ADHD diagnoses became prevalent in the 1990s — from my recall, anyway.

They involved Ritalin prescriptions for children.

Now those adults are having children. Are they still on SSRIs — psychotropes — of some sort?

What chances their offspring will be diagnosed with ADHD, too?

There once was a time when children could play outdoors. They built forts or played in treehouses. They played as cowboys in the US or knights in the UK imagining appropriately shaped sticks as guns (‘Pew pew!’) or swords. They played baseball or football in someone’s back garden. They ran around. They rode bikes. Their mothers called them home for dinner.

In the 1980s, the milk carton children began appearing in the US. Those were missing youngsters whose photos were on the sides of milk cartons with a phone number to ring should they be sighted.

Understandably, parents — particularly mothers — panicked. Even I, as an adult, found the idea of so many missing children disturbing. What started out as one photo on a milk carton extended to several by the end of that decade.

Consequently, boys and girls spent more time indoors. Television became more popular with them. Family-oriented video games entered the market.

More women worked outside the home, whether married or divorced.

This led to the latch key child phenomenon in the US, which involved children letting themselves in the house after school and staying there until their mothers came home. Although the children were safer indoors, they had few outlets to let off steam and their natural energy.

All of that has led to more prescription drugs for youngsters to control their behaviour. And if their parents were on childhood medication, then, they are less likely to see their own children’s prescriptions as worrisome.

It’s time everyone stopped becoming so dependent on SSRIs. Whether we realise it or not, multiple generations of Westerners swallowing these tablets is unhealthy:

I agree wholeheartedly. Yet, it can be very difficult, if not impossible, to do battle with schools. Sometimes, parents are obliged to put energetic children on medication in order for them to get an education.

Not having a husband makes parenting particularly difficult, too. Daycare isn’t really an answer. The solution has to come from the home.

Note that with so many mothers working, there are more kids who have gone haywire. The easy answer — put forward by our governments, pharmaceutical companies and health experts — involves prescription drugs. The harder — yet, better — solution is to create a structured home life from the start.

I also accept that, even in the suburbs, it isn’t safe for children to play outdoors.

Bottom line: all of this is having a detrimental effect on society.

Addiction to prescription pain relievers is another huge problem.

Some prescription pain relievers can be obtained through criminals operating through pharmacies and clinics:

The DOJ issued the following press release on Wednesday, August 28, 2019:

Charges Filed Against Dozens in Trafficking Network Responsible for Diverting Over 23 Million Oxycodone, Hydrocodone and Carisoprodol Pills

DEA Also Takes Administrative Action and Immediately Suspends Seven Pharmacies and Two Providers; DOJ Announces Expansion of Health Care Fraud Strike Force into Rio Grande Valley and San Antonio

Emphases mine below:

A total of 41 individuals have been charged in nine indictments for their alleged involvement in a network of “pill mill” clinics and pharmacies. Those charged include medical providers, clinic owners and managers, pharmacists, pharmacy owners and managers as well as drug dealers and traffickers. Their actions allegedly resulted in the diversion of approximately 23 million oxycodone, hydrocodone and carisoprodol pills.

In addition, federal law enforcement agents executed 36 search warrants including 15 pharmacies and six “pill mill” clinics, as well as other offices and residences, aimed at disrupting networks of opioid diversion.  The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) also served immediate suspension orders on seven pharmacies and two providers involved in dispensing controlled substances without legitimate medical purpose.

The Health Care Fraud Unit of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section (HCF Unit) led the enforcement actions in conjunction with U.S. Attorney’s Offices (USAOs) for the Southern and Eastern Districts of Texas and District of Massachusetts as well as the DEA and task force officers from greater Houston police departments and the FBI.

The charges allege participating doctors, medical professionals and pharmacies knew the prescriptions had no legitimate medical purpose and were outside the usual course of professional practice.  In some cases, “crew leaders” and “runners” allegedly filled or had the individuals who posed as patients fill the illegal prescriptions at Houston-area pharmacies.  The owner and pharmacist in charge at one pill mill pharmacy allegedly dispensed the second highest amount of oxycodone 30mg pills of all pharmacies in the entire State of Texas in 2019, and the ninth highest amount in the nation.  One hundred percent of the oxycodone dispensed by this pharmacy – every single oxycodone pill that left the premises – was in the highest available dosage strength of that drug.

On certain occasions the indictments allege that drug dealers and traffickers then allegedly diverted and distributed the controlled substances to the streets, with some pills trafficked from Houston to Boston.

The press release goes on to state the names, professions and places of employment of those charged. Here are just a few of them:

Bobby Hobbs, M.D., James John Jackson, Jr., MD, Tameka Moore, Kondre Graves, owner of Chasen Clinic of Houston, Texas, and Tara Graves, for their alleged participation in a scheme to unlawfully distribute and dispense controlled substance without a legitimate medical purpose through Chasen. The case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorney Drew Pennebaker of the Fraud Section.

Brandy LaDawn Fears, 44 of Houston, Texas, owner of Meds R Us Pharmacy of Missouri City, Texas, and Ricky Moten, 44 of Houston, Texas, alleged crew leader, for their alleged participation in a scheme to unlawfully distribute and dispense controlled substance without a legitimate medical purpose. The case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorney Drew Pennebaker.

Arthur Billings, 55 of Missouri City, Texas, owner of Healthfit Pharmacy of Houston, Texas; Jeremy Branch, 32 of Houston, Texas, pharmacist-in-charge; Deanna Michelle Winfield-Gates, 50 of Houston, Texas, pharmacist; Frank Cooper, 49 of Houston, Texas, pharmacist; and Donna Hooper, 56 of Houston, Texas, pharmacy technician, for their alleged participation in a scheme to distribute and dispense controlled substance without a legitimate medical purpose. The case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorney Drew Pennebaker.

It’s shocking.

I had a friend who fell into pain reliever addiction several years ago. I only found out about it from him after he was clean. As we didn’t live near each other anymore, I wasn’t seeing him very often. He said it was a very difficult time for him. It took a couple of years for him under medical supervision to recover.

We should be taking stock of our dependence on prescription drugs. My guess is that our notional betters — the great and the good — shy away from them. So should we.