Information from: Medical Management of Children with Attention Deficit Disorders Commonly Asked Questions by C.H.A.D.D. & AACAP. Additional resources below.
Attention Deficit With Hyperactivity Disorder affects approximately 3 to 5 percent of the population and are manageable. Boys with ADHD tend to outnumber girls 3 to 1, although ADHD in girls seems to be under-identified.
Characteristics:
Information from:
Anxiety Disorders Association of America
http://www.adaa.org/
People who experience Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) usually feel anxiety and worry. A person may find it difficult to keep worried thoughts from interfering with everyday circumstances such as job responsibilities, finances, household chores, etc.
Information from:
Asperger Syndrome Coalition of America: www.asperger.org
Information from the Autism Society of America
www.autism-society.org
More resources listed below.
Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is the term used to describe five different disorders that hold similar characteristics. The different disorders that fall into ASD are Autism, Asperger Syndrome, Rett Syndrome, Childhood Disintegrative Disorder, and Pervasive Development Disorder Not Otherwise Specified (PDD NOS). ASD affects an estimated one of every five children, and is marked by varying degrees of impairment in communication skills, social interactions, and restricted repetitive and stereotyped patterns of behavior. ASD can usually be reliably detected by around 3 years of age, and sometimes as early as 18 months.
Bipolar Disorder, once known as manic-depression is a serious but treatable condition. Bipolar disorder causes extreme changes in mood, energy, thinking and behavior, and affects over 2 million adults. Research has shown that it can run in families, and more research is being done to find links between bipolar disorder and chemical changes in the brain.
Co-Occurring Substance Abuse and Mental Illness, also know as Dual Diagnosis, refers to the co-occurrence of mental health disorders and drug abuse. Typically, those suffering from a mental illness that causes stress or sadness (e.g. Bipolar Disorder, Depression and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder) use drugs such as alcohol, cocaine, marijuana and prescription pills to combat their symptoms.
Information compiled from resources listed below.
Eating Disorders is the term used for problems concerning eating and food intake. The most common problems under this diagnosis are anorexia nervosa, and bulimia nervosa. Both bulimia and anorexia are life-threatening diseases that mainly affect young women and adolescent girls. Unfortunately, these problems are also on the rise among adult men and women. Both diseases have roots in societal pressure to be thin; those affected try to achieve an "ideal" weight. The problems can also stem from chaos and emotional pain in a person's life. Anorexia brings a sense of control by not eating, and bulimia brings a sense of control by purging what was eaten.
Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS) is a combination of mental and physical birth defects that include mental retardation, growth deficiencies, facial abnormalities, cognitive problems, and central nervous system dysfunction. . Fetal Alcohol Effects (FAE) is a condition where children are born with less dramatic physical effects, but with many of the same behavioral and psychosocial characteristics as those with FAS. FAE is often thought of as a lesser form of FAS, but that is not the case. Those with FAE look quite normal, but exhibit many deficits in their intellectual, behavioral, and social abilities.