Areas of Specialization - Children and Adolescents
Managing Generalized Anxiety and Chronic Worry
Case example
| John is 10 years old and
a "worry wart."
He worries about his grades
at school, his parents divorcing,
messing up at his piano recital,
and becoming sick. John also
worries about forgetting to
take the dog out for a walk
and not remembering to feed
his fish so that they will
die. John's parents forbid
him from watching the evening
news to avert him spending
the next week worrying about
the stories and asking his
parents endless questions
about the news broadcast.
John's parents do not tell
him in advance about events
or changes as they wait until
the last minute to avoid his
continuous questions and demands
to know all possible information.
John also asks his parents
for facts and reassurance
dozens of times whenever he
has to do something he does
not like, such as taking a
standardized test or going
to the doctor. John's teacher
has noted that he frequently
takes longer than his classmates
to complete assignments due
to his desire to be perfect
and never make a mistake.
John's teacher also reported
that in class he chews on
his shirt collars and bites
his nails. |
Generalized anxiety in children
and adolescents frequently takes
the form of uncontrollable worries
about competence or quality of
performance in school and sports,
health, crime, future events and
their parents finances, job and
relationship. The child's excessive
worry is focused on being unable
to reach self-imposed unrealistic
standards and engaging in "what
if" thinking. These children
frequently worry about new or
changing situations that they
will confront and will repeatedly
ask their parents questions and
seek their comfort. Consequently,
children with generalized anxiety
are often markedly self-conscious
and require frequent reassurance
about their performance. These
children will frequently be irritable,
have difficulty sleeping and complain
of headaches and stomachaches.
Anxiety also impacts children's
behavior as they may fidget, cry,
cling, shake, tantrum and become
physically aggressive.
Cognitive
Behavioral Treatment in Children
and Adolescents - Generalized
Anxiety Disorder>>
|
