Your little worrywart
Filed Under Tips & Tricks | March 20, 2008
Do you ever wonder if your child’s worries and anxieties are normal or extreme? We’ve asked Sharon Selby, a local child counselor, and the brains behind Phonics Wizard, for more details on anxiety and its causes. Next month Sharon will follow up with tips and ideas for supporting children with anxiety:
Anxiety is about fear and the future, and anxiety disorders are now recognized as the most common and chronic emotional conditions. At least 5% of children will have a significant anxiety problem such as Panic Disorder, Generalized Anxiety, Obsessive Compulsive or Posttraumatic Stress Disorder. A larger percentage will have Social Phobia or other fears.
But don’t panic, in everyday life anxiety is a normal reaction that signals danger or prepares us to take action. In young children, it aids in the development of conscience as children learn that disobeying rules makes them anxious and feels uncomfortable. Anxiety is normal during times of change such as starting at a new school, the arrival of a new baby, a new marriage or upsetting events such as the loss of a friend, death of a loved one, or marital strife at home.
It’s not unless anxiety interferes with daily life and consumes a large portion of the day and night that it becomes a problem. Common symptoms of anxiety in children are worries; crying; clinging; avoidance or withdrawal; separation fears; sleep problems; physical symptoms; and constant fatigue. Anger; tantrums; irritability; oppositional behavior; rigidity; aggression; inattentiveness; school refusal; and fidgeting or hyperactivity are other less obvious signs.
Many anxious children are also “perfectionists”. They want to do things perfectly or they refuse to do them at all, which can paralyze them. They can’t get started at all or when they finally start, something doesn’t go quite right, and they have an extreme reaction. It can lead them to become procrastinators and refuse to try anything new.
The tendency toward anxiety is inherited. Anxiety may be caused by an inborn tendency, a shy or cautious temperament, unpredictable lifestyle, stressful experiences, modeling from anxious parents, or habitual avoidance.
For information on anxiety and how to help anxious children visit: www.anxietybc.com.
Sharon Selby, B.Ed., M.A., is a local child counsellor. She is the author of The Phonics Wizard Reading Series: a learn-to-read program for parents to teach their own children early literacy skills for ages 2-7.
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