Child Anxiety

How do I know if my child is experiencing anxiety?

If you think your child is suffering from extreme anxiety, you are not alone. According to National Institute of Mental Health about 6% of children ages 13 to 18 experience severe anxiety disorder. Childhood anxiety may display itself in various forms such as difficulty separating from parents, school attendance, chronic and ongoing worry and nervousness, shyness, difficulty sleeping alone, and difficulty with change. The good news is that childhood anxiety is a treatable condition. However, if left untreated, it can lead to other, more serious conditions in adulthood, such as depression, obsessive compulsive disorder and even addiction.

What types of services are offered by the Anxiety Program?

One of the most effective methods to treat anxiety disorders has been Cognitive-behavioral (CB) therapy. This type of research based therapy teaches children to find the roots of their anxious behaviors in their thinking, and change the thoughts that initiate the anxious cycle of feelings and behaviors. We also use art therapy in assisting your child overcome the debilitating condition.

If you have questions about the different forms of anxiety disorders or wondering if your child is experiencing a similar condition give us a call. We can discuss your concerns over the phone, and arrange for a meeting in person, if necessary.

Here are some questions you can scan to see if your child experiences any of these concerns. Be sure to have a list of your concerns before you place a call to our center, so we can better assist you.

• Does your child have difficulty parting from you to go to school or play?
• Does your child make frequent trips to the nurse’s office because of physical complaints?
• Does your child express worry about you or other loved ones when he/she is away?
• Does your child have unexplainable and/or unsubstantiated worry about different things like academic, family and social settings?
• Does your child have trouble sleeping alone?
• Does your child display perfectionist behavior?
• Does your child display irritability for no apparent reason?
• Does your child display restlessness?
• Does your child often display physical pain like stomachache and headache?
• Does your child display shyness around new people and in new situations?
• Does your child display unreasonably high fear of crowded places or specific objects like animals, dark places, doctors, flying, and speaking in class?
• Does your child have repetitive behaviors like washing, checking, or counting in order to prevent something bad from happening?
• Does your child become highly anxious, fearful or panicky for no apparent reason?

Call us to see if we can help.