Recognizing Separation Anxiety Disorder

Separation Anxiety Disorder

 
Separation Anxiety Disorder can really interfere with or restrict a child or teen's normal activities. He or she can become isolated from peers, and have difficulty developing and maintaining friendships. It can also lead to missed opportunities to learn new activities. School attendance and performance can drop. Many children and teens with Separation Anxiety Disorder appear depressed, withdrawn, and apathetic.
Key Points:

• Approximately 12% of children will suffer from Separation Anxiety Disorder before they reach age 18.
• Separation Anxiety Disorder has three peaks: between ages 5-6, 7-9, and 12-14.

Recognizing Separation Anxiety Disorder

Physical Symptoms include: stomach aches, dizziness, racing heart, shallow breathing and other common physical complaints associated with anxiety. Teens are also likely to complain of headaches, heart palpitations, shortness of breath, or having a panic attack.

Hint: The timing of these physical complaints is often a good clue to identify separation anxiety. For example, parents may hear these complaints on the morning of a school day, but not on the weekend.
Anxious thoughts include: a variety of different worries about separation or being alone. Younger children may not be able to identify any specific worries, and instead just say that they do not want to do an activity. Older children and teens may describe worries about something "bad" happening, either to them or to a parent/caregiver.
Common worries include:

• What if something bad happens to mom or dad?
• What if I get lost?
• What if grandma doesn't pick me up after school?
• What if I get kidnapped?
• What if I get sick and mom isn't there to help me?

Behavioural symptoms of younger children include: crying, clinging, or temper tantrums when anticipating or actually experiencing separation. They may have difficulty falling asleep alone, and have nightmares with themes of separation or death of loved ones. Often children with this problem will say things like:

• "Don't leave me alone!"
• "Where are you going?"
• "Mommy, don't go!"

Children with this problem might also refuse to:

• Be in a room by themselves
• Stay at school or participate in activities (such as swimming, sports, or other group activities) unless a trusted person stays with them
• Be at home with a babysitter when the parents are out
• Sleep alone

Behaviour symptoms of teens: Although Separation Anxiety Disorder is more common in elementary-school aged children, teens might experience separation anxiety when adjusting to a transition or a stressful situation (such as a divorce, or the death of a parent). For example, they suddenly may not be able to:

• Go for sleepovers with friends they know well
• Stay at school if a parent or trusted family member is not there
• Go on a school trip unless a parent comes along
• Use public transportation alone 

Sources: http://www.anxietybc.com/parent/separation.php