9781422280362

Depression, Anxiety, and Bipolar Disorders

as conduct disorder, are considered externalizing disorders because they’re directed toward or disruptive to other people. (Behavioral disorders are covered in a separate book in this series, titled ADHD and Other Behavior Disorders .) How Common Are Mood and Anxiety Disorders? Nearly half of all teenagers in the United States have been affected by a mental disorder at some point, so there’s a pretty good chance that someone you know Making a Diagnosis For some health conditions, diagnosis is as simple as a blood or urine test. But there’s no similar test to identify the presence of a mental illness. Scientists are working to find biological clues (known as biomarkers ) that will reveal the presence of mental disorders. For now, mental health professionals rely on the symptoms described by their patients, along with their own observations, to make a diagnosis. They often look for “the four D’s”: • Deviance: behavior, thoughts, or feelings very different from those accepted within the society or culture. • Dysfunction: state interfering with everyday life and activities. • Distress: mental stress or unhappiness. • Danger: potential to cause harm to oneself or others. If several of these are present, it suggests that a problem may reach the level of a disorder. A fifth D, Duration , is sometimes added to clarify whether symptoms have lasted long enough to justify a particular diagnosis.

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