Tag: Fear And Anxiety

Anxiety In Children-Whats Normal And Whats Not

Children will often experience things that make them anxious. However, there is a difference between normal, occasional bouts of anxiety and long-term, ever-present anxiety. The former can be dealt with as it happens, while the latter requires treatment of some kind.

Many parents are surprised to learn that children can suffer from anxiety disorders. Just knowing this can help you to spot potential problems in your own child, and that is the first step to treating the condition. That doesn’t mean that every little thing should be taken as proof of a disorder, but rather that you may wish to consider an anxiety disorder as a possibility when you see a series of symptoms.

Children can be afraid of many different things, and that makes recognizing their problem as a disorder more difficult. For example, they may be afraid of going out of the house, they may have separation issues, or they could be afraid of animals. All of these can be normal, but if they interfere with the child’s quality of life, then it’s time to consult a professional.

There is more than one kind of anxiety disorder, but they all come down to how the sufferer thinks. That’s not to say that they can control their thinking, but rather that they look at the world differently than other people.

Just what is anxiety? Early in our collective history, things that we now label as stress, fear, and anxiety were useful survival mechanisms. If you heard a growling predator, then your body needed to react quickly. It would instantly release chemicals and get ready for fight-or-flight mode. Those threats have largely vanished from daily life, but the reaction can be the same. To put it another way, children with anxiety perceive threats that really aren’t that threatening.

Fortunately, once it has been properly diagnosed, anxiety in children is highly treatable. Some parents are afraid to take their children to a psychologist, or to give them prescription medication, but it’s a good idea to get the anxiety under control as soon as you can. Children need to be able to fit in with their peers, and this stage in their development should not be hindered by anxiety. Besides, taking care of the problem now means that they won’t have to suffer the effects of anxiety when they become adults.

Apart from being afraid or apprehensive, anxiety in children has other symptoms. These symptoms can be difficult to recognize because they are so often symptoms of other common health problems. Here is a partial list:

Dizziness
Heart palpitations
Rapid breathing
Headaches
Nausea
Diarrhea
Constipation
Sweating

It’s possible that these are symptoms of other health issues, so they should be taken seriously. Consult your child’s pediatrician to see if there are physical health problems, or if it may be anxiety. You should not make this diagnosis on your own.

Anxiety in children is a bigger problem than most people realize. However, there are many treatment options that you can use to make your child better.

Panic Attack: Signs, Symptoms, Panic Disorder and Agoraphobia

A panic attack is a sudden surge of overwhelming fear and anxiety, usually without any clear reason and without warning. It can happen to anyone regardless of age, health and status. Many attacks are a one-time occurrence, but some people experience recurring episodes. Recurring episodes are often caused by a “trigger” like speaking in front of a crowd or doing a presentation at work. Panic attacks may be a part of another disorder such as depression, panic disorder, or social phobia. These, however, are generally harmless, but sufferers still feel that their life is in danger. Either way, panic attacks are treatable.

Signs and Symptoms

A panic attack can happen anytime, but it usually happens when you are away from home. You may be at a store shopping, at work preparing for a presentation, in a class, driving, walking down the street or even during asleep.

The signs and symptoms develop quickly and usually arrive at its peak in 10 minutes. The majority of panic attacks do not last for more than 30 minutes and it rarely lasts for more than an hour.

A person during an attack shows these signs and symptoms:

Increased heartbeat or palpitation
Chest pain
Hyperventilation or shortness of breath
Stomach churning, upset stomach
Trembling and shaking
Muscle tension
Sweating
Dizziness and light-headedness
Hot or cold flashes
Tingling sensation or numbness
Fear of dying, going crazy or losing control
Feeling detached from the surroundings

Panic Disorder

A panic attack may happen just once without any problem or complication. And there is almost no reason to be concerned if you have one or two episodes. But those who have experienced several episodes usually develop panic disorder.

Recurring panic attacks along with persistent anxiety for future attacks and major changes in behavior can be considered as panic disorder. There are two symptoms of panic disorder: (1) phobic avoidance and (2) anticipatory anxiety.

Phobic avoidance – When you begin to avoid certain things or situations based on the belief that it would trigger another attack. It can also be avoiding situations that have caused the previous attack. You may also avoid places or situations where escape is difficult and help is unavailable, like riding an elevator or an airplane. Extreme case of phobic avoidance may lead to agoraphobia.

Anticipatory anxiety The “fear of fear” or the fear of having future panic attacks. The person manifesting this symptom is usually tensed and anxious. When ignored, the condition can be disabling.

Panic disorder with agoraphobia

Agoraphobia is traditionally believed as fear of open places or public places, thus, it literally means “fear of the marketplace.” However, now it is believed that agoraphobia is fear of experiencing panic attack in a place where help is difficult or where escape would be difficult.

People with agoraphobia tend to avoid the following situations or activities:

Being away from home

Driving

Confined places where there is a possibility of being trapped (elevator, theaters, public transportation, stores)

Going out with “unsafe” person or someone he or she is not comfortable being with.

Places where it would be embarrassing to have a panic attack like parties and other social gatherings.

In severe cases, people with agoraphobia see their home as the only safe place.

Childhood Mental Health Coping with Anxiety and Fear

The best course of action to take sometimes isn’t clear until you’ve listed and considered your alternatives. The following paragraphs should help clue you in to what the experts think is significant.

