Its scary how stupid some parents can be

[maldorf]

It may be a sad situation but .... keep in mind, too, that not everything a 17 year old says is true, too. Just sayin'.

Skip

Right, thats the reason I havent said anything. The problem is, what if he is telling the whole truth. If hes telling the truth then his health really is at risk.

 

[kid1dakota]

yeah, thats what part of me is thinking but I am very concerned that he said that they had to use nitroglycerin on him once. im not sure of the details in that occurance, but that sounds a bit serious to me.

Yeah I bet his ADHD meds need to be lowered.I bet his Heart rate was cranking,B.P. was high and they used nitro.

 

[bhumik]

If he doesnt have insurance how does he get ADHD meds prescribed. I am certain there is help for "poor" people when it comes to health care. Besides I m sure any doctor would see the kid for free if someone such as YOU the teacher made a phone call. A charity visit. Its jsut blood pressure. Doubt it would take alot of time in GP's office

He will eventually need to apply for state subsidized insurance to get the other fancy tests that he will need, echo , holter monitorin, renal ultrasound and the whole nine yards. Is there a governemnt hospital around. Send him there. Poor kid. Dissapointing/ selfish parents.Pisses me off when people have kids if they can not provide for them.

 

[hellraiser27]

If he doesnt have insurance how does he get ADHD meds prescribed. I am certain there is help for "poor" people when it comes to health care. Besides I m sure any doctor would see the kid for free if someone such as YOU the teacher made a phone call. A charity visit. Its jsut blood pressure. Doubt it would take alot of time in GP's office

He will eventually need to apply for state subsidized insurance to get the other fancy tests that he will need, echo , holter monitorin, renal ultrasound and the whole nine yards. Is there a governemnt hospital around. Send him there. Poor kid. Dissapointing/ selfish parents.Pisses me off when people have kids if they can not provide for them.

This is true. But some parents, believe it or not, don't understand this. They ony see it as a financial burden. I have seen this so many times. And when you finally meet the parents...OMG! The poor kid never had a chance!
Sad but true.

 

[bhumik]

Or even better idea.? do you have a social worker or some position like that in school. Get them involved, if not go to principal or something and have them call the parent and tell them the gravity of the situation. Maybe they are not necessarily malignant just ignorant. They will come to their senses hopefully.
I dont htink chilp protection services would be a good idea.

 

[maldorf]

Or even better idea.? do you have a social worker or some position like that in school. Get them involved, if not go to principal or something and have them call the parent and tell them the gravity of the situation. Maybe they are not necessarily malignant just ignorant. They will come to their senses hopefully.
I dont htink chilp protection services would be a good idea.

If think I will see the guidance councelor about it. I think they should be well equipped to deal with it the best way possible.

 

[Skip]

Right, thats the reason I havent said anything. The problem is, what if he is telling the whole truth. If hes telling the truth then his health really is at risk.

Completely agree. I didn't mean to insinuate that you shouldn't do anything but rather that it is very possible that his mother really isn't a bad monster and that she may not be neglectful, at all. If I were in your shoes I would be just as concerned. I didn't mean that you shouldn't do anything.

Skip

 

[Michaelthomasj]

Yes, something has to change in our country soon to put an end to things like this. The thing is though, if it were my kid I would have him at the doctor even if I had no insurance because something is really wrong with him and IMO she is risking his life. No amount of money is worth one of my childs' lives.
IMO this is boarderline child abuse. If someone needs care they can get treatment and other arrangements are made so that it can be paid for at a reduced rate or as a payment plan. Too often people wait until they are on death's doorstep and then rush to the ER for treatment and by then its already too late. Maybe its the doctor's offices that wont treat you if youre not insured? Is that the case? I know that a hospital cannot deny anyone treatment.

Absolutely...there is def something wrong w this kid, and he needs to get looked at. Some parents amaze me, and she is a nurse? wtf

 

[aqrojase]

He is a minor. I would report this to child services. If something happens to him you are going to feel horable. As a teacher,you actually have an obligation to do so. I used to be a HS teacher and i have seen some very pathetic parents.

One should not really jump to conclusions and blame a parent. No one really knows whats happening in the house hold. maybe look into ways of helping the teen, instead of jumping to conclusions and breaking the family apart. True there are some bad parents out there, but thats up for the kid to decide not an outsider. Its the political system in the U.S that we need to blame for this health insurance issue.

