Been there ... my first Medium essay, way back in the day now, recounted years as a pharmaceutical test rabbit—major tranqs, Ritalin, tricyclics, even barbiturates (dating myself now!)—& I'll never exactly why. My mother passed away in '74 & when I asked my dad years later he didn't know. It was just something the doctor ordered, & when the doc orders, you obey. When you're a kid on pills & you get mad, or slam a door, or raise your voice, or anything not entirely serene the question never varies: Did you take your pill today?

Eighth grade English. I kept falling asleep in class. Couldn't help it. Made me feel like a damned fool. And my classmates agreed entirely. Folks said, as they did to every problem: You need to go to bed earlier. Reigning drug then was Elavil. One day, from sheer orneriness I refused to take it. Never dozed in class again. Years later, I'm a nurse passing meds. Imagine my surprise to see Elavil used as a non-narcotic sleeper!

I was never particularly disruptive in class; positive I wasn't ADHD. Peaked in elementary school in fact. But a pain in the ass at home. So maybe....

I've proposed adding asshole to the DSM V. But that might be overpathologizing what is just typical shitty behavior that's part of the human experience.