Fear and anxiety animation hand in hand in making a childrens life a little more complicated. Whatever events that have tragically happened, a child will go in severe stress thatll be the reason to increase their fear and anxiety even at a very young age. In order to have a childhood mental health that is free from any kind of problems and worries, parents and guardians must provide proper care and support. As a parent, you can greatly help in your childs coping mechanism when dealing with death, disasters and violence that has accompanied life ever since.

Apart of the best ways to ease the anxiety and fear of a child is to talk and listen to them. Learn about their concerns and tell them that safety should always be the priority. Encouragement for children to ask or growth details of what theyre concerned about is a stepping stone for early engagement and elimination of fear in a child. Ask them how they have become affected in certain situations and explain why things are happening as commensurate. Successors, even at a very young age, can identify some of the tragedies that are occurring and will occur. They may choose to react to present or penetrate it according to their developmental stage.

There are manifold pointers in caring for children who are exhibiting fear and anxiety in their lives. These pointers are very important to observe in children.

1. Ask. Do not be apprehensive when talking to your children. It is important that you know how they feel and what can they say about the situation that have occurred. If there is a death in the national, never let your child go on silent because they couldve been experiencing a certain unexplainable feeling that they cant convey. This will be enclosed in their skeleton and develop some kind of emotion which will ripen into a frustration when they grow up.

2. Listen. Bodily is not only important that you let the child talk but to let him speak. When you listen, you throw in your child the opportunity to reproduce heard. Do not interrupt. Talk only when he is through then try to explain what is happening. Address his or her fears and how much are they affected regarding the situation. If you cant answer their questions, its alright to tell them that you dont know. The important thing is, you have inclined them the connection to air out how they feel.

3. Bring your self to their level. When you talk to them, make sure to appropriateness words that they will be able to kumtux. Using technical words will just confuse them thus, making it more impossible for the both of you to communicate.

4. Know their fears and worries. Children tend to be frightened about monsters under their bed or inside their closets. Ask them what their fears are. Some of the topmost worries are considering of school or with other children who might bully them around.

6. Deed sufficient time. Time given to a child is more important than time given to your work or with peers. When a child lets you see drawings and plays, pay attention to how they have done it. This will give you glimpse on how they are handling lifes facts. Ask them about the picture and what were they thinking and how they are feeling while drawing it. This will help you clarify questions, misconceptions and will give you assurance about your childs mental health.
Now you can be a confident expert on mental health. OK, maybe not an expert. But you should have something to bring to the table next time you join a discussion on mental health.

Types and Treatement of Anxiety Disorder

When most people think of beauty, what comes to mind is usually basic information that’s not particularly interesting or beneficial. But there’s a lot more to beauty than just the basics.

Anxiety disorder is an umbrella term for various specific forms of fear and anxiety including generalized anxiety disorder ( GAD ), panic disorder, phobias, obsessive – compulsive disorder, post traumatic stress disorder and separation anxiety.

Generalized anxiety disorder commonly affects older adults and is characterized by enduring anxiety that really doesn’t seem to be about any certain subject, argument or concern. The anxiouisness in this case is continuous and makes daily life difficult.

Panic disorder is characteried by brief and intense bouts of fear or apprehension. Luckily, the feelings usually crest in fewer than ten minutes but can last as long as a few hours. Sometimes the cause of these attacks is feeble identified but recurrently, it is unclear.

Linked to panic disorder is agoraphobia, the anxiety about being in a place or situation that may be difficult to stir up visible of. People who suffer from agoraphobia usually occasion to be near doors or openings at all times. In severe cases, this leads to the individual never wanting to leave his / her home for fear of not being able to leave wherever he / she is going.

Phobias put on the largest battery of anxiety disorders. If you suffer from a phobia or several phobias, you know exactly what the object of your cold sweat is. Social phobia ( otherwise known as social anxiety disorder ) is an abnormal fear of public embarrassment or humiliation which can occur, in severe cases, just when the person enters any social environment, or in specific cases such as when a presentation or speech must be made. Social anxiety much manifests specific physical symptoms, including blushing, sweating, and difficulty speaking.

Obsessive obsessive disorder ( OCD ) is mainly characterized by repetitive obsessions with certain thoughts or images and compulsions to repeatedly perform certain actions or rituals. OCD thought pattern could be compared to superstitions, where the person who is affected thinks that if he performs a certain fulfill, any sort of worry or perceived evil will be eliminated. In many cases, the compulsion is entirely inexplicable, just an urge, set off by nervousness, to complete a certain ritual.

Post – traumatic stress, as the name suggests, can result from just one traumatic experience such as combat, rape, a serious accident; or from long term ( chronic ) exposure to trauma like physical abuse or war. Common symptoms include flashbacks and depression.

Separation anxiety disorder is abnormal matter over being separated from a person or region. Although contrariety anxiety is a normal part of development in children, it becomes a disorder when it becomes towering.

There are many treatment options for the above disorders / phobias: psychotherapy focuses on increasing the individual’s sense of their own wholesome – being. Cognitive behavioral therapy ( CBT ) aims to touch at the root of the counterproductive emotions, behaviors and cognitions and to treat them whence. And pharmaceutical therapy employs various medications to relieve symptoms but is rarely used just by itself as it doesn’t treat the core problem, only its symptoms.

This information does not substitute medical advice given by a health professional.

Now you can be a confident expert on beauty. OK, maybe not an expert. But you should have something to bring to the table next time you join a discussion on beauty.