Should Stimulant Medication be Used in the Treatment of ADHD?

Of all the different treatments, stimulant medications work to change the brain chemistry to that seen in a brain lacking any psychological disorders. This makes them very effective as it gets to the root of the problem, as compared to therapies that try to mask the problem. The FDA approved stimulant medication affects neural transmitters in the brain, allowing for the neural pathways to work more efficiently. With the neurons firing correctly, the symptoms of ADHD are reduced. There is also other non-stimulant medications used to treat ADHD, but these are less commonly prescribed and less effective than the stimulant medication (Facts About ADHD). These are mainly used if the patient is against using stimulants or if the patient is experiencing too many side effects from the stimulants. For individuals with ADHD, the neurotransmitters dopamine and norepinephrine are reabsorbed back into neurons during reuptake, before the neural message is successful. Stimulant medication increases the neurotransmitters dopamine and norepinephrine and block reuptake, which allows for successful neural transmissions (Silverstein, 61). There are different stimulants that act in opposite ways. There is methylphenidate and there is amphetamine. Methylphenidate stimulant medications primarily focus on blocking the reuptake of neurotransmitter. They then increase the release of dopamine and norepinephrine. Amphetamines are exact opposites. They primarily focus on increasing the release of dopamine and norepinephrine. Secondarily, they focus on blocking the reuptake of the neurotransmitters. Both methylphenidate and amphetamines are extremely successful in the treatment of ADHD. Neither type is considered better than the other; instead, it is dependen...

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