why are children being misdiagnosed when it comes to mental health issues?
363798
Doctors make money off it. \n\nParents are too busy to spend enough time with them to understand their individual personalities and deal with them accordingly. \n\nIn general, society doesn't care enough about children. Look at education. The US is ranked in the mid-teens.
810320
Unfortunately some people may have a disorder and not realize it and sometimes seeing symptoms and stuff helps them recognize. I am sure some people that love someone with a disorder are not sure what to do or where to go for help, this could be a place to help find some support. Eating disorders affect many, many people in this country. A lot of people only think of anorexia and bulimia when they think about eating disorders, but there are others, binge eating without purging, overeating is another one. Obesity can be a result of an eating disorder, which is a HUGE problem in this country ( no pun intended). Eating disorders overall create a huge strain on our medical system, which in return we pay for when we see our health premiums go up. So many reasons are there. I think it is a major problem effecting our youth and unfortunately so many young people today do not feel comfortable first talking with and adult about their issues and turn to the internet. While I believe this is a sad state that the youth today cannot talk to their parents and that they will probably be given some wrong information on the internet, my hope is that if having a place to ask questions, read about treatments and get support helps just 1 person then it was worth talking about.
1168228
its not just the mentally ill. people do that to everyone. my son had a heart defect, people tried to blame us. when kids are bad the parents get the blame. when kids are fat parents get the blame. when a kid steals a car someone is going to blame the parents. \n  people have the need to do that to take the focus off themselves. anything that makes them feel like their life really isnt so pathetic is an excuse to do something even if making the comment is wrong. no one should judge, its not our job. just smile and remember... those who do things like that have to answer to a higher authority eventually.
303548
When you say you can't get a diagnosis...\n\nHave you spoken with your doctor about getting a referral to a child psychiatrist or neuropsychologist?  A GP is not fully qualified to diagnose this stuff.\n\nIs he getting into trouble at school, and has this been happening for more than 6 months (it MUST have been happening for more than 6 months)?  Then you can get a diagnostic evaluation by a school psychologist. Ask that your son's teacher put in the paperwork. Make the request in writing, one copy to your teacher and one to the principal.\n\nIf it has been less than 6 months...\n\nKids often go through moody periods. My concern is that you say he doesn't remember afterward (although that could just be him trying to avoid consequences), and that you mentioned he appears extremely afraid of things.\n\nYou really do need to get a psychiatric/psychology expert...get that referral from your doctor.
481596
Mental Illness is NOT contagious.  If your children have Bipolar Disorder, they will have it from day one based on what genetic coding your genes provided.\n\nThe best way you can protect him is to keep up YOUR medical regimen to be emotionally and mentally healthy AND to continue to monitor him for any signs or symptoms that HE is having problems.  If he seems to be having any difficulties that may be related to Bipolar Disorder, have him assessed.\n\nBut don't obsess about it.\n\nI have depressive disorders, I am a Mental Health Nurse for a facility for the Mentally Delayed AND I have two sons who are Autistic with OCD and ADHD.  \n\nEven with all these issues, my sons are happy, healthy, well-adjusted boys of 9 and 11 years old.  A fammily CAN be stable... if you make it stable.
586070
"Mental illness" is much to broad a term for an answer to be possible.  Some indeed may have a higher, rather than lower, level of consciousness than so-called normal people.  You never know, do you?  Not really.  You cannot know what is going on in anyone else's mind, and psychology does not gain my trust when it pretends it does know.
1182416
Just talk to your child and let them know that you love them no matter what they decide.  to love you or not.  I'm not a parent but who ever told your kid that has serious mental problem.  But your child is 18 so he/she should be smart enough to decide how they feel on their own.
736893
How weird your question seems to me, because i have mental illness myself, and I was born 20 years ago.\n\nFrom my own experience in the world of mental illness with people who have had it or treated people who have had it for longer than I have, I know that there are more mentally ill people in the world today, and the number continues to increase.\n\nThere are many reasons why this is happening, mainly because of the lowering of the value and dignity of every human life.\n\nPeople with mental illness may get the medical treatment they need, but if they have no friends or family to treat them with respect and compassion and give the time and energy needed to make those people better, those people will have their mental illness longer than people 20 years ago did.\n\nThe most basic social connections that up until recently supported virtually all human beings have disintegrated, and along with those connections, the health and well-being of a large number of human beings, who, exposed to the harshness of everyday life without anyone to tell they matter, slowly fall apart and lose control of their lives, hence the ensuing mental illness.\n\nThis is only the beginning of the explanation for why the number of people with mental illness is increasing, but the main conclusion from it is that the cause is from the gradual destruction of basic social conditions that sustain our society, not from biological or genetic conditions like the pharmaceutical companies would like you to think.
