Uncommon Childhood Disorders and What to Look For
Childhood mental disorders are characterized by defects in certain milestones such as learning or behavior. As children develop, certain milestones are measured against typical metrics. If a child is not meeting certain goals at home or at school, it can be incredibly stressful for everyone involved — the parents, the educators, but most of all the child. Having a diagnosis, while potentially heart-breaking at first, can ultimately ease suffering by providing the necessary help to give the child the best chance in life. Depending on the disorder, symptoms can vary widely. It takes a combination of an evaluation by a mental health professional and input from a child’s parents and teachers to get a proper diagnosis. The areas of learning and development that are affected can range from how a child handles emotions and plays with others to how they speak and act.
School-age is when most childhood disorders get flagged. Parents may notice abnormal behavior outside of school, but concerns are often raised officially by a child’s teacher. They are the ones who spend the majority of the day with the child and they have the best chance to observe their learning abilities and behavioral interaction with others. Out of all the known disorders, there are several that are very uncommon. This makes them harder to detect and diagnose properly.
This is one of the lesser-known behavioral disorders in children. Its cause stems from a child failing to receive adequate comfort and nurturing at an early age from their caregivers. Because early attachment with a caregiver is so important, this can be very traumatizing for a child and is actually filed under Trauma-and-Stressor-Related Disorders. The data would suggest, however, that there might also be a genetic component as well since demographics with high levels of neglect don’t typically have diagnoses higher than 10 percent of the population. Data suggests there is nothing wrong at a neurological level, sufferers have the potential to form attachments selectively if they choose to do so.
Disorder of Written Expression
This disorder deals primarily with a lack of writing skills, although the causes of this condition are unknown because different manifestations may have different causes. People with dysgraphia can’t form actual letters and may have hand-eye coordination issues or trouble concentrating. People unable to retrieve and write down words from memory or dictation might be suffering from visual memory issues. People unable to organize their thoughts onto paper may be suffering from a cognitive-processing condition.
Disruptive Mood Dysregulation Disorder
A child who is chronically aggressive and angry and moody might have disruptive mood dysregulation disorder (DMDD). This is another disorder that is hard to diagnose because children suffering from this condition are not just simply moody. In order to meet the criteria, there must be outbursts flagrantly out of proportion to a normal reaction and they must occur frequently, about 3 or more times a week. When the child isn’t having a tantrum they are in a persistent, unwavering bad mood. Current research has determined that 2 to 5 percent of children suffer from this syndrome.
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Herrick Lipton is the CEO of New Horizon Counseling Center in New York and is also an advocate for mental health. For more information about Herrick or to get in touch with New Horizon Counseling Center for resources, please visit nhcc.us or call 718–845–2620.
