Ritalin-Free Kids

Bob and I wrote Ritalin-Free Kids back in 1996, when the incidence of ADHD in the US was starting to skyrocket. At that time Ritalin was being touted as the solution, and the nationwide CHADD support groups for parents were being funded largely by Novartis, the manufacturer of the drug. Kids were lining up in the school nurses’ offices to get their doses of the drug. ADD and ADHD were epidemic enough that our book, public talks to parents, and seminars for homeopathic professionals took us around the world: New Zealand, Switzerland, Australia, Scotland, the UK—wherever we spoke, parents were desperate for help with their hyperactive kids who were not living up to their potential. I remember how amazed we were, to speaking to a room full of parents in Perth, Australia, which turned out to be an epicenter of ADHD!

Youngsters, wherever we went, just couldn’t seem to sit still, concentrate, and keep their hands and thoughts to themselves. We presented countless cases of kids with behavioral and learning problems that responded significantly, sometimes dramatically with homeopathy. Was the epidemic manufactured, or at least the flames fanned, by the pharmaceutical companies? What we found was that many of these children, carrying diagnoses of attention deficit disorder, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, oppositional defiant disorder, sensory integration disorder, learning disabilities, and many other labels, could be profoundly helped by homeopathic remedies. Now that Bob has retired, all of these cases have come under my care. And I find homeopathy to be as effective for many of these children as ever.

Overamped, Underperforming, Challenged Kids During the Pandemic

Parents and children alike are trying to navigate the waters of education COVID-19-style. I find in my practice that many of these families are homeschooling, often through virtual classes, for the foreseeable future. And these same parents may be making a superhuman attempt, on the part of one or both of them, to work a full-time job from home while supervising their kids, coordinating their children’s curricula, getting food on the table, plus trying to create opportunities, online or off, for sports, exercise, and socialization. A recipe for overload at the least and frustration/insanity at best. Frankly, I don’t know how they do it!

Add to the mix children who can’t sit still, concentrate, focus, or get along with the rest of the family. All of this makes for short fuses leading to explosions, frustration all around, exhausted parents, and children whose moods and self-confidence may plummet. The pressures are even greater when kids can’t socialize as they always did before and are limited as far as sports, exercise, and group activities of all kinds. I am not only talking about hyperactive kids, but those who are underperforming or lacking confidence due to learning challenges of various kinds. The cases we shared in Ritalin-Free Kids and our enthusiasm about how effective homeopathy could be are just as true now as then. The frazzled, exhausted parents are as much in need of support on all levels are their kids, but it’s harder to get them to seek out help and they typically put their kids first.

Here are the cases of two children whose follow-ups I saw just today. In the early days of our treating these kids, many were already taking stimulant medication. That is no longer the case and I am often able to intervene before any pharmaceuticals are used. These are two families who thank their lucky stars to have found homeopathy during this intense and bewildering time. Both of these kids needed very common homeopathic remedies.

Case 1: A Southern Spitfire

Dylan’s mom is one of my favorite parents. Her Southern accent is just charming. She first contacted me ten months ago, four months before the start of COVID-19: “He is full of energy. A little comedian. He thinks he’s hilarious. He loves to be the center of attention and to entertain. He loves tornadoes. He tells me he’d like to be a tornado chaser! Dylan hates socks and would rather be barefoot. He likes soft things like soft blankets and pants… The only time he’ll ever sit still is when he’s helping his dad. Otherwise he hugs, hits, and gets into everyone’s personal space. He loves potty language and often gets into trouble for using it at school. Dylan is a real spitfire. He loves going fast, play fighting, wrestling, and jumping on the trampoline… Anything that makes a noise grabs his attention. Or things he can tinker with. Like how box cutters open and shut. We had to take the blade out because he was obsessed. Dylan skipped walking entirely. It was crawling then running. He was fascinated with where pee and poop come from and where they come out.”

It was Dylan’s tantrums that were the final straw prompting his mom to contact me. “He goes spastic, crazy. Putting him down for a nap turns into a thirty- to forty-minute battle.” Night-time fears caused Dylan to wake in the middle of the night and he insisted on a nightlight. He loved to tell folks about this dream of the toilet exploding. He loved dinosaurs and spaceships. Dylan dreamed about being an astronaut, despite his fear of heights.

When I chatted with Dylan, he told me about his fear of drains, the exploding toilet in his dream, and his worries about poopoo coming out. His mom confided that he avoided pooping in the toilet for fear of falling in. When he was goofy, which was often, Dylan displayed his naked butt. The child just loved to laugh and to make friends. “His main M.O. is to get attention by farting or sticking out his tongue…whatever it takes. And he loves to push buttons whenever he gets a chance. He’ll do whatever he can to get my attention.”

The Remedy. Dylan was a classic presentation of Hyoscyamus (henbane), a plant from the nightshade family. Fundamentally, kids needing this remedy feel neglected, jealous, let down, betrayed, and deprived of attention. They compensate by being provocative, silly, and attention-seeking, all to get the love that they seek. If they do have siblings, which Dylan did not, there can be significant sibling rivalry to the point of violence. Mooning, potty talk, and sexualized behavior, in a foolish way, are classic in kids needing this remedy. Underlying the acting out, like the other nightshades, is terror, rage, and panic. I prescribed four doses of Hyoscyamus 1M in water twelve hours apart and LM8 daily.

Six weeks after the Hyoscyamus: “He’s a little calmer… Getting along with his friends at school a lot better, which is awesome. Dylan is back in martial arts and this time he can stay for a whole hour. Now he’ll apologize if he says something ugly or acts impulsively. His tantrums are shorter and not as intense. He’s playing by himself more than he ever would. In the past he would just punch me. He still does sometimes, but now he warns me ahead of time. Dylan is so much more loving and sweeter. His grandparents are amazed at the improvement.” He continued the daily LM8.

