Ultimately, Seybolt says, children and adolescents are resilient and go through phases. When you’re dealing with a kid who is already anxious (and you show frustration or anger), you’re just revving it up for everyone.” “If you’re a parent, you want to be able to ‘fix’ what’s wrong. “When people are frustrated, it’s almost always because it’s something that’s out of their control,” she adds. As she says, the entire family system and environment at home (and school) need to considered when preparing an effective treatment plan. “Then that makes me frustrated because they don’t know what I’m going through and think I can just talk myself out of what I’m feeling.”įor this reason, Rulien is also a strong proponent of family therapy in conjunction with individual therapy. “They get frustrated if I can’t do something and get mad at me,” Sophia says. Her anxiety is compounded when others (usually her parents, but also friends and teachers) become angry with her because of her behavior. “I get really scared like something bad is going to happen, and my parents are the only ones who can protect me.” It also hampers her ability to go to sleepovers at friends’ houses, which is a big deal for a 12-year-old. “Sometimes on the way to school, I start to feel uncomfortable, like I’m confined within myself, and I get pains in my stomach,” she says. (She’s currently on a low dose of Prozac daily.) While her night fears have abated, she still struggles with separation anxiety. Sophia, for example, sees a therapist regularly and a psychiatrist for medication management. Getting a restful night’s sleep is also critical for a child’s growth and development, so monitoring sleep patterns and limiting sugar and caffeine intake before bed are important.ĭepending on the severity and frequency of the child’s episodes, she may be referred to a child psychiatrist or mental health counselor for further evaluation, which may include individual therapy and/or medication. In some cases, it may be something as simple as learning stress reduction techniques like deep breathing or meditation or having open conversations about the child’s day, especially about successes or challenges she faced. When a stressor, which can be positive or negative, affects your child’s ability to function in daily life (for example, not wanting to go to school, getting into fights or experiencing physical ailments such as stomach aches) over a two-week period, Seybolt says, it’s time to look at getting some professional help.Īt that point, Seybolt and Rulien suggest consulting the child’s guidance counselor or pediatrician for recommendations on how to best deal with the issue. “You don’t have to be a mental health professional to know your child or family norms and when they are off.” Has there been a divorce, death, loss of job or even a new baby?” she says. Theresa Rulien, president and CEO of Child Guidance Center, also suggests taking into consideration what is going on in the child’s life-in toto. While a “yes” to any of these questions doesn’t necessarily indicate an anxiety disorder, further consideration is certainly warranted. Kristi Keidel Seybolt, team leader at the pediatric behavioral health inpatient and partial hospitalization programs at Wolfson Children’s Hospital and Baptist Health Jacksonville, encourages parents to consider these questions: “Does your child worry excessively over more common ideas or need constant reassurance? Does he have frequent headaches, stomach-aches or restlessness? Is she irritable? Does he have difficulty concentrating or have his eating habits changed?” The big question for parents, however, is how to know when your child has a mental health issue or, as Sophia’s parents once thought, she is simply acting out or trying to get attention. In fact, the American Pediatric Association estimates eight percent of all children and adolescents have some type of anxiety disorder. That was the point when we realized this wasn’t ‘normal’, and that we didn’t know how to help her.” My husband and I just looked at each other. “She was screaming and crying hysterically and having a total meltdown. “It was time for school, and I kept calling her to come downstairs, but she refused to leave her room,” her mom Cammie* says. That was until Sophia had a full-blown panic attack several weeks later. Like most parents, they didn’t give it much thought beyond its being typical kid stuff like imaginary monsters in the closet or creatures under the bed. To calm her, Sophia’s parents would take turns lying in bed with her until she fell asleep. I couldn’t sleep, so I just stayed awake,” she recalls. “One night I was so scared someone was going to break in our house. Sophia* began exhibiting symptoms of anxiety when she was in fourth grade.
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