Anxiety Disorders in Children

Although anxiety disorders in children are nowhere near as common as in adulthood, most children will at some point during their lifetime experience a typical fear or anxiety. They may be nervous about taking an exam or moving to a new school. In almost all cases, these fears do not become irrational and develop into a panic attack or worse, develop into a panic disorder. However, some children that may go on to show signs of a panic disorder for other reasons.

No matter how much we want to protect the innocence of children and prevent anything from interfering with their development or lives, unfortunately it is not always possible. Children can be affected by certain types of anxiety disorders that are more common in adults. A generalized panic disorder or generalized anxiety disorder (GAD), may be seen in children in a variety of ways. They may become overly concerned or worry about everyday events like school or life in general.

They may

have a tendency to be extremely hard on themselves and constantly strive for perfection.
continually redo tasks in an effort to get them to come out perfectly.
also seek constant approval and reassurance from others.

Another type of anxiety disorder that might be seen in children is obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). OCD is invasive or unwanted thoughts or obsessions that a person cannot seem to get out of their head. A sufferer may also display strong urges to repeatedly carry out ritualistic behaviors or routines in an attempt to try to ease or mitigate their anxieties. Even though 10 years old is the peak age at which a child may be medically diagnosed as suffering OCD, it has been known to affect children as young as two or three. This particular anxiety disorder can be seen in children who:

excessively wash their hands, or
have the feeling that they will accidentally do something wrong,
recheck or count items again and again to prevent unwelcome or unwanted thoughts, etc.

A panic disorder in children may be diagnosed in those who suffer from at least two unexpected panic attacks that are followed by at least one month of worry or anxiety over having another attack. This is not typically seen in younger children but has been diagnosed in adolescents.

Children may also exhibit an anxiety disorder though certain phobias; irrational fears towards specific places, objects or situations. Even though childhood fears like being afraid of animals, thunderstorms or the dark can go away on their own, if a fear is relentless in a child for at least six months and interferes with their day to day activities, the child is said to have a phobia. The symptoms may include:

suffering from a headache or stomach ache,
a paddy or tantrum,
becoming clingy,
or freezing in place when confronted with the fear or scary episode.

Any child that is exposed to an extremely stressful experience such as, the sudden death of a parent, a natural disaster, an accident or a physical abuse, or a child who is witness to a traumatic event can suffer from post traumatic stress disorder, which in itself is another type of anxiety disorder. In these situations children might display symptoms of:

low appetite or simply not eating or sleeping
emotional numbness,
reliving the experience through nightmares
fear that the event might happen again.

Even though these types of anxiety disorders might be found both in adults as well as in children, the emotional and physical signs can often be very different. For instance, children do not have an understanding that their fears are irrational, equally they may not be able to express their feelings either. Children therefore often display symptoms such as: