Nervous Disorders in Children

Though far more common in adolescents and adults, children can suffer from anxiety disorders as well. In fact, the National Institute of Mental Health estimates that about 3 percent of children in the United States suffer from an anxiety disorder. Anxiety disorders can be extremely severe conditions and can be hard to deal with both for children and parents. An estimated 85 percent of children who have anxiety disorders will go on to have an anxiety disorder or some other sort of mental illness in later life.

Generalized Anxiety Disorder

• Generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) is characterized by chronic worry. Children with this condition worry constantly about a variety of events in the past, present or future. They may worry about school, family, friends, sporting events and illnesses. In order for a diagnosis of GAD to be made, the child needs to have had the symptoms of anxiety for more days than not, for at least six months, and the symptoms need to have interfered with their daily lives. This disorder is often seen with panic attacks, which are discussed below.

Panic Disorder

• Panic disorder is characterized by recurring panic attacks. The symptoms of a panic attack include chocking sensations, difficulty breathing, trouble swallowing, dizziness and chest pain. In children, panic attacks may appear out of the blue. Children also may experience panic attacks in situations where they are particularly anxious. Typically, people with this condition avoid the situations and places which would give them panic attacks. Isolation and disruption of daily activities can occur.

Social Anxiety Disorder

• Society anxiety disorder is marked by an overwhelming fear of embarrassment and ridicule. Children with social anxiety disorder typically worry constantly in social situations. They worry that they are inadequate. They worry that the other children do not like them. They worry that the other children are talking about them behind their back. It goes without saying that they are often shy. Typically, social gatherings such as clubs or birthday parties cause the most distress and may precipitate a panic attack.

Medication

• Medication is one treatment module for children with anxiety disorders. The most common medications used to treat childhood anxiety are Prozac and Valium, both of which have approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, for treatment of children. Prozac is an antidepressant used to improve a child's mood over time, while Valium is used for on the spot treatment of panic attacks. Other medications, such as Zoloft may be prescribed by a psychiatrist, but they are not FDA-approved for childhood anxiety. All medications have side effects, and taking these on a semi-regular basis may be harmful to a child's brain. This is why other treatment modules are recommended.

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy

• Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is today's gold standard in treating anxiety disorders. Cognitive behavioral therapy is actually a variety of different techniques, all designed to calm the anxious mind and reduce panic attacks. It uses exposure therapy, which it based on the principle that once someone is exposed to something fearful enough times they will no longer fear it. It mainly teaches children (and adults), to be more aware of their own thoughts. It teaches them to catch the thoughts that are negative, or anxious, and replace them with positive, and beneficial thoughts. Over time, the new thought patterns are supposed to become permanent, and engraved in the brain.