Parenting Puzzle: Your baby is not hungry, asks to go to the toilet frequently, is irritable when talking, often gets out of control, starts crying over small things, clings to you in fear All these things are not normal if one complains of having pain or tickling in the stomach.
All these symptoms can be symptoms of anxiety disorder in children. If you are seeing such symptoms continuously in your children, then it is better that you should contact your doctor once. Elsewhere, it should not happen that this neglect of your child does not create a big problem for him.
Now the big question is how to identify whether these symptoms are common in children or it is the result of some mental disorder, we talked to know this. Priyanka Kapoor, Senior Clinical Psychologist at BLK-Max Super Specialty Hospital From. Read the excerpts of the conversation
The symptoms we are talking about are mostly seen in young children, so how to identify whether the child’s symptoms are normal or he is fighting with anxiety disorder?
For this, parents should keep observing their child’s childhood very seriously. If a child is acting against his age, then we should be alert. For example, after an age, children mix with other children or people from the neighborhood. If the child is not leaving his parents even after reaching that age, then there is a matter to be alert. Similarly, you know how often your child goes to the toilet under normal conditions. If, while talking about going to school or tuition, he repeatedly asks to go to the toilet, then it is unusual and may be a symptom of anxiety disorder.
If there is any change in the behavior of children fighting with anxiety disorder, how can we recognize this change?
It depends on what kind of anxiety disorder the child is suffering from. For example, children suffering from Generalized Anxiety Disorder are very much nervous about their homework, school tests or small mistakes. Similarly, children suffering from separation anxiety disorder are afraid of being away from their parents. At the same time, in social anxiety disorder, children try to keep themselves socially away. Sudden tremors in hands and feet, difficulty in breathing and increased heart rate can be symptoms of panic disorder.
Is mental illness like anxiety disorder at such a young age the result of carelessness and mistakes of the parents or is there some other reason for this?
Talking about anxiety disorder, one of the reasons for this can also be genetic. If a family member of the child is already suffering from anxiety disorder, then the child is more likely to develop this problem. The environment of the house is also responsible for this problem to a great extent. For example, situations like violent behavior of family members, mutual fights, serious illness, death of a very close one, any accident can also become the reason for this problem. Apart from this, an imbalance in the chemicals that act as brain neurotransmitters can also be the cause of anxiety disorder.
How likely is it for a parent to recognize the symptoms of anxiety disorder in a child? What are the signs after which we should seek the help of a psychiatrist?
We see in a lot of cases that parents keep ignoring the symptoms with the hope that with time everything will be fine. The behavior of the parents is totally playing with the future of the children. On the contrary, whenever the parents feel that the child’s behavior is not age-appropriate or normal, then they should definitely consult their doctor. The doctor will conclude on the basis of the conversations and answers with the child and his family whether your child needs the consultation of a psychiatrist or not. If needed, children can easily be taken out of anxiety disorder through therapy.
Which is the therapy, with the help of which the child can be taken out of the problem?
Its name is cognitive behavioral therapy, which we also call talk therapy in common language. In this therapy, the consultants try to identify the conflict going on in their conscience by talking to the children suffering from anxiety. Also, the child is told how he can overcome panic or fear. With the help of this therapy, an attempt is made to bring out the negative thoughts that have settled in the mind of the children and bring them towards positivity.
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Tags:, mental health, parenting tips, Sehat Ki Baat
FIRST PUBLISHED : June 28, 2022, 17:34 IST