genetics?

Does anyone know if CD has genetic markers? I have a 15 year old who has ADHD and suffers with Depression. I have the same dx, but last week I finally put a name to what happened to me 20 years ago! I also have an 11 year old with Bipolar. Both my husband and I have mental illness in our family.

Like so many of you, I basically woke up one day (17 years old) and lost the feeling in both my legs. I was taken to the hospital, spinal tap, scans, etc...stayed there for a week. Then I "got better". The Dr's said it was a virus. 3 months later I graduated high school and immigrated to America. It was never mentioned again. I am a firm believer in therapy and in a quest to understand my "normal" upbringing, I have come to realize that I was suffering with depression in High School and actually struggled with learning disabilities too. I have told my children that what I believe happened to me was my bodies way of shutting down, of not being able to cope, and therefor I listen to, and believe them when they tell me something is going on - no matter what. So last week I was in a mental health seminar and the psychiatrist answered a question about Conversion Disorder (never heard of it) and of course I feel like I had a text book case.

What is the rate of co-morbidity or is it mis-diagnosis? Also is it genetic? I shared all this with my son's therapist and we both have a concern that my 15yr old may possibly be going through some "minor" symptoms. Yes he suffers with depression, but what looks like anxiety and depression to most...hmmm...given my history....He stopped going to school 3 weeks ago due to extreme anxiety. (Remember, we only found out about my CD dx 4 days ago.) He describes that he feels physical pain when he is on campus. It is getting to the point that he doesn't want to go out in public, yet he'll say he is social. When he went to the therapist (who he really likes) he curled up and fell asleep - very rare. The Dr. commented it's like his body is shutting down - hey, that's my line!!! Anyway, we started feeling that he might be heading down that path, despite the fact he is in therapy.

So I'm on a mission to further educate myself. I am grateful to say that I am doing extremely well. I must say that I have been in therapy on/off for 20 years. I have also worked hard at reducing as much stress as possible. Scaled back my life, stopped working to care full time for 2 special needs kids. Moved to a neighborhood where we can walk places, better school district etc. These things made a difference to me. I have fewer friends, - less complicated people in my life. I practice a lot of calming techniques, mindfulness, yoga, and I am on meds. I do get migraines and for me that is always my bodies way of saying slow down:)

Thanks for the input and for having a place to share. I see there is not a lot of support out there!
Behappy...I

Hey,

Conversion Disorder is an unknown to many people and this particular part of the website is not active at all. I cannot really offer any sound advice for you and I don't suspect you will get any other replies because nobody really checks here too often. I apologise about that fact (sorry).

I guess, the best resources you should look to are the Internet and your doctor. Your doctor might be able to provide you with some literature on the subject. regarding the Internet, just go to a search engine, type in 'conversion disorder', and away you go.

Kevin.

Hi there, I dont think its really a genetic disorder, but I do think mental illness generally does seem to run in families. Your son sounds very similar to my brother. He also suffers with depression and anxiety, so much so he couldnt go to school either and now he cannot work either. He also has Tourettes Syndrome. He has described similar symptoms that I get sometimes, occasionally he says his head seems temporarily detached from his body. And I was told once That Tourettes and CD are quite similar, I cant remember how. And my Mum has depression too, so we are all very aware of mental illness. My uncle has Schizophrenia and Multiple Personality disorder too, so we grew up understanding these kind of things, I dont know if its just coincidence we all have mental health issues or not! I hope things improve for you and your family x