Glossary

AD - A common abbreviation that can either mean Attachment Disorder or Anxiety Disorder.

ADD - Attention Deficit Disorder

ADHD, AD/HD - Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder

Attachment - Synonym for bonding; a bond between an infant and a caregiver, usually its mother.

Attachment Disorder - A condition in which people have difficulty forming lasting relationships; used interchangeably with Attachment Disorder, Detachment Disorder, and Reactive Attachment Disorder

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder - A common condition in children who are hyperactive or inattentive; thought to be a neurobiological disorder

Biological Factors - Loosely synonymous with genetic factors; often applied to diseases or mental illnesses that are inherited

Bipolar (or Bi-Polar) - A neurological disorder involving mood extremes, often difficult to distinguish from AD/HD; once known as manic-depressive disorder

Birth Parents - A child's biological parents

Bonding - The attachment that usually forms between an infant and its caregiver, usually its mother (similar to Attachment)

Comorbidity - The presence (or effect) of one or more disorders or diseases in addition to a primary disease or disorder, especially when they are somehow related

Depression - Extreme or persistent sadness that can lead to suicide in extreme cases

Detachment Disorder - (See Attachment Disorder)

Diagnosis - The process of identifying the nature of a disease or disorder, usually through an examination by a physician or mental health professional

DSM-IV-TR - Acronym for Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition, Text Revision, published by the American Psychiatric Association to set forth diagnostic criteria, descriptions and other information to guide the classification and diagnosis of mental disorders

Environmental Factors - In medicine, non-biological or non-genetic things that affect a person's health, such as lead paint, air pollution or abusive parents

Mental Illness - A collective term for all diagnosable mental disorders, mental conditions characterized by alterations in thinking, mood, or behavior

neurobiology - The study of the anatomy, physiology, and pathology of the nervous system

neurologist - A doctor who studies neurology, or the nervous system

neuropsychiatry - A branch of medicine concerned with both neurology (the study of the nervous system) and psychiatry

ODD - Oppositional Defiant Disorder

Oppositional Defiant Disorder - A disorder characterized by aggressiveness and antagonism of others; often present with other disorders

Pediatrician - A doctor who specializes in treating children

Post Traumatic Stress Disorder - A condition affecting people who are haunted by memories of terrible events, such as war or child abuse

Psychotherapy - The treatment of mental or emotional disorder or of related bodily ills by psychological means

PTSD - Post traumatic stress disorder

RAD - Reactive Attachment Disorder

RADish - A child with reactive attachment disorder

Reactive Detachment Disorder - Same as Reactive Attachment Disorder

Ritalin - Commercial name for methylphenidate, a mild stimulant of the central nervous system used to treat narcolepsy and hyperkinetic behavior disorders in children; commonly associated with AD/HD

Stimulant - An agent (as a drug) that temporarily enhances the functional activity or efficiency of an organism or any of its parts

Tourette syndrome - a neurological disorder characterized by various nervous tics and repetitive mannerisms, such as eye blinks, facial twitches, or grimacing