Did you know that Anxiety Disorders in children are now considered to be “Gateway” diagnoses that are associated with significantly increased risk of serious mental disorders in adulthood? This underscores the importance of intervening early when your child exhibits symptoms of anxiety that do not remit, cause significant distress, and/or interfere with classroom functioning, social interactions or other aspects of a young persons functioning. Furthermore, if there are other risk factors, such as a family history of Anxiety Disorder or other mental illness it is that much more vital that early intervention occur.
Recent statistics indicate that 9% of children under age 7 have a diagnosable anxiety disorder. This means that almost one out of every 10 children in a preschool class suffer the impact of these distressing and disruptive disorders. This statistic jumps to 30% of the population, by adulthood.
This means that parents must be active advocates for their children. Don’t just expect that your child will grow out of an anxiety problem. It is possible that they might, as a small percentage do, but the risks of ignoring or feeding an anxiety problem are far too great to passively wait. Anxiety disorders are often not well understood by many mental health professionals, even ones who are well trained and revered in your community. Thus it is your responsibility to get informed, trust your gut instincts and locate experienced CBT clinicians to treat your child. The good news is that CBT very effectively treats most anxiety disorders in children and we are learning more everyday how to intervene successfully at younger and younger ages. Visit the resources section of my website for help.
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