Almost every child ever born suffers from a touch of separation anxiety at some point in the toddler years. Somewhere between the ages of about 18 months and three years, a child will have an incredibly difficult time when a parent is out of sight. Crying, temper tantrums and overall agitation and angst are not uncommon. When these symptoms do not go away with appropriate distractions or they persist later in life, separation anxiety disorder might be present.
Separation disorder is said to affect about 4% of children from the ages of four up. When a child suffers from severe angst and fears about leaving home or being away from parents or other family, red flags are generally raised. It is important to keep in mind that actual separation anxiety disorder does go well beyond normal homesickness or fears, however.
Some of the more common behaviors in children with this specific disorder include:
- Use of avoidance tactics to not separate themselves from parents or loved ones. They will try everything they can think of to not have to go somewhere by themselves.
- Extreme defiance about going to school, day care or other places where they will be separated from their caregivers.
- Following behaviors. Children that incessantly follow their parents or other family members around might have issues with separation anxiety disorder.
- Fear of sleeping alone. While this can be a normal phase in childhood, children with separation anxiety disorder tend to take this to a new level. They will sometimes flatly refuse to sleep alone and will repeatedly turn up in their parents' room at night.
- Nightmares. Children with this problem quite often have nightmares about being parted from friends or family.
Children with bona fide separation disorder quite often benefit from professional guidance and medical support. The condition is one that can be conquered, but it will take some effort on the family's part, as well as the child's.
One of the biggest problems that children with separation anxiety disorder face is the fact the more serious form is often brushed off as a normal "phase." While each of the symptomatic scenarios are normal to an extent, when a child takes them beyond the norm or they persist too long, help is generally advised. The unfortunate thing about the disorder is that children are often unwittingly depriving themselves of normal, enjoyable childhood activities due to their overwhelming fears of separation.
When its symptoms appear, however, it is wise for parents to pay attention and react accordingly. Professionals can help children overcome their fears and learn to experience life more independently.
Typically, young people feel a form of seperation anxiety when they spend more and more time away from the family environment -- whatever type that may be -- in which they were raised. Being away from a primary attachment figure can cause people at least four years or older to feel some form of separation anxiety. A primary attachment figure may include a parent or parents, a caregiver, or other such figures. Feeling a sense of separation anxiety is fairly normal -- except in very extreme cases that deter the person with the anxiety from living a normal life. For example, not being able to attend grade school as a child because of fear of being away from home is a severe type of seperation anxiety. On the other hand, though, being afraid of the dark as a child is not very severe and does not get in the way of living day-to-day life.
Seperation anxiety is a recurrent type of anxiety. It typically occurs over a time frame of about four weeks, at the least. A young person suffering from seperation anxiety often feels an enormous amount of worry, fear, or severe distress that causes them to become impaired from leading a normal life. This distress may take on one or more of the various forms: headache, stomachache, rapid heartbeat, difficulty breathing, and sweatiness.
Through research that has been conducted, doctors have been able to deduce that children that have a great amount of anxiety and are extremely fearful early in their lives often develop harder-to-treat anxiety disorders. For example, when a young child attends school for the first time, he or she may develop an anxiety from being seperated from a primary caregiver. If the anxiety does not go away within the first few weeks of the child attending school, and gets much worse as time passes, a severe anxiety problem is evident. This problem can effect the child doing well in school, making friends, and adjusting to life in general. A child with severe separation anxiety often has a very hard time controlling his or her emotions.
Children with separation anxiety often have a variety of symptoms. They may have a persistant worry about the well-being and safety of their loved ones. They may also show a large amount of sadness or dismay when separated from their primary caregiver. They may fall asleep easily if they are not around their primary caregiver. They may experience frightening nightmares in which they are separaed from the ones that they love. They may feel homesick, experience headaches, nausea, stomachaches, lightheadedness, dizziness, cramps, irregular heartbeats, muscle aches, and even vomiting.
Separation anxiety can be treated in a variety of ways. If the separation anxiety is not very severe, it can be treated with a little bit of therapy from a certified mental health professional. However, if the separation anxiety is very severe, the child may need to seek therapy as well as anti-anxiety medications. These medications can come in the form of SSRI's (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors) or MAOI's (monoamine oxidase inhibitors). SSRI's are a newer type of antidepressants that have very few side effects, while MAOI's are older and have more side effects. What type of medication a child needs depends upon their individual case and body chemistry. Only a doctor in the field can determine what is best to take.
Both Martin Richfield & Matthew Hick are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
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