Depression and Behavior
Left Out
Most children at some point in their lives experience being excluded from a party or suddenly being ignored by friends. Being rejected or repeatedly ignored are painful for a child. As a parent, wh..
Dealing With Death
The death of a loved one is never easy, but it can be especially hard for your child to lose a close friend or a family member. Even the death of the family pet-which is often the first time a ..
Managing Anger
Anger is a normal human emotion. It can be caused by anything from a friend’s annoying behavior to worries about personal problems or memories of a troubling life event. When handled in a..
Know What Your Child Is Doing on the Internet
The Internet is a great resource for all of us and useful for learning or play. A person can: Have access to a variety of exciting games, and other forms of entertainment. ..
Sleep and Your Family
Are you tired of feeling tired? If so, you’re not alone. Many Americans don’t get enough sleep. But you may not know just how much sleep—or the lack of sleep—affects you and your family. ..
Get Your Child Involved in After-School Activities
If you're not home when your child's school bell rings, you probably hope that he will stay out of trouble until you get home. It's during these after school hours that children are more likely to ..
Panic Disorder
"It started 10 years ago, when I had just graduated from college and started a new job. I was sitting in a business seminar in a hotel and this thing came out of the bl..
Panic Disorder, A Real Illness
Does This Sound Like You? Do you have sudden bursts of fear for no reason? Do you feel awful when they happen? Please put a check in the box next to any problem..
Facts About Eating Disorders and the Search for Solutions
Eating is controlled by many factors, including appetite, food availability, family, peer, and cultural practices, and attempts at voluntary control. Dieting to a body weight leaner ..
Anxiety Disorder
Young people who experience excessive fear, worry, or uneasiness may have an anxiety disorder. Anxiety disorders are among the most common of childhood disorders. According ..
Children and Adolescents with Conduct Disorder
What is conduct disorder? Children with conduct disorder repeatedly violate the personal or property rights of others and the basic expectations of society. A dia..
Anxiety Disorders
Anxiety disorders are very common psychiatric conditions and are very responsive to treatment. At one time or another everyone has experienced anxiety or fear. Anxiety and fear a..
About Panic Attacks
Are there "rules" as to what is a "panic" disorder? The diagnosis of Panic Disorder is made based on recognized and accepted criteria. The criteria used by most ..
Oppositional Defiant Disorder
ODD is a psychiatric disorder that is characterized by two different sets of problems. These are aggressiveness and a tendency to purposefully bother and irritate others. It is of..
Bulimia Overview
Bulimia nervosa is a serious, potentially life-threatening eating disorder characterized by a secretive cycle of bingeing and purging. Bulimia Nervosa has three primary sy..
Anorexia Nervosa Overview
Anorexia nervosa is a serious, potentially life-threatening eating disorder characterized by self-starvation and excessive weight loss. Anorexia Nervosa ha..
Bipolar Overview
Both children and adolescents can develop bipolar disorder. It is more likely to affect the children of parents who have the illness. Unlike many adults with bipolar disorder..
Sibling Squabbles: Helping Your Kids Get Along With Each Other
"Mom, Jenny took my toy!" "Sam is looking at me again!" "Why does Angela get to stay up an hour later?" Does this sound like your household? Sibling rivalry is a fact of life in many hous..
Caffeine and Teens' Sleep: An Eye-Opening Study
You may have spotted your teen staying up later than he used to. Activities that could be filling his late hours might include computer games, TV shows, phone calls, or music. Have you ever thought..
Disruptive Disorders
Disruptive disorders, such as oppositional defiant disorder and conduct disorder, are characterized by antisocial behavior and, as such, seem to be a collection of behaviors rather than a coher..
What Are the Symptoms of Bipolar Disorder?
Bipolar disorder causes dramatic mood swings—from overly "high" and/or irritable to sad and hopeless, and then back again, often with periods of normal mood in between. Severe changes in energy..
What is Bipolar Disorder
Bipolar disorder, also known as manic-depressive illness, is a brain disorder that causes unusual shifts in a person's mood, energy, and ability to function. Different from the normal ups and d..
Your Teenager and the Car.
Teenagers, especially boys, begin talking about driving by the time they are 15. In some states, a learner's permit is available at 15 and a driver's license at 16. Statistics show that 16-year-old..
Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder in Adults
Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder is a highly publicized childhood disorder that affects approximately 3 percent to 5 percent of all children. What is much less well known is the probability..
Some Simple Behavioral Interventions
Children with ADHD may need help in organizing. Therefore: Schedule. Have the same routine every day, from wake-up time to bedtime. The schedule should include homework time..
Your ADHD Child and School
You are your child's best advocate. To be a good advocate for your child, learn as much as you can about ADHD and how it affects your child at home, in school, and in social situations...