Three months (the beginning of the pandemic): “Dylan is hitting less. He’s sweeter than ever. He still needs reminding and redirecting. He has so much energy. He can still plead, beg, and tune you out. But his tantrums aren’t as bad. Dylan is no longer punching me. But he can still become goofy, hyper, and obsessed with saying ‘booty’ and ‘poop.’” I gave another four doses of Hyoscyamus 1M and instructed the mom to also give the remedy up to once a week.

Four and a half months (two months into COVID-19): “His good days are great… Dylan is sweeter than ever. We’re starting to thrive, not just survive. I told his dad that I’m really starting to enjoy my son… We’re kind of enjoying the quarantine.” I increased the frequency of the Hyoscyamus 1M plussed to once a day.

Six months: “He’s missing his friends. He can still be disrespectful at time and backtalk. I’m giving the remedy once a week. Dylan is no longer afraid to go to the bathroom. He no longer needs his night lights in the hall and bathroom. He stopped pulling down his pants and there are no more pooping accidents.” I raised the potency of the remedy to Hyoscyamus 10M plussed as needed.

Seven and a half months: Dylan is much better. He’s not hyperactive. We’re about to begin kindergarten. His mom had been dosing him about once a week.

Nine months (six months into the pandemic): “Dylan is really doing beautifully. Honestly, better than I ever dreamed he could. He’s hardly gotten into any trouble. He really likes kindergarten…it is shocking. Dylan’s not the same kid he was before the homeopathy. He is so much calmer. Maybe an off day once a month. He’s hardly getting into any trouble at all. He’s going to school and even read a book to the class. Dylan’s not the same kid he was before… he’s able to look me in the eye, obey. I’d say he is 90% better than when we started. Our family is thriving rather than just surviving. Life is no longer a battle, a struggle. Dylan is just a normal little boy testing the waters. Nine times out of ten he makes the right choice. I could not have said that about him before. I’m giving him the remedy every week and a half or two weeks, or sometimes less often.” We are all thrilled with how Dylan is doing since homeopathy. I will continue to see Dylan every couple of months for the near future.

Case Two: Losing Was Not an Option

Antonio, twelve years old, was driving his parents crazy. It was a good thing that I took his case this past April, near the start of the pandemic! He was difficult from the start: very colicky, inconsolable, and could only be put to sleep while being held or bounced. Now, at twelve, he exhibited night terrors, bedwetting, and walking and talking during his sleep. Empathic by nature, Antonio was unable to control his impulses. Although he was well-liked by other kids, his defiance towards any authority figure exhausted his parents and teachers. The child’s vibrant personality and energy vented in the direction of extreme competitiveness and hypersensitivity to reprimands or criticism. Above all, he hated losing, which resulted in his “spiraling out of control.” It could be a race, a board game, throwing a baseball—if Antonio didn’t do it up to his high standards, he would beat himself up and fall apart. Screaming, throwing things, and cheating were all fair game: combativeness instead of cooperation. The alpha of the family, everyone else gave in rather than face confrontation. Antonio demonstrated little respect for his parents or siblings, who were forced to constantly adapt and adjust to his domination.

Antonio had been given Nux vomica (Quaker’s button) by his previous homeopath, with partial improvement, but his behavior was still intolerable both at home and at school and his manipulativeness “relentless.” To make matters worse, he insisted on sleeping with his mom every night.

When I spoke with Antonio, after hearing his parents’ frank assessment, I was able to differentiate between the Nux and a second very close, and common, remedy. He admitted, candidly, that his image was extremely important to him, and that he would avoid embarrassment at all costs—in public, outside his home. He hated making a mistake in front of anyone. When one teacher called him out and embarrassed him in front of the class, he refused to go back.

The Remedy. It can be tough to differentiate, in this type of child, between Nux vomica, which did help partially for a number of years, and Lycopodium (Club moss). In both cases, kids can be argumentative, defiant, smart, highly sensitive, and competitive. But the strong emphasis on maintaining one’s cool and image in front of others, outside the family, is much more typical of Lycopodium. It was in mid-April that I first saw Antonio, a month into COVID-19. I prescribed four doses of Lycopodium 1M to take twelve hours apart, and a daily liquid dose of Lycopodium LM8.

Four and a half pandemic-months later: Antonio’s parents were overwhelmed with working from home virtually plus having two kids at home sheltering in place. Fortunately, no news (no follow-ups) was good news: “Antonio is taking things in stride. He is much more able to control his anger. He still has the competitive edge, but he is able to recover faster. His greatest nightmare is being embarrassed in front of people. But, since the last remedy, Antonio is not as argumentative. He can take “no” for an answer. He can actually go along with what the younger kids want to play now and is much more able to switch gears. His angry outbursts are much less frequent and far less physical. Antonio is even asking to sleep in his own room.”

One month later: Antonio has handled himself really well, even though he really doesn’t like online school much. Overall this remedy has done wonders for him!

Many Cases of Pandemic Pandemonium

These are two of many similar cases in which homeopathy has saved families’ sanity during these tumultuous, claustrophobic, challenging times. Among families from India to the UK to Australia, and throughout the US, the parents have expressed gratitude for maintaining their sanity and relative harmony amidst a very unpredictable and unsettling time, to say the least. Whether the remedies are common ones, such as these, or more obscure ones, as are sometimes needed, homeopathic care can take a tremendous edge off families during the pandemic!