextroamphetamines: immediate-release dextroamphetamines, sustained-release dextroamphetamines, and extended-release dextroamphetamines mixed with amphetamine salts (Cumyn, Golfinopoulos, Hechtman, Keller, Kolan, and Syer). Immediate- release dextroamphetamines, like Dexedrine, would only last four to six hours, so a person with ADHD taking this medication would be prescribed to take two or more a day. Sustained-release dextroamphetamines, like Dexedrine Spansule, would last about six to eight hours, so the user would normally take this medication once daily. A spansule is a capsule in which part of a dose is released immediately after it is taken and the rest of the dosage is released gradually (Cumyn, Golfinopoulos, Hechtman, Keller, Kolan, and Syer). Dextroamphetamines mixed with amphetamine salts are best used for patients that have mildly severe ADHD and already take a controlled anti-hyperactive medication. This medication is good for those patients who have cardiovascular problems, but its side effects are insomnia, lack of appetite, weight loss, headaches, dry mouth, and anxiety (Cumyn, Golfinopoulos, Hechtman, Keller, Kolan, and Syer).
According to Roy Boorady, the goal for finding the right medication is to get the most benefit, with least side effects. To reduce these side effects, doctors will tend to either change the dosage or change the medication. The fear of negative side-effects would be eliminated if parents would bring their child to a specialist or psychiatrist to get the proper diagnosis and get the best treatment.
Some negative side-effects are the zombie effect, lack of sleep, or the rebound effect. The zombie effect is when a child becomes inactive and calm when a given ADHD medication. If the patients have trouble sleeping, it is because their brain is still active at bedtime from the medication. Either the child is taking the stimulant too late in the day, because some medications last 12 to 14 hours, or the child would need a medication that does not last as long. Other patients may have a rebound effect, which is when children become irritable around the same time every day after their medication wears off (Boorady). Boorady claims that parents sometimes tell him that it is obvious that when the medication has worn off around the same time of the day. This side effect is a sign that the dosage is too high and the child needs to gradually ease off it. Children who rebound and start to ease off their ADHD medication tend to have anxiety and mood swings (Boorady). I celebrate the fact that Boorady takes into consideration that side effects from ADHD medication do have consequences, but the prescription can be manipulated to be the correct dosage for a child with the disorder.
When it comes to the topic of diagnosing ADHD, those unfamiliar with this subject may be interested to know that ADHD is underdiagnosed in the United Kingdom and over-diagnosed in the United States. The UK views this disorder as a psychosocial problem, so if diagnosed, that patient would be labeled negatively; but the US sees it as a medical problem (Schlachter). The United States uses ADHD as a broad term, causing people to assume that children with different severities of ADHD can be treated similarly, but every case is different because there are mild, moderate, or severe cases of the disorder.
The United Kingdom only treats children classified to have Hyperkinetic Disorder (HKD). Hyperkinetic Disorder is a term that describes patients with the combined symptoms of hyperactivity, impulsivity, and inattention, so this means that the UK only treats highly severe cases of ADHD. This also causes the UK to under-diagnosed patients with ADHD based on the severity of the case, which is not fair for all patients with ADHD.
Many parents of children with ADHD or HKD would look for treatment from their primary care doctor or general practitioner, but the proper diagnosis and treatment for ADHD comes from a specialist or psychiatrist. Children with ADHD should also be diagnosed by how severe their disorder is and then be prescribed medication or other treatments based on that level so that no child with the disorder is misdiagnosed or not diagnosed at all.
In the article "Why is ADHD Controversial," Steer claims that experts believe that ADHD is underdiagnosed, and others believe that parents are quick to label their child to have the disorder. Some parents are quick to jump to conclusions and diagnosis your own child with ADHD before seeing a specialist. Most people would say this is because parents want their children to get accommodations to get the best education. All of this confusion can be avoided by getting an accurate diagnosis by the proper professionals.
Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder stimulants should be diagnosed to an individual's need based on the type and how severe it is. My own view is that every patient with the disorder responds to stimulants differently. Children with even mild cases of ADHD still have the disorder, and should be treated for it, even if it is not with stimulants. A child should be diagnosed by only a specialist or psychiatrist to eliminate patients to be misdiagnosed and have little or no negative side-effects when prescribed a stimulant. So patients with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder should appropriately be diagnosis so that stimulants that are prescribed are truly meant for that patient.

Works Cited:
Boorady, Roy. "Side Effects of ADHD Medication | Child Mind Institute." Child Mind Institute.Child Mind Institute, Inc.,
n.d. Web. 23 June 2016.
Cumyn, Lucy, Maria Golfinopoulos, Lily Hechtman, Amanda Keller, Dusan Kolan, and Cassidy Syer. "Treatment of
Adults with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder." Neuropsychiatric Disease and Treatment. Dove Medical
Press Limited, Apr. 2008. Web. 23 June 2016.
Echeverri, Luz Elvira Vallejo. "Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)." International Encyclopedia of
Rehabilitation. Center for International Rehabilitation Research Information and Exchange (CIRRIE), 2010. Web.
22 June 2016.
Mayo Clinic Staff. "Attention-deficit/hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) in Children." Mayo Clinic.Mayo Foundation for
Medical Education and Research, 11 Mar. 2016. Web. 22 June 2016.
Schlachter, Sarah. "Diagnosis, Treatment, and Educational Implications for Students with Attention-
Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder in the United States, Australia, and the United Kingdom." Peabody Journal of
Education 83.1, International Issue (2008): 158-159. JSTOR. Web. 14 June 2016.
Steer, Chris. "Why Is ADHD Controversial?" NetDoctor. NetDoctor, 14 Aug. 2014. Web. 23 June 2016.
"Stimulant ADHD Medications: Methylphenidate and Amphetamines." National Institute on Drug Abuse. NIH, Jan. 2014.
Web. 22 June 2016.