Ritalin causes aggressive/violent behavior - Response by Fred Baughman, MD, 10/31/02

  Ritalin causes aggressive/violent behavior
  

[Fred A. Baughman Jr., MD:
Jean, I appreciate your having sent this story of Ritalin to me. Time after
time we hear of aggressive/violent behavior occurring immediately upon being
put on Ritalin/amphetamine "treatment." To hear of the abatement is not
unusual, meaning the person has been made into someone else--transformed--by
the medications, something that can happen with just about any psychiatric
drug or drugs.

Additionally, Ritalin can damage the heart. If at all possible your husband
should have a cardiac consultation, letting the cardiologist know of the
Ritalin exposure, hoping he or she will look at the scientific literature on
Ritalin and the heart. Sincerely, FB]

     Had to add this story, My husband was on Ritalin from 5 to 16, all
     the time, haveing violent outburts, i.e. beating up his sisters, killing
     animals, Breaking and entering ending in a non fatal shoot out with the
     cops, he stoped takeing ritalin, and since has been perfectly rational, or
     as rational as any other normal human being.
     
     But now, my elder sister has all 3 of her sons on ritalin and the middle she
     is putting on some other drugs for Manic depressive. I fear for her
     children, her middle child is 6, youngest 4, oldest 10, all are normal
     active smart children, since being on rilalin the youngest has regressed,
     forgeting the alphabet, numbers and  such. I hope e-mailing the web page to
     her will save her children from the tragedy that I fear is comeing from her
     parenting choice.
     
     Im a mother of 4 that will NEVER Drug her children.
   
    My husband was adopted at 5, in foster care since birth. He was a very
    active child, climbing everything and running everywhere. His family had him
    seeing a psycologist due to known abuse by one of his foster parents. The
    psychiatrist gave an rx for Ritalin. Within 4 weeks of starting the drug, he
    also started developeing spurts of violence, mostly minor hitting fights
    with his sisters, at 7 he threw his pet dog of the roof of his mothers
    beauty shop. He was also stealing from everyone, his parents, the church
    offering plate, relitives, nothing was out of bounds for him. At 9 he put
    his hand through a sliding glass door trying to hit his little sister for
    locking him out. He never felt the pain, just let it bleed till his mom came
    in. The abuse towards his sisters kept building till the day he ran away, in
    which he broke into his grandmothers cabin, neighbors called the police, he
    had his grandmothers gun, so when the police showed up he started shooting.
    Fourunatly no one was injured he ran out of bullets and surrendered. He was
    sent to the Marsh foundation, a juvenile detention center in Van Wert, Ohio.
    The gave him no rx for any drugs, he calmed down after his relese 1 year
    later, he spent the rest of his teenage years with his aunt Suzie. He joined
    the army upon turning 18.  At 24 he was diagnosed with a heart condition
    called Vasal Syncope, which we are still unsure if that was caused by
    Ritalin or Gulf war syndrome. He is such a mellow man now you can hardly
    believe his violent past.
   
    This is a compilation of what I hear from him, his parents, and his other
    family members. He would be a better choice for writeing his story but he
    just dosn't like typing.
   
    Hope this helps someone make the choice of not putting there children on
    Ritalin.