Anxiety Disorders

Anxiety disorders are the most common mental illnesses among children and adolescents. These disorders interfere with a child's ability to function in different environments and situations. There are several forms of this disorder: separation anxiety, overanxious disorder, "avoidant" disorder, panic disorder, social phobia/social anxiety disorder and social phobia/generalized.

Anxiety Disorders in Adolescence

Panic Disorder:

• Palpitations; pounding heart; rapid heartbeat; chest pain and discomfort; shortness of breath
• Sweating; trembling; shaking
• Feeling of choking, nausea and dizziness
• Feelings of unreality
• Fear of dying, losing control or "going crazy"

Social Phobia (Social Anxiety disorder):

• Fear of specific social or performance situations
• Dread of being humiliated or embarrassed by doing something wrong in front of others
• Avoidance of feared situations or enduring them with intense distress (exposure can trigger panic attacks)

Social Phobia (generalized):

• Fears include most social situations (click for article on fears)
• Inability to initiate or maintain conversation; getting them to talk is like "pulling teeth"
• Fear of participating in small groups
• Fear of speaking to authority figures

Separation anxiety (Childhood form of panic disorder):

• Intense anxiety at being separated from parents; overwhelming homesickness when apart
• Worry that parents will die; clinging to the parent and following the parent from room to room
• Refusal to sleep alone, but will not go sleep-overs
• Claims sickness to avoid going to school
• Back-to-School Transitions:  Tips for Parents

Overanxious Disorder (childhood version of generalized anxiety disorder):

• Global, excessive worry about school, their looks, standing with friends, etc.
• Dread that they will do things wrong; perfectionistic, re-do work
• Excessive seriousness; uptight; unsure feelings; hypersensitivity to criticism
• Deafness to reassurances; continual worry, even though school work is excellent

"Avoidant" Disorder (childhood version of social phobia):

• Acute shyness and discomfort in social situations
• Restriction of social contacts exclusively to close family members
• Fear of being singled out, judged, evaluated, called on in class
• Possibly phobic about specific situations (eating in public, using public bathrooms)

*The above information was printed from Red Flags in Children's Behavior and Parents published by the Mental Health Association of Summit County, Inc. and Teachers as Allies: Recognizing Early-onset Mental Illnesses in Children and Adolescents published by NAMI.