From: Gina Pera
To: adhd-india@yahoogroups.com
Date: Sunday, January 4, 2009 11:13:20 PM
Subject: Re: [adhd-india] Re: Need information on ADD tests
Hello all,
I don’t react with anger to this kind of baiting, so my apologies to Ramakant if he was looking for stimulation. As an early supporter of his blog about his experience with ADHD — I even linked to it on my own — I cannot imagine the reason for this unprovoked attack.
Some points of clarification:
Ramakant accuses me of insulting Hallowell’s books by calling them the “Distraction” books, but he misunderstands: That is simply short-hand for their titles (Driven to Distraction and Delivered from Distraction). And, it is not a sign of disrespect to call a physician or scientist by his or her last name; this is commonly done in the U.S. The fact that he is not a researcher doesn’t diminish the value of his books; I’m simply pointing out what might not be obvious to most readers — that authors who write for the lay public don’t always approach science with the same rigor as researchers.
One only has to read the large body of ADHD research to learn why every significant medical body recommends stimulants as the first-line medication. It’s not my little opinion. It is fact.
As for the rest, I don’t have time to correct all the errors; there are simply too many. In the U.S., these ad hominem attacks on me personally would be considered libel, and prosecutable.
All I can say is that I’ve been a proud volunteer in this field for 10 years simply because ignorance hurts us all. I’ve made no profit from this and have accepted no grants from anyone. In fact, I have given up paying work. But go ahead; try to find an ulterior motive.
Ramakant is wrong to malign CHADD, a greatly admired and needed non-profit, on the basis of people whose own psychiatric conditions limit insight and empathy and seem to confer a strange selfishness about educating other people about legitimate treatments. In the US, CHADD is represented by volunteers in every state whose only motive is helping others to navigate a learning curve they found painful for themselves and their families. You don’t get a “purer” motive than that.
And he is absolutely wrong about CHADD’s funding. For people who are interested in the facts, you can read all financial reports here (as required by our U.S. IRS):
http://www.chadd.org/Content/CHADD/AboutCHADD/Reports/default.htm
As a journalist whose good reputation as an accurate reporter stretches over 30 years, I stand by my statements.
Best,
Gina Pera