Binge-eating disorder involves recurrent episodes of eating unusually large amounts of food while feeling unable to control the eating, followed by significant distress. In college, secrecy, irregular meals, food insecurity and stress can make the pattern hard to recognize. BED is an eating disorder, not a lack of discipline, and effective treatment is available.
Binge drinking is common enough on college campuses that it can be easy to mistake it for harmless tradition. It is a high-risk pattern of alcohol use that can lead to injury, alcohol overdose, academic problems and alcohol use disorder even when someone does not drink every day.
Autism spectrum disorder is a lifelong neurodevelopmental condition that can affect communication, social interaction, sensory processing, routines and patterns of interest. College can magnify both strengths and support needs as structure changes and students are expected to manage housing, academics and daily life more independently.
Attachment disorders are rare childhood mental health conditions that affect how a young child relates to caregivers after severe disruption in early caregiving. In current psychiatric classification, the two attachment disorders are reactive attachment disorder (RAD) and disinhibited social engagement disorder (DSED). For college students, attachment disorders can intersect with classes, work, housing, money, relationships, transportation, privacy, and the sudden expectation that you coordinate your own care. The condition itself is only one part of the problem; the system around it can either reduce or multiply the load.
Social anxiety disorder is more than being shy or awkward. It is persistent fear of being judged, embarrassed or rejected, and college can put that fear directly in the path of classes, presentations, friendships, dating, networking and asking for help.
Generalized anxiety disorder can turn ordinary college responsibilities into a constant stream of what-ifs. The worry moves from grades to money to relationships to the future, and even when one problem is solved, your mind may immediately find another.
College can give anxiety plenty to work with: deadlines, relationships, money, uncertainty and constant evaluation. An anxiety disorder is more than being stressed. It is persistent fear, worry or avoidance that begins to shape how you study, connect and live.
Anorexia nervosa is an eating disorder involving persistent restriction, significantly low body weight, intense fear of gaining weight or behavior that prevents weight restoration, and disturbance in how weight or shape is experienced. It can become medically dangerous even when the behaviors are praised as discipline. Treatment addresses both physical stability and the eating disorder itself.
Amnesia means a significant loss of memory. It may affect memories from the past, the ability to form new memories after an illness or injury, or both. Amnesia is a symptom or syndrome rather than one single disease, and the cause matters enormously. For college students, amnesia can intersect with classes, work, housing, money, relationships, transportation, privacy, and the sudden expectation that you coordinate your own care. The condition itself is only one part of the problem; the system around it can either reduce or multiply the load.
Alzheimer’s disease is a progressive neurological disease that damages brain cells and the connections between them. Over time, it affects memory, thinking, language, judgment, behavior and the ability to manage everyday life. Alzheimer’s is the most common cause of dementia, but the two words are not interchangeable. Dementia describes a level of cognitive decline that interferes with daily functioning; Alzheimer’s is one specific disease that can lead to it. For college students, alzheimer’s disease can intersect with classes, work, housing, money, relationships, transportation, privacy, and the sudden expectation that you coordinate your own care. The condition itself is only one part of the problem; the system around it can either reduce or multiply the load.
