RE: USING DRUGS TO REIN IN BOYS

Your article gets to the heart of what has gone awry with raising children
in America ("Using drugs to rein in boys," May 19). Congratulations on your
courage in the face of what will undoubtedly become a hotly debated issue
for the next several years.

This problem - the bio-psychiatric redefinition of childhood - is wreaking
havoc with our youth and creating significant confusion in the minds of
children who need help with their growth and their social-spiritual unfolding.

Substituting psychotropic medication for self-control, good gopental
counseling and ethical, social, and community values is a serious mistake
and is already diverting significant numbers of individuals from the kind
of personal growth they must go through to successfully transition from
childhood to adulthood.

David W. Hilton Concord, N.H. Director, Office of Consumer Affairs New
Hampshire Division of Behavioral Health

It is the saddest story, but I knew it already. My daughter at 18 was
having some difficulty coping with a stressful situation at her father's
home and was sent to a doctor, who promptly gave her an eight-week supply
of Prozac. No alternative support was offered. She was to go away for the
summer with her Prozac and come back feeling better! How dare they? How
dare we?

Nathalie Lajarige Oakland, Calif.

I'm one of those who view with alarm the modern practice of medicating our
young people. The myth of "Attention Deficit Disorder" is pernicious and
evil. We spend billions of dollars warning children about the dangers of
drugs while we often require them to be medicated to continue in school.
The resulting message is clear: "There is a drug for every problem."

Gerald M. Sutliff Emeryville, Calif.