Top Signs Your Child Might Have An Anxiety Disorder

It is normal for children to be afraid of new things and experiences while developing fears and worries about some of them. But if those feelings become so great that they cannot function, then your child may be suffering from anxiety. Anxiety is not an abnormal reaction to stress; it is the body’s way of alerting and preparing them to deal with conflict or danger.

But if the feeling persists for a long period of time in your child, without proper reason, then they may have an anxiety disorder. Anxiety is different for everybody. Adults function and deal with it differently. However, when kids experience anxiety, they can easily get overwhelmed or be too affected to deal with school, friends, or playing.

If you feel your child is suffering from an anxiety disorder, here is a quick guide on it along with the top signs for easy identification.

Types Of Anxiety Disorders

Anxiety may be a generalized feeling of worry or apprehension, but its disorders are of different types. These disorders vary based on origin, signs, effects, and types of anxieties. The main types of anxiety disorders in children are -

• Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD)

Children may often have some unwarranted thoughts, superstitions, or compulsions that bother them if they do not behave or act in a certain way. These may arise due to a variety of stimuli, but cause different obsessions and compulsions in children, which cause anxiety in them if unfulfilled. Examples of OCD can range from knocking on doors specifically three times to checking if every tap is shut exactly four times. If these obsessions and compulsions take up more than an hour of your kid’s life, then they may be afflicted with OCD.

• Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD)

Children with generalized anxiety disorder worry excessively about different kinds of problems, like family conflicts, relationships with friends and peers, or performance at school and sports. This is harder to identify for parents as they need to be highly observant and note which incidents trigger their anxieties and their duration, before consulting a mental health professional.

• Panic Disorder

Panic disorder is diagnosed in kids who have suffered two or more panic attacks and spend the next month worrying more over it. However, it is not so easy, as parents need to identify the extent to which their kid’s anxiety manifests in physical symptoms before consulting a doctor.

• Separation Anxiety Disorder

While separation anxiety is natural in infants and toddlers, it becomes a disorder if it affects an older child significantly. If your child is excessively miserable, homesick, or anxious when you are not around, or no family members are close by, for their age, then they may suffer from separation anxiety disorder.

• Specific Phobias

Phobias are an irrational and intense fear of a certain thing or situation. While children are commonly scared of insects, animals, darkness, ghosts, storms, and more, an excessive fear of any creature or object can result in phobias that may last a lifetime if left unaddressed.

• Social Anxiety Disorder

Social anxiety or social phobia is an intense fear of interaction and performance in front of people. While stage fright is common, it is important to identify if your kid has social anxiety as it can severely impair their performance in school, sports, creative arts, and friend circles.

Top 10 Signs To Identify If Your Child Has An Anxiety Disorder

Though anxiety disorders are of varying types, here are some top common signs your child might have an anxiety disorder.

• Refusing To Go To School. If your kid does not wish to go to school, they may be bullied or socially isolated there.

• Frequent Bathroom Visits. If your child frequents the bathroom often, chances are their anxiety levels are skyrocketing.

• Feeling Sick And Having An Upset Stomach Often. Having an upset stomach or feeling nauseous is a common symptom of anxiety in kids.

• Irritation And Lashing Out. It is common for anxious kids to lash and be frustrated as they are unable to relax themselves.

• Difficulty Concentrating. Kids whose thoughts are troubled by obsessions, compulsions, and anxieties, find it difficult to concentrate in school.

• Eating More Or Less Than Usual. If your kid’s appetite has taken a sudden hit without reason, then keep an eye out for anxiety disorders.

• Constant Worrying And Having Negative Thoughts. If your kids are having negative, worrying thoughts constantly, they will end up fatigued and overwhelmed.
• Sleeping Poorly At Night. This is another popular sign of any anxiety disorder as racing thoughts and images do not let these children sleep.
• Finding It Difficult To Relax. Anxious children find it nearly impossible to relax, as they are constantly alert and waiting for something to go wrong.

• Unable To Control Tears. Frustrated, overwhelmed, and overwrought by emotions, anxious kids are often unable to temper their tears in stressful situations.

Tips To Deal With Anxiety In Kids

• Do Not Let Them Feel Lonely
• Try Maintaining Empathy And Patience
• Keep A Rational But Kind Approach
• Hear Them Out And Ease Their Fears
• Practice Breathing Exercises Together
• Introduce Them To Meditation And Yoga
• Involve Them In Journaling
• Teach Them How To Communicate Their Feelings Properly

Conclusion

It is ideal to get a proper diagnosis from a health professional if signs of anxiety persist in your child for six months or more. Major life changes like death in the family, divorcing parents, accident, or serious illness, and more can impact kids and cause anxiety in them. But grief and worry in such cases cannot be considered as part of diagnosis, as those are normal reactions to an out-of-the-ordinary situation. But if there is no reason for your kid to be anxious or upset, yet they are suffering from more than half of these signs, then it may be a sign of worry. And if such signs persist for more than half a year and cause problems in their life, then they may be suffering from an anxiety disorder.

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