'ODD'or just naughty kids with ineffective parenting?

[Rosebud123]

ODD - please! I have a friend whose child has just been 'diagnosed' with ODD.Having known her since a toddler, I have witnessed lack of structure and inconsistency since then. Her behaviour has escalated,understandably. Children need to know what is ok and what is not ok. Did you know that ODD children are now being medicalised?We are rearing a generation of children on ritalin and antidepressants which I find completely shocking.Children need our repect and proper parenting so they don't end up thinking the answer to all life's difficulties lies in pills.A friend who is a social worker says ODD is what children are called when they are told to go to bed and they refuse. Exactly!I found that going to ongoing parenting classes has helped in all aspects of my kids development when I didn't know what else to do. I wonder what Supernanny thinks of 'ODD'..

ODD can be caused by the following factors

Biological: Some studies suggest that defects in or injuries to certain areas of the brain can lead to serious behavioral problems in children. In addition, ODD has been linked to abnormal amounts of special chemicals in the brain called neurotransmitters. Neurotransmitters help nerve cells in the brain communicate with each other. If these chemicals are out of balance or not working properly, messages may not make it through the brain correctly, leading to symptoms of ODD, and other mental illnesses. Further, many children and teens with ODD also have other mental illnesses, such as ADHD, learning disorders, depression, or an anxiety disorder, which may contribute to their behavior problems.

Genetics: Many children and teens with ODD have close family members with mental illnesses, including mood disorders, anxiety disorders, and personality disorders. This suggests that a vulnerability to develop ODD may be inherited.

Environmental: Factors such as a dysfunctional family life, a family history of mental illnesses and/or substance abuse, and inconsistent discipline by parents may contribute to the development of behavior disorders.

This could go on for ever. There's no answer imo.

Clearly we're not talking about your average brat tho? Interestingly I've found with these kids (I know at least a couple) that although they are HORRENDOUS for their mums they seem to do what I say the first time I ask. Hmm...

Presumbly that would make no difference in true ODD then?

well that's it then, my DS must have ODD too. he NEVER does as he's told...

I was told that smoking during pregnancy could cause ODD. Now if thats the case, this could be a possibility of why DS1 has ODD as until I was almost 5m preg i didn't know i was and I was still smoking.

Somtimes the parents are at falt and I dont see why they should not be told.

If a child is well behaved at school and with other people (not their parent(s)) then it is is problem with the childs parent(s) and I cant see the use of saying 'oh well he/she cant be expected to be good. He/she has ODD you know!'

Bringing up childern is not easy and they can all be little blighters but just say it like it is.
Some parents dont put the effort in and low and behold have badly behaved kids. It cant be a bloody shock!

I do realise that some children are harder work than others but still....

Are judgey pants tight or do they fit comfortably? I personally hope they are tight and uncomfortable and that the people that wear them are never in the position to have to care for a child that has ODD, because they probably won't have the patience to bring out the best in their child.

Parenting styles impact on every child whether he/she has a behavioural DX or not, there is no doubt about that. But as someone who has played a part in the raising of 4 DC's and one of them having been assessed for ODD, I think you should be very careful of making generalisations.

I don't think that generally 'naughty' children are DXed as having ODD, the process of assessment rules out ordinary childhood behaviour...It takes bloody ages to get recognition when a child has something that sets them out of kilter with the 'norm'.
You don't walk into a doctors and say 'my child argues when it is bed time' and a doctor turns round and says 'oh, that must be ODD then'

If you genuinely have a child with any issues I think that you spend half your life wishing they didn't so you could just deal with good old fashioned naughty child stuff.

I think super nanny is a twit, so I don't give a fig what she thinks of ODD.

When you are consistant, clear and firm and send a child to the 'naughty step' and he pulls the bannister off the wall, the gears have to change a bit.

Your social worker friend should be reported for her out of line comments and there is NOT a generation of children being raised on Ritalin, that is a press fuelled generalisation which makes me want to puke.

FFS

Well said Mistubishi.

MouthandTrousers, I have never known anyone say that because of a disorder their child cannot be expected to behave.

