Review on the Perception of love and friendship in adolescents with ADHD and Cerebral Palsy

Love as a construct may be defined in countless ways and our perception of it in the early years of development stays with us for the rest of our lives. With adolescents suffering from disorders such as ADHD and Cerebral Palsy, there are certain impairments in different parts of the cortex, which have several direct and indirect connections to the hypothalamus, the part of the brain majorly involved in the perception of love. The review paper aims to understand how these impairments contribute towards behavioral changes and the understanding of love in children up to the ages of 18 and the impact it has on their lives in friendship, as well as in romantic settings. While it is assumed that there may be a detrimental effect on account of these impairments, it is also plausible that there may be an increased sensitivity and responsiveness to such emotional stimuli among these children. The importance of understanding the same, provides the world to be well aware of how to assist such children, from a young age to have healthy interpersonal relationships and grow up into adults with a well-functioning social life.