I have not posted in ages, and I promise to write a substantive post soon. But for now, I just wanted to comment on something that I found ridiculous, offensive, and factually incorrect.
Last week's US Weekly, which granted is not the authoritative source on anything other than photographs of and gossip about celebrities, wrote (emphasis mine):
This is problematic for a number of reasons.Days after a judge ruled that Britney Spears could only spend three days a week with her children, she reacted by leaving her two kids in a parked car with a court-appointed monitor (whose job description does not include babysitting) as she shopped for $18,200 worth of chandeliers at the Crystal Place design shop near L.A. November 4.
Why does Spears, 25 — even after having physical custody of her kids taken away — keep exhibiting such questionable parenting skills?
Sources say the troubled pop star does not seem to grasp the gravity of her custody case, and they blame her bizarre public behavior (swapping clothes with a stranger, among her recent moves) on psychological issues, not drugs.
“It’s not substance abuse — it’s mental!” a confidante tells Us."Pals suspect adult-onset ADD or depression, with one friend saying, “Postpartum has always been a problem” after giving birth to Sean Preston, 2, and Jayden James, 1."
First, it might be true that Spears is dealing with mental illness, but it is unlikely that all of her bad judgment, or even most of it can be attributed to mental illness. The article implies that people with mental illness, people with ADD or depression would be unable to take care of children, or that an imbalance of serotonin or norepinephirine would cause someone to think it was O.K. to trade Halloween costumes with the bartender. I am not a doctor -- and it should be noted that Spears' friends and US Weekly sources are not doctors either--but I am pretty sure that that's pretty unlikely.
Secondly, and this is what caught my eye in the first place, there isn't really such a thing as "adult-onset ADD".
According to the DSM It is essential that "some hyperactive-impulsive or inattentive symptoms that caused impairment were present before age 7 years. As Doctors Glenn Brynes Carol Watkins, of Northern County Psychiatric Associates in Baltimore wrote, "By definition, AD/HD is a condition that has its onset in childhood."
It's great that Spears' friends -- or so called friends since they are dishing to magazines instead of getting her help--are concerned, but US Weekly perpetuates all sorts of falsehoods and stereotypes by printing these guesses. All that would have been needed to fix it was one line from a doctor explaining what was and what was not possible. Maybe this week's cover story on Spears' childhood will reveal a long-time struggle with ADD. Maybe. I am not holding my breath.
I am all for celebrities with ADD or any other disorder talking about it to raise awareness and to educate people. But spreading ignorance and perpetuating stereotypes? It doesn't make dealing and living with ADD any easier for those who have it. Even US Weekly should do better than that. Or for a magazine as widely read as US, maybe I should say especially US Weekly.
