Usually I don’t write for Friday Fictioneers unless I have a storyline that pops into my head right away. This week I have challenged myself to come up with something to tell you about this photograph! As always, thanks goes out to Rochelle for encouraging us, and a special thank you to Renee Heath for the use of her photograph.
I hope my story works for you. 😉
Copyright -Renee Heath
~*~ Spinner! ~*~
He tried to pretend that she wasn’t there, but to ignore her was futile. Loud, hyperactive, ever-present, she was the visual embodiment of hyperbole. An extravagant exaggeration of annoying adoration. He couldn’t wait for graduation so he could move on and attend college. Anywhere. Anywhere but here!
He had it mapped. Med School, internship, a practice on the West Coast, then wife and family.
~*~
Home for his 15th reunion, he stopped at the entry table, then froze. Too late.
Quietly she approached him, “You came back.”
Taken by her calm demeanor he blurted, “Carrie, you’ve changed!”
“Ritalin” she replied.
Words: 100
For more stories from this prompt go here! 🙂
NOTE: I was asked what Ritalin is for/what it does.
Life on the Farmlet 
I’m glad you accepted the challenge. I laughed out loud. Good job 🙂
Thank you, Helen. If it made you laugh, then it was worth the effort! 😀
hahahahaha! you’re really really good at these challenges! A plus!
Lisa, now I need to channel some of this goodness into sustained, whole chapters! 😉
As a famous little engine once said: “I think I can, I think I can, I think I can.” and he did!
Hm. Think I can?
yes you can!!!!
I will dust it off. I will try it, and perhaps someone will proclaim it good!
Thank you, Lisa!
Ritalin……hehehe……what good and bad is it responsible for? I enjoyed your story.
Thank you!
Here is what I know about Ritalin:
Methylphenidate (Ritalin) is a prescription drug that treats attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and narcolepsy (sudden attacks of uncontrollable sleepiness [Which was not Carrie’s problem]). This medicine is a stimulant, which seems a non sequitur when you consider how it is used, but in individuals with true ADHD it has a calming effect on them.
Strange but true!
Thanks Linda yes I have seen it in action and on some it makes all the difference. Just curious of the long term effects. Thanks for replying.
We discussed Ritalin in a medical terminology class that I took. It only has the calming effect on people whose neurotransmitters are wired differently. I honestly can’t remember all the particulars but that’s the upshot!
Thanks for the information, Jess!
This story had a real kick to it. And highly credible.
Thank you, Patrick. Comments such as these make me feel credible. I must try to write on the next difficult prompt that comes along!
Dear Lynda,
What a nice story. I enjoyed the intro, the reunion and the accompanying info re Ritalin.
Aloha,
Doug
I’m glad you enjoyed it, Doug!
I got a good laugh out of this, too – nice work!
I guess I should push myself more often. Thank you! 😀
Dear Lynda,
Ritalin. You said it all in one word. Loved this.
Shalom,
Rochelle
Thank you, Rochelle, it is always an interesting exercise working from your prompts. 🙂
Hmm, I loved the way she tormented his mind… Lynda, you’re a paradox to me! I never know what’s clicking in that mind of yours – and I LIKE it!!! Great story!
You are not alone, Lori. Half the time I don’t even know what’s
lurkingclicking away in there… But I do enjoy sharing it here via my efforts in flash fiction.Thank you!
Lol
Thanks, Dawn!
Loved the time passing and the changes, all in so few words!
I’m glad that you liked it! I try hard to keep it at exactly 100 words. I think it has become an obsession. 😉
I’ve seen it used on young children in school of which I didn’t approve at all. Liked the story very much.
Tom, that used to be the rallying cry for any small child who was “too active for teacher to handle.” Hello! For small children pre-k to 3rd grades it is perfectly normal for some of them to be a little too hyper. It is part of their growing up process. If I heard it once, I’d heard it a couple of times, “My kid is on Ritalin and (s)he is still so hyper!” DING-DING-DING! Your kid does not have ADHD! It saddens me that small children are forced to sit long hours when they should be out running, playing and discovering what their little bodies can do. Exercise, imagination and discovery are what these little kids are programmed for at this age. They do not need to be stuck inside sitting on their butts all day.
Sorry. I guess I feel a bit passionate about this topic.
Good work! Love that third sentence.
Patti, it just sort of rolled out of my brain and into my typing fingers. When I was done I wondered if I hadn’t over done it. 😉 So glad you liked it.
I loved the story – but like Tom, I have some issues with Ritalin. When I was in school, we had morning and afternoon recesses. We also were allowed to:play on the jungle gyms, play dodgeball, tag and Red Rover, and we ran ourselves silly. Then, we went back to class.
There’s another way drugs are being misused. When my mother landed in a long-term acute care facility, I couldn’t figure out what was wrong with her. Eventually, a nurse pulled me aside and asked if I knew she was being given Haldol. As it turned out, every elderly patient who came in was given that drug – an antipsychotic meant for the treatment of schizophrenia and psychotic episodes – just to keep them sedated and under control.
My advice: BE SURE you have medical powers of attorney that allow you to discontinue the use of medications. Because I had that, I was able to stop the drug, and within two days mom was back to normal.
Yes, we all did back then. It makes me sad to know that these children are growing up out of shape, and out of touch with what their bodies can do, and what it is like to use your imaginations outside in the sunshine. 😦
We have no children, and I do worry about what it will be like for us when or if we need to be in a care facility. Who will be our advocate? Scary.
I will! I’ve got practice! I’ll come beat up anyone who tries to give you a hard time!
I may cash that offer in someday! Thanks, Linda! 😀
Ritalin… also consumed as a drug (similar to amphetamin)… I think Beatles wrote a song about it… Lovely Rita Metermaid…
I never knew that about Rita! 😯
Great story and sad too.
Dee
Thank you, Dee!
Yes it worked on me Lynda, thanks for telling us what was Ritalin, I was wondering.. so I understad it is a very sad story! Thanks Lynda
Chantal, I have been thinking about what you and a few others said about this being a sad story. Strangely, I had not intended it to be sad. It was meant to be humorous In my head, the story would have been sad if she had never gotten help, and never gotten better. I guess I have a lot to learn about writing humor. 😉
What I have been taught in school about the drug Ritalin:
Ritalin has side effects for some, it doesn’t work for you unless you are truly Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder (ADHD) and it is one of the few medications we we have that can help those with ADHD.
I read an article years ago about adults who discovered they had ADHD. These individuals as children had been labelled as inattentive, unteachable, and lazy. As adults they tried to enter the workforce and couldn’t function or hold down a job. One man interviewed said that growing up he hated school, and as an adult he’d had 19 jobs because he couldn’t focus on what needed to be done, and this caused his marriage to fail.
Then his Dr. put him on Ritalin and he said: “It was like someone flipped a switch in my brain and the world became quiet. Before the medication it seemed as if EVERYTHING came to my brain at the same time and I couldn’t concentrate on just one thing, because it was all of them all of the time!” He went on to say that with the medication he now had a good job, life was less chaotic and more enjoyable.
Again, Ritalin is not for everyone. I feel that it is over prescribed, and given far too often to little kids that do not need it! And to me that is sad.
When Eve was in nursing school I remember learning about the paradoxical reaction that some drugs can cause in some people. From what you say here, it sounds like Ritalin works that way.
A bit of caffeine used to work on my nephew in the same way. If he started his day calm then I could usually avoid a phone call from his teacher, well, at least until after lunch. 😉