237160
Please read the following by clicking on the link below....\nhttp://www.mental-health-matters.com/articles/article.php?artID=288
160508
There's also a chance of his having been misdiagnosed ADHD when his actual issue is oppositional/defiant disorder, which has many traits in common with ADHD.  A problem with ADHD is that it is far too often diagnosed by people other than psychiatrists (general practitioners, especially at the request of school administrators with no medical training).
1008128
Unfortunately this happens all too often particularly within the field of psychiatry. Psychiatry is an extremely inexact science and in many cases doctors are only able to find a diagnosis is through trial and error.  This process really sucks for those of us being experimented upon.\n\nI saw my first shrink in fifth grade.  From that time on I was in and out of doctors' offices with all kinds of diagnoses.  When I was twenty years old I finally landed in a psychiatric hospital.  I was fortunate that I've landed in a hospital with an excellent psychiatric staff that was knowledgeable in psycho-pharmacology.  This is not the case with all psychiatric hospitals and sadly we have to go through the same trial and error with doctors that they have to go through with our medications. Even after I received what I believed to be the proper diagnosis it took another ten years before they found a medication cocktail that treated my symptoms without killing me with side effects.\n\nI am so sorry that you'd have to go through this very frustrating experience.  The best advice I can give anyone in this situation is to be as much in control of your own treatment as possible.  That means reading up on every pill they give you, reading new research on your diagnosis and never assuming that doctors are gods. I suggest www.medscape.com for research on medications. It may take you some time to learn all of the appropriate terminology but nobody knows your body better than you do.\n\nKnowledge is power make sure you have plenty of it.
723860
Whether due to better diagnosing by doctors, greater general awareness in the community or a true increase in cases- Autism is going up.  Where a few years ago it was a rare and almost unknown disorder affecting 1 in around 1000 - 1500 children, it now affects 1 in 166 children.   It has been proven that the increase is not due to a loosening of diag. criteria, is not due to artificailly inflated statistics and that there is a true, rapid increase of cases.   In fact, many feel that it was under reported or misdiagnosed in the past as mental retardation and still is today. \nAutism and PDD are real and affect children in a real way.   I know because my son has High Functioning Autism and I work with special needs children.  And every day I meet more and more parents with young children recently diagnosed with it and it is startling and worrysome.  I was a preschool teacher and never saw or heard of it until about 5-10 years ago.  Now it is so common.  \nSo, I would say in my experience as an educator and as a parent that yes, it is increasing and it is not a myth.  And it is proven by more and more studies showing that conclusion.
545492
Your friend needs attention obviously for lack of attention.  Since she is your friend, I would talk to her about it.  ONE DAY, maybe one day she will be actually ill and will need actual medical attention, but nobody will believe her.  She is doing herself more harm than good in the long run.  \nThe person who gave the answer about Munchausen Syndrome doesn't qualify as an answer solving your question.  That is when a parent purposely harms her child in order to get attention of others.  \nYour friend isn't harming others, only herself.  Since she has been diagnosed as being a hypochondriac, her doctor should have gotten her into a mental health professional.  Talk with your friend and encourage her to see someone to help her with this mental illness.\nGood Luck to you!  I can see you are a true, caring friend.  Your friend in very lucky.\nLovetofly
109224
No, it is a diagnosis that a lot of psych people feel is handed out way too freely. Nevertheless, many people who have the diagnosis are very smart.
347671
Different disorders.  My sister is mentally chalenged and i have found that the the kids that are worse, usually look a little different.  This can be caused by many different problems in birth.  Others are the result of down syndrome.  It is the same as a mentally stable person that doesn't look "normal".
782708
No.  When a person is in a mental health crisis, they have no idea. So when you hear a person say "I think I'm having a nervous breakdown".....they aren't.  It's like a person saying "Oh no...I think I am getting Alzheimer's.."  but if you had it, you wouldn't be able to identify it.
1110589
pedophilia is a sexual attraction to children.  it is a sin.  what causes it?  not sure, probably is some kind of mental illness, actually