Symptoms and Treatment for Anxiety Disorders in Children

Much like adults, children also experience anxiety and fear. These are completely normal emotions to experience regardless of what age you might be. If the anxiety begins to become recurring and severe to the point where anxiety attacks begin occurring, this is when you need to be concerned about your child's behavior. If your child is showing signs of anxiety, you need to get to a health professional in order to get the child properly diagnosed so he can begin receiving treatment to eliminate anxiety.

Anxiety attacks and recurring anxiety go hand in hand, so in order to figure out if your child is suffering from this disorder, take a look at the following most common symptoms of anxiety

• Constant fear and/or panic

• Bed wetting

• Excessive tantrums and crying

• Fear of messing up or making mistakes

• Fear of getting publically embarrassed

• Evading school, school related events, and other events

• Nightmares

• Compulsive behavior

• Low self-esteem and self-confidence

• Constant stomachaches and headaches

The following symptoms indicate that a child is having an anxiety attack:

• Overwhelming feeling of fear and panic

• Cold/Hot flashes

• Difficulty breathing

• Feeling of losing control

• Feeling/fear of dying

• Feeling detached from reality

• Feeling sick

• Hyperventilating

• Shaking and/or trembling

• Lightheaded; feeling like passing out

• Rapid heart rate, palpitations

These are a few of the major and most common symptoms of anxiety, and all children experience them differently. However, one must note that a lot of these symptoms are actually normal in children, which is where it gets tricky. It would be tricky and unwise to diagnose your child with anxiety yourself, which is why I emphasize taking your child to a healthcare professional to get diagnosed properly. If you notice your child experiencing these symptoms, this is when you need to help your child deal with the symptoms. There are many ways of helping your child deal with symptoms of anxiety and anxiety attacks.

First and foremost, you need to seek help from a doctor. In order to treat the child's symptoms, we need to first recognize that there is in fact a problem. Normally a full physical is performed in order to rule out any other causes for the symptoms. If the doctor has concluded your child is suffering from severe anxiety, he will most likely refer you to a psychiatrist or psychologist to get proper treatment. In less severe cases, medication is prescribed to help alleviate the symptoms of anxiety.

Parents can also help their child by learning self-help techniques and teaching them to the child to help stop the anxiety. This is a great way to form a closer bond with your child, as well as build their confidence.

The next method is something used by a lot of psychiatrists and psychologists to expose the child to their fears and help them overcome certain situations without having anxiety. This is known as play therapy. The child is put in a controlled recreated simulation of an everyday event that scares them, and gradually, with help, they are able to overcome the problem and find a solution.

The final method for treating anxiety is herbal medicine which has been effective in treating not only anxiety but a wide range of problems. Herbal medicine such as valerian root, St. John's Wort, skullcap, lavender, 5-htp, lavender, passionflower, and many others have been proven effective in treating anxiety disorder.