Anxiety disorders are illnesses that cause people to feel frightened, distressed and
uneasy for no apparent reason. Left untreated, these disorders can dramatically reduce
productivity and significantly diminish an individual's quality of life.
What are Anxiety Disorders?
Here are some of the most common anxiety disorders that affect children and
adolescents.
Panic Disorder. Repeated episodes of intense fear that strike often
and without warning. Physical symptoms include chest pain, heart palpitations, shortness
of breath, dizziness, abdominal distress, feelings of unreality, and fear of dying.
Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder. Repeated, unwanted thoughts or
compulsive behaviors that seem impossible to stop.
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. Persistent symptoms that occur after
experiencing a traumatic event such as rape or other criminal assault, war, child abuse,
natural disasters or crashes. Nightmares, flashbacks, emotional numbness, depression,
anger, irritability, distractedness and being easily startled are common.
Phobias. Two major types of phobias are specific phobia and social
phobia. Youngsters with specific phobia experience extreme, disabling, and irrational
fear of something that poses little or no actual danger; the fear leads to avoidance of
objects or situations and can cause that person to limit their lives unnecessarily.
Children and adolescents with social phobia have an overwhelming and disabling fear of
scrutiny, embarrassment, or humiliation in social situations, which leads to avoidance of
many potentially pleasurable and meaningful activities.
Generalized Anxiety Disorder. Constant, exaggerated worrisome
thoughts and tension about routine life events and activities. These thoughts and tension
last at least six months. The child or adolescent suffering from generalized anxiety
disorder is almost always anticipating the worst even though there is little reason to
expect it. It accompanied by physical symptoms, such as fatigue, trembling, muscle
tension, headache, or nausea.
What Causes Anxiety Disorders?
Psychological. A youngster may be predisposed to anxiety disorder
when he or she is naturally shy, introverted, or has an inhibited temperament. Children
may also be conditioned to experience anxiety disorders. Young children, in particular,
frequently associate the events preceding a bad experience directly and causally with
that experience. For example, if a child were playing a certain game when something bad
happened to a loved one, he or she may continue to believe that if they play that same
game, something bad will happen again.
Biological. There are several biological factors which are thought to
cause or contribute to the development of anxiety disorders. Perinatal factors during the
course of pregnancy have been implicated as one cause of anxiety disorders. Some
childhood infections such as PANDAS may contribute to a child developing such a disorder
(see OCD). As with many mental disorders, there has been a genetic predisposition shown
in the development of these disorders. Lastly, abnormal activity of norepinephrine - a
neurotransmitter or chemical messenger in the brain - has been shown to play a role in
some cases of anxiety disorders.
Diagnosis
Typically, a child suffering from one of the anxiety disorders may suffer
palpitations, sweating, nervousness, and possibly fright. Children may experience
confusion and distortions of perception, which are not related to the child's age and
development. Anxiety disorders may also affect their thinking, perception and
learning.
Books for Further Reading
Anxiety Disorders Assoc. of America. Special Focus on Anxiety Disorders in
Children, Adolescents and Young Adults. 2nd Ed., ADAA: 1998.
Koplewicz, HS. It's Nobody's Fault: New Hope and Help for Difficult Children and
Their Parents. v Random House: 1994.
Rapoport, JL. The Boy Who Couldn't Stop Washing. Penguin Group: 1991.
Swedo, S and Leonard, H. . Is It Just a Phase?: How to Tell Common Childhood
Phases from More Serious Problems. Bantam: 1998.
For Adolescents:
Buffie, M. Angels Turn Their Backs. General Distr. Svcs: 1994
Scientific Publications
Baugh, D.M. "Barriers to Diagnosing Anxiety Disorders in Family Practice." Am Fam
Physician. 52(2): 472-479, 1995.
Baughman, O.L., 3rd. "Rapid Diagnosis and Treatment of Anxiety and Depression in
Primary Care: The Somatizing Patient." J Family Practice. 39(4): 373-378,
1994.
Labellarte, MJ, Ginsburg, GS, Walkup, JT and Riddle, MA."The treatment of anxiety
disorders in children and adolescents." Bio/Psychiatry. 1999 Dec
1;46(11):1567-78. Review.
Pine, DS. "Pathophysiology of childhood anxiety disorders." Biol Psychiatry.
1999 Dec 1;46(11):1555-66. Review.
Velosa, JF and Riddle, MA. "Pharmacologic treatment of anxiety disorders in children
and adolescents." Child Adolesc Psychiatr Clin N Am. 2000 Jan;9(1):119-33.
Review.
Zajecka, J.M., and Ross, J.S. "Management of Comorbid Anxiety and Depression." J
Clin Psychiatry. 56 (2 Suppl.): 10-13, 1995.
For further research: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/PubMed/
On the Web
http://www.adaa.org/
http://www.nami.org/youth/fxshanx.html'>
http://www.nami.org/medical.htm
http://www.nami.org/medical.htm
http://www.nimh.nih.gov/anxiety/anxiety/idx_fax.htm
Support Groups and Organizations
Anxiety Disorders Association of America
11900 Parklawn Dr., Suite 100
Rockville, MD 20852-2624
(301) 231-9350
Website: http://www.adaa.org/
National Anxiety Foundation
3135 Custer Dr.
Lexington, KY 40517-4001
(606) 272-7166
National Institute of Mental Health
Information Resources and Inquiries Branch
6001 Executive Boulevard
Room 8184, MSC 9663
Bethesda, MD 20892-9663
Telephone: 301-443-4513
FAX: 301-443-4279
TTY: 301-443-8431
FAX4U: 301-443-5158
Website: http://www.nimh.nih.gov
E-mail:
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
NAMI The Nation's Voice on Mental Illness
Colonial Place Three
2107 Wilson Blvd., Suite 300
Arlington, VA 22201-3042
Helpline: (800) 950-NAMI (6264)
Tel: 703-524-7600
Fax: 703-524-9094
Website: http://www.nami.org
National Panic/Anxiety Disorder News, Inc.
1718 Burgandy
Santa Rosa, CA 95403
(707) 527-5738b
Website: http://www.npadnews.com
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