Protecting Parental Rights: The Fight Against Coerced Mental Health Screening

LOS ANGELES - Amzeal -- The Citizens Commission on Human Rights International (CCHR), a mental health industry watchdog, has stepped up its nationwide campaign to increase parents' awareness of the risks associated with mental health screening in schools. CCHR warns that misdiagnoses of children's behavior can lead to potentially dangerous psychotropic drug prescriptions.

CCHR praised the courageous efforts of a group of mothers who shared their devastating experiences in CCHR's documentary Dead Wrong. These parents, some who lost children due to mislabeling and psychiatric drug prescriptions, have worked with CCHR to raise awareness about the dangers associated with parents being misinformed about their child's needs are a mental disorder, when other options may be available to them.

One of the featured parents, Celeste Steubing, speaks about her son Matthew, an 18-year-old who tragically took his own life shortly after being prescribed an antidepressant for dealing with a rough patch in his senior year of high school, which left him feeling down. "Matthew had been a vibrant kid, happy and full of life," Celeste said. After starting the drug, however, he became withdrawn and anxious, ultimately taking his life just nine weeks later.

Mathy Milling Downing, another grieving mother, lost her 12-year-old daughter, Candace, only four days after she was prescribed an antidepressant for exam anxiety.[1] Likewise, Vicki Dunkle recalled how her 10-year-old daughter, Shaina, died in her arms after suffering a toxic reaction to a medication prescribed for Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)—despite it not being approved for children under 13.[2]

CCHR's campaign also highlights financial incentives driving ADHD diagnoses. At a 2002 congressional hearing, Colorado Representative Bob Schaffer reported that federal programs such as the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) provided financial incentives to schools for each student diagnosed with ADHD—averaging between $400, while later reports say $1,000.[3]

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Dr. Allen Frances, Professor Emeritus and former Chair of the Department of Psychiatry at Duke University, and former chair of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual for Mental Disorders (DSM-IV) Task Force, has warned diagnostic changes fueled a "false epidemic" of ADHD and autism, drastically increasing the number of children labeled with the disorder and prescribed stimulants.[4] Misplaced diagnostic exuberance has turned age-appropriate immaturity into a psychiatric disease and treats it with a pill, rather than just letting the kid grow up," he stated.[5]

Exacerbating this concern is the widespread use of school-based mental health screenings. Professor Frances cautioned, "Accumulating evidence makes clear how ineffective and harmful are almost all the highly touted screening tests." Further, "Encouraging mental health screening for children is unsupported by scientific evidence and amounts to a reckless public health experiment on children."[6]

Sheila Matthews, Vice President of the parents' rights advocacy group AbleChild, has firsthand experience with coercive psychiatric labeling. Her seven-year-old son was diagnosed with ADHD based on a simple checklist questionnaire at his school. Matthews was told that without medication, he would likely "self-medicate" and become a drug addict. Refusing to comply, Matthews exposed the misleading tactics used by school psychologists to pressure parents into medicating their children. She later worked with Connecticut State Representative Lenny Winkler to pass a groundbreaking law preventing schools from recommending psychiatric drugs for students.[7]

A 2023 study published in the Journal of Attention Disorders, underscored the subjectivity in diagnosing ADHD, revealing a significant rate of false positives when using ADHD scales and screening measures for diagnosis.[8]

Patty Weathers, the founder of AbleChild, testified at an FDA advisory panel hearing about the lack of science behind psychiatric labels given to children, leading to their being drugged. "Parents are told that their child has a chemical imbalance or a neurobiological illness. We risked our child's life based on this fundamental lie," she testified. "The FDA is well aware that there are no x-rays, biopsies, blood tests or brain scans that verify these mental disorders as a disease or illness."

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Dr. David Stein, Ph.D., emphasized in Dead Wrong that parents are often misled. Addressing Celeste Steubing's experience, he reassured her, "You did not let your son down. You were an honest parent, honestly seeking help for your son who was having some trouble…. All you would get is 'chemical imbalance' or 'neurological disorder.'"

The parents and CCHR were instrumental in securing legislative protections against coerced psychiatric drugging of students, helping get passed the federal Prohibition of Mandatory Medication Amendment preventing schools from making psychotropic drug use a requirement for a child's education. However, CCHR warns that much broader protections are needed to safeguard children and adolescents from coercive psychiatric practices in schools.

CCHR, which was established in 1969 by the Church of Scientology and professor of psychiatry, Dr. Thomas Szasz, author of The Manufacture of Madness, is committed to empowering parents with information and legal protections to ensure their children's well-being, It urges parents to educate themselves about their rights. On its website, CCHR provides a Parents: Get the Facts—Know Your Rights resource page, which includes a Parent's Exemption Form to opt children out of mental health screenings in schools.

Sources:

[1] www.cchrint.org/2023/09/12/new-study-confirms-child-and-youth-suicide-risk-with-antidepressants/

[2] www.cchrint.org/2021/08/30/cchrs-psa-informs-parents-about-how-child-mental-health-industry-creates-risks/

[3] www.cchrint.org/2010/11/18/ablechild-unsung-hero-in-battle-against-psychopharmaceutical-industry/; beforeitsnews.com/health/2013/01/schools-gets-up-to-1000-or-more-for-every-student-diagnosed-as-addadhd-heres-why-2466482.html

[4] www.cchrint.org/2022/03/21/adhd-marketing-brands-children-to-hook-them-on-psychostimulants/; www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2320493/Does-child-really-behaviour-disorder-A-shocking-book-leading-therapist-reveals-millions–including-children–wrongly-labelled-psychiatric-problems.html

[5] www.cchrint.org/2014/10/16/adhd-awareness-month-a-pharmaceutical-marketing-campaign-to-get-more-kids-on-drugs/, citing: www.huffpost.com/entry/12-ways-parents-can-prote_b_5888392

[6] www.cchrint.org/2022/10/28/cchr-launches-investigation-into-educational-decline/; www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/saving-normal/201304/the-obama-plan-spending-mh-money-in-the-wrong-places

[7] www.cchrint.org/2010/11/18/ablechild-unsung-hero-in-battle-against-psychopharmaceutical-industry/

[8] "ADHD Tests Lead to Mass Overdiagnosis, Researchers Warn," MAD, 4 Dec. 2023, citing: journals.sagepub.com/doi/epdf/10.1177/10870547231177470