Mental Illness

My best friends has just recently started experiencing panic attacks. She described what they were to me. She's had a couple episodes now. She most worries about her 2 kids (5 and 2 y.o.) It is scary to be a mom and feel out of control. She worries, too, because her mom has manic depression (Bi-polar Disorder) and her brother is Schitzophrenic.

I can't say that I have a mental health issue to speak of at this time in my life. But, I do worry often and, also, have been told that I have Attention Deficit Disorder (A.D.D., not to be confused with A.D.H.D.). Mostly my ADD is just a nusance because people have to be patient when I talk (that's why I am a better writer than conversationalist) and I am always losing stuff, losing my train of thought and forgetting people's names (not just new acquaintences, but dear friends--so its imbarrassing at time). But, because I worry often, I then worry (among other things) that I might be in the early stages of Alzheimer's Disease. It does help that my dad's a Psychologist, so he helps me when I have questions and when I just need a pragmatic perspective.

Additionally, my daughter has Down Syndrome. I only mention this because she is in the catagory of not 'typical/normal.' It is a life long issue and my husband and I are always having to process and weigh different treatment and therapy options to improve her potentiality in life skills. We daily rub shoulders with other parents who have children with special needs (like OCD, Autism, etc.).

Do you think that these disorders are a sign of the time (with the different stresses, deficiencies, and nefarios exposures we face in life now than in other eras) or have these disorders always been around in different manifestations and have just more recently been properly identified?