The Family and the ADHD Child
Medication can help the ADHD child in everyday life. He or she may be better able to control some of the behavior problems that have led to trouble with parents and siblings. But it takes time to u..
The Treatment of ADHD
Every family wants to determine what treatment will be most effective for their child. This question needs to be answered by each family in consultation with their health care professional. To help..
Disorders that Sometimes Accompany ADHD
Learning Disabilities. Many children with ADHD—approximately 20 to 30 percent—also have a specific learning disability (LD). In preschool years, these disabilities include difficulty in..
Teen Dieting and Risky Behavior
TV, movies, and magazines are full of images of bodies that are too perfect to be real. Children and teens see these images all the time, and they may wish they could look like the ultra-thin model..
What Causes ADHD?
One of the first questions a parent will have is "Why? What went wrong?" "Did I do something to cause this?" There is little compelling evidence at this time that ADHD can arise purely from social ..
Diagnosis
Some parents see signs of inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity in their toddler long before the child enters school. The child may lose interest in playing a game or watching a TV show, or m..
Is It Really ADHD?
Not everyone who is overly hyperactive, inattentive, or impulsive has ADHD. Since most people sometimes blurt out things they didn't mean to say, or jump from one task to another, or become dis..
Innatention
Children who are inattentive have a hard time keeping their minds on any one thing and may get bored with a task after only a few minutes. If they are doing something they really enjoy, they ha..
Depression 1
In any given 1-year period, 9.5 percent of the population, or about 18.8 million American adults, suffer from a depressive illness. The economic cost for this disorder is high, but the cost in huma..
Hyperactivity/Impulsivity Disorder
Hyperactive children always seem to be "on the go" or constantly in motion. They dash around touching or playing with whatever is in sight, or talk incessantly. Sitting still at dinner o..
ADHD Symptoms
The principal characteristics of ADHD are inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity. These symptoms appear early in a child's life. Because many normal children may have these symptoms, but a..
Overview of AD/HD
Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is a condition that becomes apparent in some children in the preschool and early school years. It is hard for these children to control their beh..
Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder
What is Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)? ADHD is one of the most common neurobehavioral disorders of childhood and can persist through adolescence and into adulthoo..
Teen Suicide
An average of 15 teenagers commit suicide every day. In Los Angeles County alone, three hundred to four hundredteens commit suicide each year. The statistics can be scary, but only 1% of teens at..
What is ADHD
Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is one of the most common childhood behavioral disorders and can persist through adolescence and into adulthood. The causes are currently unknown...
Peer Relationships and ADHD
Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) can have many effects on a child's development. It can make childhood friendships, or peer relationships, very difficult. These..
Depression
Depression is the result of a variety of factors and can arise at many different times in life. Because of the wide number of factors which can cause depression, a method which helps one person wi..
ADD and ADHD: What's the Difference?
The difference is mostly one of terminology, which can be confusing at times. The "official" clinical diagnosis is Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, or ADH..
Signs of Depression
Approximately 4 out of 100 teenagers get seriously depressed each year. Sure, everybody feels sad or blue now and then. But if you're sad most of the time, and it's ..
ADHD and Injuries
Children and adolescents with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) can have more frequent and severe injuries than peers without ADHD. Children with A..
What is a Depressive Disorder
A depressive disorder is an illness that involves the body, mood, and thoughts. It affects the way a person eats and sleeps, the way one feels about oneself, and the way one thinks about things. A ..
Types of Depression
Depressive disorders come in different forms, just as is the case with other illnesses such as heart disease. This pamphlet briefly describes three of the most common types of depressive disorders...
Symptoms of Depression and Mania
Not everyone who is depressed or manic experiences every symptom. Some people experience a few symptoms, some many. Severity of symptoms varies with individuals and also varies over time. ..
Causes of Depression
Some types of depression run in families, suggesting that a biological vulnerability can be inherited. This seems to be the case with bipolar disorder. Studies of families in which members of each ..
Depression in Children
Only in the past two decades has depression in children been taken very seriously. The depressed child may pretend to be sick, refuse to go to school, cling to a parent, or worry that the parent ma..
Depression-Diagnostic Evaluation
The first step to getting appropriate treatment for depression is a physical examination by a physician. Certain medications as well as some medical conditions such as a viral infection can cause t..
Diagnostic Treatment
Treatment choice will depend on the outcome of the evaluation. There are a variety of antidepressant medications and psychotherapies that can be used to treat depressive disorders. Some people with..
Depression
In any given 1-year period, 9.5 percent of the population, or about 18.8 million American adults, suffer from a depressive illness5 The economic cost for t..
What is a Depressive Disorder
WHAT IS A DEPRESSIVE DISORDER? A depressive disorder is an illness that involves the body, mood, and thoughts. It affects the way a person eats and sleeps, the way one feels..
Symptoms of ADHD
The year 2000 Diagnostic & Statistical Manual for ..