Anxiety Disorder Child – Separation Anxiety and Phobias

As a parent it can be very disturbing to have your child suffer from anxiety issues and public displays of a child’s issues can cause even more concerns. So, it is important for parents to understand anxiety disorders that may impact their children.One is separation anxiety disorder. Most parents will experience some form of this behavior pattern while raising a young child. It will normally surface when the parents are leaving the child with day care providers, baby sitters or other types of care providers. Whether it develops into a disorder can largely be determined by how the parents choose to deal with the issue.The child will exhibit behaviors from crying to all out temper tantrums when presented with periods of separation from their parents, siblings or comfortable surroundings, like their home.If allowed to progress they will develop even more disturbing and far reaching symptoms. They may begin to express excessive concern about their health and well being, as well as for other family members. As an example, they might express concern about their parents driving a car because they are afraid they might get in a wreck. Eventually, they might begin to display some additional even more alarming symptoms like having headaches and stomachaches that will lead to nausea and vomiting. They may have fits of trembling and perspiring.Parents should not discount their child’s symptoms, but neither should they over compensate and validate their child’s behavior. If the symptoms persist or mount, professional help should be considered. Usually, this will involve cognitive behavioral treatments which will center on teaching the child various coping skills.The child will be shown how to realize when they are becoming anxious because of anticipated separations and to spot how they are reacting to it. They are trained to follow a plan to manage their separation anxiety and then assess their progress. This will most likely involve compiling a list of situations that bother them most and then proactively developing a plan to deal with those issues. Parents will play a central role in implementing the plan and their active involvement is often a critical part of its success. They will learn new ways to interact with their child that will involve applauding and commending their child for courageously dealing with situations that have caused them to experience separation anxiety in the past.Another anxiety disorder that bothers children and their parents centers on phobias. Like some adults, children may develop unfounded and illogical worries about being exposed to specific things or circumstances. They might be unreasonably afraid of dogs or spiders. They may fear the monster in the closet or under the bed when it’s time to sleep.Again, a child suffering from phobias will exhibit behavior that will disturb their parents and upset family interactions and social activities. The child will become quite anxious when confronted with their issue and may have their heart start beating rapidly, start getting dizzy or sweating. They will probably cry or show a fit of temper when they can’t get away from their situation.As with separation anxiety, cognitive therapy has proven successful in treating phobias. One especially successful technique is exposure therapy where the child is shown that exposure to the thing or situation that causes them distress does not end in the result they fear.When separation anxiety or phobias become more than minor irritations, parents should consult with medical professionals to get proper guidance for dealing with their child.