Because these experiences are often triggered by something reminiscent of the initial event, people with PTSD may go to great lengths to avoid places or reminders of their trauma. If, despite their best efforts, the trauma is invoked, they may suddenly and unexpectedly re-experience the full anxiety and horror of the original event with a flashback. Such experiences can be truly debilitating and unnerving.

This disorder is somewhat unique in that its cause is known. What is not known is why some individuals develop PTSD while others who experienced similar (or the same) trauma do not. One study found that 36 percent of Vietnam War veterans exposed to high war-zone stressors suffered from PTSD. Another study found that both rape and molestation are associated with high probabilities of PTSD.17

Treatment.

Treatment for anxiety disorders often involves both medication and psychotherapy. The SSRI antidepressants have proved to be helpful for both OCD and panic attacks. Panic attacks are also treated with antianxiety medication known as benzodiazepines (for example, Klonopin and Valium), though these can become addictive. Recently, a newer medication, Buspar, has become available as a non-addictive alternative for reducing general anxiety.

Many people who are dealing with a severe anxiety disorder benefit not only from medication, but also from psychotherapy. Psychotherapy may be supportive and practical, focusing on strategies for managing anxiety such as relaxation techniques; it may be cognitive-behavioral, focusing on anxious thought patterns; or it may be insight-oriented, helping an individual to work through his feelings and defuse the impact of the initial trauma. Although these disorders rarely remit altogether, with effective treatment, those suffering from severe anxiety disorders can usually minimize symptoms and return to a fully functioning lifestyle.

IV. Severe Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder: Typically, a Childhood Disorder

Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is the most commonly diagnosed behavioral disorder of childhood, although it can also be found among adults. Statistics from clinics indicate that it is nine times more common among boys than among girls, and it has generated a great deal of controversy--especially among parents who feel that the diagnosis and medication are too readily given to disruptive children.

There is, in fact, enough evidence to warrant more research on whether the diagnosis is indeed given too often to children who meet only some of the actual criteria for ADHD in an effort, perhaps, to control poor behavior. Mild ADHD symptoms may often be dealt with best through parental/teacher attention and special tutoring or mentoring rather than with medication.

Severe ADHD, however, involves measurable dysfunction in the brain's ability to process information. Some children are prone to disruptive behavior or inattention. Children suffering from severe ADHD are simply unable to perform at home or at school and are very much in need of effective treatment. According to the nation's largest ADHD organization, ADHD affects 3 percent to 5 percent of children and adolescents and 2 percent to 4 percent of adults18 (although this estimate is for all cases of ADHD, not just "severe" cases).

While children tend to be the subject of most of the discussion about ADHD, it is important to recognize that the malady also affects many adults, who often suffer more damaging effects than children do. Adults with ADHD, for instance, may have great trouble holding down a job or managing their finances. Forming and maintaining relationships can also be much more difficult, leading to increased stress in their lives. Adolescents and adults with ADHD that is not adequately treated are also at an increased risk of substance abuse and impulsivity, which have often resulted in the tragedies of automobile accidents and acts of violence.

ADHD is characterized by two sets of symptoms: inattention and hyperactivity. Although any child can, of course, be inattentive and hyperactive at times--especially when upset--the cluster of symptoms for ADHD go far beyond the normal range of behavior. For example, a child with severe ADHD will typically:

• Make careless mistakes at school and at home despite good effort;

• Be unable to sustain attention in activities even when trying to focus;

• Not follow through on instructions or schoolwork even when intending to do so;

• Have great difficulty organizing tasks and activities;

• Often lose things, especially those necessary for task completion, despite best efforts;

• Be easily distracted;

• Be forgetful in daily activities;

• Fidget and squirm when seated;

• Be always on the go, as if driven by a motor; and

• Talk excessively.

Whereas a few of these behaviors are to be expected from any child now and again, it is the sum of all these behaviors exhibited most of the time that marks severe ADHD.