Anxiety in Children

Anxiety is something that all human beings experience across their lifespan. As adults, we can automatically pinpoint those moments when we have felt anxious. We can even safely say that anxiety is a common occurrence for us. However, as far as frequency is concerned, children actually experience more anxiety than adults do.

Jean Piaget stated in his theory that the children’s level of cognitive function differs from that of adults. Their way of thinking is still immature; their brains are not yet fully developed. Take for example the level of distress that infants feel when their parents leave the room. Some people take this behavior as an exaggerated reaction and may think that the child is doing it on purpose just to gain attention. But this really isn’t the case. Babies really do believe that their parents are leaving them or are going to disappear forever once they leave the room.

Indeed, children aren’t quite as carefree as we may have thought. Even in infancy, fear and anxiety are manifested through the development of the ‘moro reflex’ or the ‘startle reflex’, which is triggered by a loud and sudden sound. As they mature, their egos also mature, and thus they become more adept at managing anxiety. However, as they experience more of the world and as their cognitive abilities improve, their concept of fear also changes. For example, older children won’t mind it very much when their parents leave the room, but they will be deathly afraid of the dark or be overly anxious about the thought of ‘monsters’ under their beds.

Most of the time, children simply outgrow their fears. There are times, however, when these fears are carried over into adulthood and become serious hindrances for the child, making it rather hard for him/her to live a healthy and productive life. Some parents take their children’s fears for granted, considering them as a normal part of childhood, when in fact, these fears may already be pathologic. Some of the characteristics that parents may take as simple ‘quirks’ may actually be symptoms of an anxiety disorder.

Unknowingly, parents may even reinforce these anxiety problems by dealing with them the wrong way. For example, if the parents ridicule the child for his fears instead of commending him for his bravery, the child may opt to avoid his source of anxiety instead of confronting it. Thus, his fears are carried over into adulthood.

Childhood is a very sensitive stage. So many things could actually go wrong at any of the stages of development. If the child undergoes a severe trauma at a young age, he may carry this with him into adulthood and he may be forever prone to psychiatric problems.

Separation Anxiety Disorder

Separation Anxiety Disorder is actually one of the most common anxiety disorders in children. It affects females more than it affects males. A child with Separation Anxiety Disorder panics whenever the primary caregiver leaves him; he worries excessively about losing his primary caregiver.

Children with this type of disorder are reluctant to go to school because they do not want their parents or caretakers out of their sight. They constantly have irrationally morbid fears of their parents getting lost or having an accident. This condition usually persists for at least four weeks, and it causes great distress for both the children and their caregivers.

Children who have been through significant separations in their early years are usually more prone to Separation Anxiety Disorder. For example, if a parent had to leave during a child’s toddler years, the child might become reluctant to let the parent leave again once he/she returns, even if it’s only to go to the next room. Usually, the child resorts to crying, throwing tantrums and, at times, complaining about headaches or any other somatic complaints just to keep the parent by his side. In severe cases, the child may even refuse to go to sleep because he is afraid that the parent will leave him when he is not watching.

Social Anxiety Disorder

Another common anxiety disorder in children is Social Anxiety Disorder. Children who have this disorder are usually aloof and highly uncomfortable in all social situations because of an intense fear of being ridiculed by other people. In a word, they’re usually described as ‘shy’. But a distinction has to be made between simple ‘shyness’ and Social Anxiety Disorder.

Children who suffer from this disorder are usually afraid of speaking in public, eating in public, and even going to public comfort rooms. They usually have trouble interacting with their peers, and they usually have only a very small number of friends outside of the family. Manifestations of this disorder may occur as early as 2½ years old. For a diagnosis of Social Anxiety Disorder to be made, the symptoms must last for at least six months. If this disorder persists until adulthood, it will be termed as ‘Avoidant Personality Disorder’.

Children who have this disorder usually have a history of child abuse, early childhood traumatic loss, a chronic illness, or a disability.

Post-traumatic Stress Disorder

When a child experiences a severely traumatic experience, he is at risk of developing post-traumatic stress disorder. Traumatic experiences include being in a life or death situation, physical abuse, sexual abuse, and other such experiences. Children who develop this disorder usually suffer from nightmares that are focused on their traumatic experiences. Because of such sleep disturbances, these children are often fatigued and unenergetic.

Children who suffer from this disorder undergo social withdrawal, and this may continue until their adult lives. This prevents them from forming new, meaningful relationships.

They usually have a grave countenance and look like they are unable to enjoy themselves. They suffer from anxiety and even panic when confronted with circumstances that remind them of their traumatic experience; they usually cope by avoiding such circumstances. By avoiding a confrontation, they never progress to the point where they can overcome their anxiety.

Children who have experienced traumatic experiences are also prone to regression. This is characterized by things such as bed wetting, thumb sucking and opting for a fetal position while asleep. In other words, they try to return to an earlier developmental stage, particularly to a stage before they had the traumatic experience and thus still felt safe and secure.