These days, kids are bombarded with so many worries, from terrorism and bullying to school work and friends. It’s no wonder that their stress levels have exceeded to a point where they feel like they cannot cope. According to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, or SAMHSA, anxiety disorders are the number one most common mental, emotional and behavioral problems to occur during childhood and adolescents.
Types of Anxiety Disorders
- Panic Disorder: This disorder is characterized by sudden episodes of acute apprehension or intense fear that occur "out of nowhere." This disorder can be particularly debilitating because of the unpredictable timetable. Many children who suffer from this disorder often become agoraphobic.
- Agoraphobia: Of all the disorders, agoraphobia is the most prevalent. The word agoraphobia means fear of open spaces; however, the essence of agoraphobia is a fear of panic attacks. That is why many children stay in their homes, because of the fear of having yet, another panic attack.
- Social Phobia: Social phobia is one of the more common anxiety disorders. It involves fear of embarrassment or humiliation in situations where your child is exposed to the scrutiny of others or must perform. This fear is stronger than the other disorders, in that your child starts to avoid the situation altogether.
- Simple Phobia: This disorders involves a strong fear or avoidance on one particular type of situation or object. There are no panic attacks or fear of panic attacks; therefore, your child still have fears, (i.e. animal phobias, acrophobia: fear of heights, airplane phobia and so on, so forth that keep them from the situation.
- Generalized Anxiety Disorder is a chronic anxiety that persists for at least six months but is again, unaccompanied by panic attacks, phobias or obsessions. This could include a death, a birth, a move, something that has changed in your child's life in the period of six months.
- Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder: This disorder is an extreme compulsion and obsession about something, a compulsion towards neatness, organization, health, etc. Obsessions are the thoughts or ideas that seem senseless but nevertheless continue to encroach into your child's mind.
- Last but not least, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder: The essential feature to this disorder is that it directly relates to a traumatizing event such as wars, car or plane accidents, tornadoes or other violent crimes against your or their family. In this disorder, often times, the child has recurring nightmares, repetitive or distressing thoughts about the event, flashbacks so intense they feel they are reliving the event all over again.
Symptoms of Anxiety Disorder:
Emotional
Intense fear, worry or uneasiness
Withdraw from friends, family
Poor appetite
Behavioral
Acting out
Aggressiveness
Tantrums
Inflexibility
Physical
Muscle tension
Upset stomach
Rapid heartbeat
Dizziness
Cold sweats
Shortness of breath
Treatment Options
If your child or someone you know exhibits these symptoms, talk to your doctor. If the child is diagnosed with an anxiety disorder, there are a number of things parents and friends can do to help, the first and most crucial is support. Kids need to know they are not going crazy and that they can get help. The second is to educate them on anxiety and its symptoms and causes. Being armed with knowledge is one of the best tools in controlling and overcoming anxiety. Third involves doctors or therapists, who can help with positive self-talk, instead of negative self-talk, helping to diffuse the anxiety, as well as training in relaxation techniques. In some cases, temporary medication may be necessary to help control the anxiety.
Anxiety doesn’t need to rule your child, there is help, there is hope, and the sooner you get help, the quicker your child can get back to just being a kid.
(Sources)
Saint Louis Behavioral Medicine Institute, Anxiety Disorders in Children and Adolescents
http://www.slbmi.com/anxiety_center/childhood_anxiety_disorders.htm
The Child Anxiety Network: Childhood Anxiety Disordershttp://www.childanxiety.net/Generalized_Anxiety_Disorder.htm
