Kiki Chang will be representing the Child Adolescent Bipolar Foundation [C.A.B.F.]opinion/view/theory, which is heavily funded by pharmaceutical companies, and Joseph Biederman's opinion as well. This, is the beginning of the massive influence of parents that started in the '90's and continues to current. I dare say, that the CABF -pharma edge has and will continue to destroy lives [just my opinion]of children by continuing the promotion of Childhood Bipolar Disorder and the medications they promote to "prevent and save lives".

Not only was I convinced that my daughter would die if she went off of the "life saving meds" by the psychiatrist, it was backed up and force-fed by the CABF parent forum website; and most importantly by interviews on that site and influential statements made by people, such as Kiki Chang, Martha Hellander, and others such as Kay Remison that are/have been on professional advisement boards over the last several years.

I have much experience with personal emails from people such as Hellander, Barbara Geller and the like who told me my daughter was in fact bipolar, and she was in fact triggered into it via anti depressant use, and basically if she went off meds she would kill herself, they promoted Lithium use for protecting against suicide, and the bottom line is all of the medications they promoted as "first line mood stabilizers", such as Depakote and Lithium were not approved for children the ages they were telling parents to use them on.

As a parent in that forum who spoke up re: anti depressant use and the connection of increased suicide ideation, in 2001, I was banned from posting in the [once free] parent forum.

This was before the site disclosed funding from pharmaceutical companies.

I hope people watch the PBS show with an open mind toward the other side-- no criteria on board to dx children bipolar, and make a note also, that CABF wrote guidelines for treatment, which I have posted some where on this site before in PDF form. I am positive those "guidelines" will soon end up in the DSM-5.

The other side, being examples of a diagnoses paradigm that was dangerous and deadly, for children, and this is when you don't forget Rebecca Riley, dead at age 4 who was using the same medications my daughter was taking.

My daughter, is now 20.It is a miracle her body has lasted this long on these medications, and as a parent the guilt I have for believing the doctors will be long-lived. But as most doctors and some of the CABF crew would tell you, [just my opinion based on experience] "something was going to emerge anyway, and the treatments are all the same."

I heard that so many times, ask my daughter --if she could give an interview it would be priceless--as to what she feels about her childhood and teenhood lost to the childhood bipolar disorder diagnoses.

omg, when i read comments as the above i feel like putting my head through walls.

should i do that, i know full well they would put me on the news saying, "see kids, this will happen to you if you don't take your meds!"

again and again i say, when judgment day comes for the pharma researchers/doctors who push the lifetime medication model of healing, it will turn out that zyprexa makers are worse than hitler with their crimes.

*disclosure: i have been on zyprexa on and off during 2oo1 - 2oo5, 6 months the longest stretch, until my blood sugar went up and i finally was made aware that diabetes is not just a thing that pops up when you google zyprexa side effects. i went from 150lbs to 192lbs while on it as well. i have been now off ALL meds for 1 year and 2 years off all antipsychotics (after zyprexa, they wanted me to try abilify which literally made me feel like crawling out of my skin). the only thing i do is meditation, the serious kind, 4 hours a day when i started a year ago. now 1 hour a day to maintain.

I have never in my life felt better, I am back to my usual self, prior to diagnosis in 2oo1. Millions of dollars from the makers of Zyprexa, Lamictal (which by the way, I found out after getting off it that it was solely responsible for causing me unthinkable anxiety, which at the time I was blaming on myself and the diagnosis).

Anyway, I always felt that sharing my story is pointless, people who want to believe in the wonder of psychotropic pills will in spite of any evidence to the contrary, people who will believe in TRUE HEALING, won't need my story anyway to heal, they will do what it takes.

I would like to add that I have not given up anything, I still eat lots chocolate, have never altered my diet, I do NOTHING ELSE besides serious meditation.

What SFjane@youtube preaches really works and it HEALS! PERMANENTLY!

However, it's infinitely harder to do than popping pills and hoping everything will be fine tomorrow.

Thanks for your blog. Keep doing it to save the kids. The old dawgs who have been medicated in oblivion for decades don't really matter, but what is happening to the kids in this country is worse than 1984.

zOtl: thanks for telling your story, I'm like a broken record talking here; but wanted to add that my daughter was on Zyprexa for 6 straight years, and by the time she was 17; informed her own pdoc about the diabetes issues, etc. and he told her "to take a walk". She fired him.

At age 11, she entered 6th grade with her eyes rolled up, and 50++ pounds gained on her 5'3" frame. That went up with time, and she could tell the doctor at what dose she felt more agitated, and had eye issues.

This is the growing child's body and brain, and why people who believe in the meds --well they have done no research, we know this. No long term studies are out there, and I fear for the kids as you do.

z0tl,
I so totally disagree with your statement "I always felt that sharing my story is pointless, people who want to believe in the wonder of psychotropic pills will in spite of any evidence to the contrary, people who will believe in TRUE HEALING, won't need my story anyway to heal, they will do what it takes."

PLEASE keep telling your story. These kind of stories are the only road map I have. You don't think my doctors would ever clue me in on the concept of recovery, do you??? And my loving friends and family don't know any more than I do.

So please, keep talking.
S.

The comments on this thread just re-enforce the fact that this idiocy that's going on in treatment is NOT limited to kids. Keep that in mind when you're watching the show. It's more obvious how human rights are being violated in the case of children but frankly adults are getting a very raw deal too with all these dx and treatments. Lives are being ruined all around.

For those who might have missed the show, or your readers outside the States, the entire show is online here.

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/medicatedchild/?campaign=pbshomefeatures_2_frontlinebrthemedicatedchild_2008-01-08

I watched the show. Am I over reacting to say it was a terrifying commercial for big pharma? I hope so. The evil premise was that even though these drugs cripple kids for life, and even though there are no diagnostic criteria for child bipolar, at least the children aren't "moody" any more. And of course the show pulled out the bogus study indicating that after the black box warning on ssri's kid suicide rates increased when that study has been proven false. Carlat was on which was good. Chang discredited him unfortunately and there was no criticism of Chang's idea of treating kids with no symptoms, none.

I feel so sorry for the poor abused children profiled on the show all of whom have parents who plan to keep on drugging them. Atrocious...someone tell me this was good in some way, I had been hopeful.

I may have been wrong about the impression the show created. Today an acquaintance who doesn't know my views or opinions mentioned the show. He watched it and with no previous opinion afterwards felt that the drugs were bad - which is good news!