DS1 can be angellic and you wouldn't know you had him BUT he can be very very tiring, argumentative, easily angered, annoying and many other things. I have been taking him to Dr' since he was 4yrs old and this behaviour really became apparent, it took until he was 9yrs old for anyone to put a name to the way he behaves. again this was dx when he turned 11. I have tried many many strategies, and methods to break it but you know very little makes a difference....if any of you doubters think you can "cure" or "Solve" this i welcome you to try but do be prepared.

I read the description of ODD, it is a perfect description of ds1.
I have no intention of seeking a diagnosis, or a ritalin prescription for him.

MW, I think your comments are valid for the NHS, but in other countries doctors and clinics are more aggressive in seeking to diagnose and treat people, because that's how they get their money.

Fair point nighby.... my thinking was based on my experiences as a Brit, and I don't have experience or knowledge of other systems to pass comment.

Nighbynight, I personally have never known anyone with ODD who has been prescribed medication.

I was when I realised that a child like ds1 COULD be prescribed ritalin.
Maybe that was in the states, though?
I have been surprised since coming to germany, how commercial the whole medical thing is, here. In one way its good, as they will carry on iwth the treatments until they get to the bottom of problems that would be ignored ("take a paracetamol and get back to work") in the uk, but sometimes I feel it goes a bit OTT, and they are overly keen to get people diagnosed as this or that.

Yes, my niece is medicated for 'ODD' in the US. I'm quite horrified by the whole thing. She's spent a few weeks with us and behaved impeccably. There are some serious issues in the family.

ADHD/ASD definitely exists in some capacity but the propensity to label behaviour and then to sell drugs to 'cure' that behaviour in the US is out of control. My dd2 has some suspected issues and I'm home schooling now primarily because the school insisted she needed a diagnosis and medication. She's now thriving at home and I feel no need for a label for how she is and I certainly feel no need for medication.

I have known quite a few people that have used ODD as an excuse for their little ones to run riot.
Often the parents of these children practice 'posative parenting'. I am posative with my Dc but I dont see why telling them off when they are bad is wrong .
A mate of mine had a Dc with ODD and went to a parenting corse where they told her and other parents not to pull their Dc up about things they were doing wrong. Even when the Dc were being violent with smaller childern (these children with ODD were aged 6 to 13) just to remove them from the situation and focus on any good things they have managed.
Anyway in a nutshell her dc ended up getting excluded from school and genraly got much worse.
I asked on of the ladies who ran the corse if this was how they delt with bad behaviour in their own DC and was told that it wasnt.
So to conclude, I dont think that all parents of ODD/badly behaved children are tossers, some just dont have the skills/support they need and with the type of help that my friend got from this parenting class its just a sorry state.

I know what its like to have your Dc behave like a little monster and have people stare like theyve never seen a child throw a tantrum so I would never be horrid to somone who is having a hard time with their Dc.

Maybe people want the Dx of ODD to fend off critisism from others.
Cant say I blame them even though I dont think Odd is 'real'.

I read description of ODD and felt it fitted ds2 perfectly.

I know I don't parent him as effectively as I should - given his personality. But I parent him the way I do because I'm exasperated and exhausted by him most of the time.

That said, my son has never laid a hand on another child in his life, apart from his older brother and sister (and he doesn't just attack them without provocation). I couldn't tolerate this sort of behaviour towards other people's dc's and would simply remove him instantly from the situation if I felt unable to control him.

For those of you who think it's just about ineffectual or lazy parenting - I honestly think that the 3 or 4, hour long tantrums my ds was having daily last year would have driven even the strongest parent to despair. And I'm not the strongest! I'm just proud that I managed to get through that trying time and still a) be able to resist battering him and b) still be able to really enjoy his company when he's not being difficult.

Sorry, need to add that I often look at ds2 and just feel he is very unsuited to his environment. If he was living in some hunter gatherer tribe he'd be top dog, because of his energy, his watchfulness and his complete fearlessness. Sadly in a modern urban environment he's just a pain in the bum! But medicate him? No - never.

titty... your DS sounds wonderful (and very much like mine!)

My DS, who has ODD behaviours as described comorbidly with RAD, is not medicated with Ritalin, but with Risperidone. I imagine that children who are taking Ritalin also have ADHD comorbidly with ODD.

Hi everyone, The ODD child I referred to is medicated in UK ,not USA as suggested. Thanks for all your responses- it's been really interesting reading them all and getting different insights into other peoples ideas and situations.