 

[S2N]

Pp

If the kid is on ADHD meds then he should have insurance, that stuff runs over 100 dollars a month w/out insurance. Plus combining OTC stims with ADHD meds (amphetamines) is more than enough to cause elevated blood pressure.

I've gone into the docs office with systolic bp over 180 simply due to being nervous about results. Plus the kid is 17, so you have to take what he says with a grain of salt.

Not saying that you shouldn't be concerned, or ignore the situation... but i'd be cautious of blowing the whistle on the kids parents w/out knowing the whole situation

Good post. Tell the kid to get off the fat burners. Honestly if his pressure was that high all the time he would be so lethargic he'd never get out of bed.

 

[S2N]

Yeah i'm not sure about that one... unless it was used by paramedics as a precautionary measure, but I can't think of any reason a 17 year old would need that.

Typically you would pass out in the gym after a heavy set from a rapid drop in blood pressure. During heavy squats your systolic may be as high as 300, and then plumates once you rack the weight causing that dizziness we've all felt

A medic comes...you say you have chest pain...you get nitro

 

[mojo jojo]

If think I will see the guidance councelor about it. I think they should be well equipped to deal with it the best way possible.

This is what I was going to recommend. The guidance conuselor tend to have a lot more information on the kids and their family. Also if the school has a nurse you could speak to him/her about what the kids said. The school nurse should be equiped to check blood pressure. At least mine was when I was in school.

 

[massmonster32]

I came across a situation today I feel like I need to get off my chest and share. It is still bothering me now after hearing it and its been about 5 hours or more. Today I was a substitute teacher at a local high school and one of my students mentioned to me how hes having health problems. He is into bodybuilding and taking creatine and some substance that advertises as a stimulant (has adrenalin like title to it). His blood pressure is usually around 155/90 or so and often times the systolic is 170 or more. He said one day at the doctors it was over 200. I asked him if he had tried stopping all the supplements to see if his BP came down and he claimed that he tried it but it didnt help. To complicate things hes also on meds for ADHD.

Anyhow, I asked him if he had been to a doc to get some meds to lower that bp and he said no. He even mentioned that once while lifitng he passed out and had some sort of heart trouble, I dont know what, and the paramedics came and gave him nitroglycerin. Here he is, only about 17 years old and having all of these problems.

His mother is a nurse and tells him that his BP is just boarderline and he doesnt need treatment! I guess she just works partime at a hospice or something and so they dont have health insurance. She doesnt want to pay for him to go to the doctor or get tests run. He continues to train hard even though his BP sometimes measures up around 200 mmHG. Crazy shit. I told him his mother was wrong and that he needed to see a doctor soon. I doubt anything wil come of it. Sad stuff.

He should just go to the University clinic at 17 he can say he lives on his own and has very little income. Best care you can get anyway since they have so many specialists working at the teaching hospitials. Basic stuff here that a nurse should know red flags all over that. MM

 

[N623]

He is a minor. I would report this to child services. If something happens to him you are going to feel horable. As a teacher,you actually have an obligation to do so. I used to be a HS teacher and i have seen some very pathetic parents.

F'n bump this x 2

Be strong brother, save that kid from himself and dipshit mother. ADDH, high BP, Nitro? How many warning signs does she need? RN not working fulltime or a job with no benefits....reason for that too.

It sucks be a responsible caring person, but u know what u gotta do

Respect to you

 

[maldorf]

Less than an hour ago I talked to the councelor and nurse

I was in the office and bumped into the student and used that as on opportunity to inform the councelor and nurse about the BP issue. They planned on talking with him and taking his BP. I dont know if it was just a coincidence or not, probably, but when I left the school shortly after there was a township firetruck outside the main office. Just kinda freaked me out.

I felt stupid after talking to the councelor. She made me feel almost as if I were doing something wrong by reporting it. I felt like either she believed the kid just exaggerates and likes to talk or that maybe I had stuck my nose somewhere it didnt belong. Anyhow, I didnt come away from the experience with a good feeling. Overall though I feel better because I think I did the right thing.

The boy said today his systolic was running 145, so thats not too bad but certainly boarderline at best. hes only 17/18 yrs old too.

 

[maldorf]

I might add that I did find out by talking to him today that he is on adderall.

