Psychiatry (Pediatrics)
Conditions We Treat
The pediatric psychiatry team at BMC evaluates and treats conditions including:
Adjustment Disorders
Most of the time, people can adjust to the stress of major life changes like an illness, divorce, or changing schools. Those with an adjustment disorder, a stress-related mental illness, may have a hard time adjusting to life changes and become anxious or depressed, and possibly self-destructive. Symptoms of an adjustment disorder vary, but they typically begin within three months of a stressful life event.
Go to Detail PageAnxiety Disorders
The most common of emotional disorders, anxiety disorders affect millions of people. Anxiety disorders include panic disorder that brings an overwhelming combination of physical and psychological distress; phobias that might be a specific extreme fear of an object or situation, significant discomfort with social situations; a fear of heights; or any other excessive or persistent fear of an object, situation or activity.
Go to Detail PageAttention Disorders
Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a chronic mental health condition that makes it challenging for children and adults to focus on tasks, pay attention, control impulsive behavior and even to sit still. These challenges often prevent children from functioning well in school and getting along with family members at home. Symptoms of hyperactive or impulsive ADHD include fidgeting or squirming, trouble playing quietly and excessive talking and interrupting. Symptoms of inattentive ADHD are making careless mistakes, being easily distracted, difficulty following instructions and forgetfulness.
Go to Detail PageAttention Disorders in Children
Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a chronic mental health condition that makes it challenging for children and adults to focus on tasks, pay attention, control impulsive behavior and even to sit still. These challenges often prevent children from functioning well in school and getting along with family members at home.
Go to Detail PageBipolar Disorders
Once known as manic depression, bipolar disorder is characterized by extreme mood swings that fluctuate between emotional highs and lows. An individual with bipolar disorder may feel energized and euphoric, and then shift to hopelessness and depression. Most individuals with bipolar disorders feel much more like themselves with treatment plans that often include medications and counseling.
Go to Detail PageDepressive Disorders
A mood disorder that causes persistent sadness and loss of interest, depressive disorder is also called clinical depression. Depression can have a major effect on how an individual thinks, feels and behaves and can lead to loss of motivation and focus. Not merely a "case of the blues," depression is not a weakness but a disorder that may require long-term treatment that may involve a combination of medication and counseling.
Go to Detail PageDepressive Disorders in Children
A mood disorder that causes persistent sadness and loss of interest, depressive disorder is also called clinical depression. Depression can have a major negative effect on how a child or teen thinks, feels and behaves, and can take a toll on the child's physical health, schoolwork, social relationships and family. Not merely a "case of the blues," depression is not a weakness but a disorder that may require long-term treatment.
Go to Detail PageImpulse Control Disorders
Impulse control disorders are a group of behaviors that make it very difficult to resist an impulsive act or behavior that may be harmful to the person with the disorder or others.
Go to Detail PagePost-Traumatic and Acute Stress Disorders
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and acute stress disorder (ASD) are similar mental health conditions. Individuals with PTSD have experienced a traumatic event and later experience uncontrollable thoughts of the episode along with flashbacks, nightmares and severe anxiety lasting for months or years and interfering with normal functioning. Individuals suffering from ASD experience severe stress symptoms in the weeks and months after a traumatic event. If ASD symptoms last longer than a month, an individual might develop PTSD.
Go to Detail PagePsychotic Disorders
Psychotic disorders are severe mental disorders that cause abnormal thinking and perceptions and can lead sufferers to lose touch with reality. Hallmark symptoms of psychotic disorders are delusions and hallucinations. One type of psychotic disorder is schizophrenia, a disorder that can cause people to hear voices that aren't there or can lead them to think others are trying to hurt them. While it is not known what causes schizophrenia, researchers believe that a combination of genetics and environment contributes to the disorder's development.
Go to Detail PageSomatoform Disorders
Somatoform disorders are mental illnesses that cause physical symptoms like pain that cannot be connected to any physical cause. Suffers are not "faking" symptoms; the pain and other complications they experience are real. Symptoms vary depending on the type of somatoform disorder, which includes Briquet's syndrome, with symptoms involving several different organs and body systems, and undifferentiated somatoform disorder, which includes hypochondriasis, a preoccupation with concern that the suffer has a very serious illness.
Go to Detail PageSomatoform Disorders in Children
Somatoform disorders (somatic symptom disorder) is a mental disorder where the child experiences recurrent symptoms such as pain and fear with no apparent reason for their existence. The symptoms usually begin in adolescence and the condition is difficult to diagnose.
Go to Detail PageSubstance Use Disorders
Drug addiction, also called substance use disorder, is a disease that affects a person's brain and behavior and leads to an inability to control the use of a legal or illegal drug or medication.
Go to Detail Page