 

[MR. BMJ]

Maldorf, you did the right thing. The ball is in their court now on taking further care of the situation. If the kid came to you and stated this situation, then you have every right reporting it to the school/counselor. If that counselor made you feel wrong, she can go choke on a big fat one imo. IF that was my kid, I would have thanked you for doing the same. The important issue is the kids health, not what some bonehead counselor feels is appropriate. Something needs to be done to bring it to the attention of both the parents and the doctor, so that further care and adjustments can be performed, as needed.

You did nothing wrong imo man, good job!


BMJ

 

[tpd01883]

If he doesnt have insurance how does he get ADHD meds prescribed. I am certain there is help for "poor" people when it comes to health care. Besides I m sure any doctor would see the kid for free if someone such as YOU the teacher made a phone call. A charity visit. Its jsut blood pressure. Doubt it would take alot of time in GP's office

He will eventually need to apply for state subsidized insurance to get the other fancy tests that he will need, echo , holter monitorin, renal ultrasound and the whole nine yards. Is there a governemnt hospital around. Send him there. Poor kid. Dissapointing/ selfish parents.Pisses me off when people have kids if they can not provide for them.

I used to get prescribed to adderall(generic version amphetamine salts) and depending on the pharmacy the actual cost of the medication without insurance would have been around $75. Most of my doctors visits though are min $150, often times more around $250 and above if I have to have any sort of procedure beyond the usual done. Plus I'm sure a doctor would want to put him on bp medication, and if his bp is that screwed up it makes me wonder what his cholesterol might look like. I'm sure the doctor would want to run basic blood work and from a standard lab a doc office uses that would probably run another $130, plus the cost of more very expensive meds if his cholesterol is out of whack.

Honestly, a 17 year old who works out who has high blood pressure only two things come to my mind. Either he is having an adverse reaction to his ADD meds, or some other medication he did not disclose. Like anti depressants, or mood stabilizers. Both can cause hypertension, if he is on a mood stabilizer they often cause water retention. However most docs are aware of this and will not continue to prescribe them without checking basic health markers like bp and cholesterol.

The other thing that comes to mind is drug abuse. Cocaine, and/or amphetamines. Even opioid abuse can cause hypertension during the withdrawal. I used to have an opioid abuse problem, and my blood pressure after detoxing would remain elevated for 2-3 weeks sometimes.

Also he is into bodybuilding, perhaps he is taking prohormones or steroids and did not disclose that to you. I knew tons of guys in highschool taking m1t, superdrol and pheraplex back in the day. A lot of guys at the local supplement store actually recommended m1t to me when I used to go in there to buy creatine/protein.

 

[seala8]

Most likely adderall instead of ritalin, which is still a fairly powerful stimulant...

i agree. That stuff is no joke. If he is taking his meds plus stimulants pre workout that can have a huge effect on his bp.

 

[dragonfire101]

Yes, something has to change in our country soon to put an end to things like this. The thing is though, if it were my kid I would have him at the doctor even if I had no insurance because something is really wrong with him and IMO she is risking his life. No amount of money is worth one of my childs' lives.
IMO this is boarderline child abuse. If someone needs care they can get treatment and other arrangements are made so that it can be paid for at a reduced rate or as a payment plan. Too often people wait until they are on death's doorstep and then rush to the ER for treatment and by then its already too late. Maybe its the doctor's offices that wont treat you if youre not insured? Is that the case? I know that a hospital cannot deny anyone treatment.

why doesn't the mother have insurance. can she get him on state insurance. lot of states have it if parents don't have it kids can at least have it up until 18. 16-18 is tough age. Because at 16 in many states kids can move out and dont have to live with their parents if they don't want to and police cant do anything or child services in many cases. also at 16 they can object to medical treatment. i deal with this stuff all the time. its hard for the parents to deal with out of control children at this age and police, judicial system child services etc. i have several kids on my case load in this situation. I bet your also only seeing some of the picture as well. Im sure there is alot more going on behind the scenes at home your no aware of. anyways back to the 16-17 yr olds who have mental health, and medical issues. you can file petitions in juvenile court for non compliant 16-17 years olds as a parent or school or community provider such as child services to your local juvneile court. These are for troubled teens not criminal offenses, which are different matter altogether. these petitions name vary by state. the thing is in many states its voluntary for the teens to cooperate with the court if its not regrading criminal charges. the judge will say i want you to do this or that and make it seem the teen has no choice , and we all make it seem like they have no choice, but some find out its voluntary and don't comply and you cant do crap about it...happens all the time with the 16 and 17 yr olds.