Anxiety Disorder

Anxiety Disorder

Anxiety disorder; It is the name given to the more intense and dysfunctional anxiety that exists in everyone, this is called anxiety disorder

Anxiety disorder, while walking on a deserted street late at night our anxiety protects us and directs us to our home quickly. The anxiety we experience here is functional anxiety that protects us. However, in the daytime in an environment where everyone there to be anxious, not like in the night, and going home immediately may be an anxiety disorder.

Another example of an anxiety disorder situation is that the fire alarm example explains anxiety disorders very well. Fire alarms are a mechanism that warns and protects people when a fire occurs and is expected to signal only in case of fire. However, if the fire alarm system is broken, it starts signaling against all kinds of factors and misleads the people. Anxiety disorders can also be compared to this situation. While on-site anxiety protects us, intense anxiety when there is no threat is constantly misleading us, and it causes us to cope wrongly. Anxiety disorder is frequently seen in adults also appears in childhood. Just like in adults, we sometimes see that children sometimes experience intense anxiety/fear of a particular situation and choose unsuitable methods to deal with it.

What are the symptoms of an anxiety disorder?

Widely seen in childhood;

• Anxiety of separation,

• Social anxiety,

• common anxiety,

Specific phobias are observed.

The symptoms of each of the anxiety disorders are unique. Basically, their common aspects are the intense anxiety of certain situations compared to their peers and the dysfunctional coping methods used to manage this anxiety.

In separation anxiety, the child experiences intense anxiety about leaving the caregiver. It often carries thoughts that the caregiver cannot see again, something will happen to them or themselves. Accordingly, he does not want to leave the caregiver. In cases where there is compulsory separation, he feels intense anxiety, cries, or closes inward.

In social anxiety, the child is extremely anxious to keep in touch with his peers, especially from performing anything in front of peers. Usually, such situations are avoided. These children are generally described as silent and low-participation children by their class teachers. They often refrain from raising fingers, giving presentations, participating in games, expressing their own opinions.

common anxiety, the child is constantly concerned about many issues, not about a particular topic. They may immediately be anxious about many things they hear from the news and that they hear from their friends. They are sensitive to every negative situation. Children with this anxiety disorder often have anxiety about their health and the health of their mother and father.

In specific phobias, the child is concerned only with a specific object, a situation, and avoids constantly encountering that situation or that object.

How Is Anxiety Disorder Treated?

Cognitive-behavioral therapies are the best therapy with proven effectiveness in the treatment of anxiety disorder. In the treatment of anxiety disorder, after adequate cooperation and trust relationship exists between the therapist and the child, the object concerned, the situation and the child are compared, and the dysfunctional coping methods used beforehand are not used. Anxiety disorder, which is called “exposure” among the people, can actually be called confronting some kind of anxiety. Exposure is a more passive and traumatic description. Facing is a method that is done gradually and accompanied by a specialist at the request of the child. This is a very sensitive method, by non-specialists can have permanent effects on the child.

In the treatment of anxiety disorder, families should be extremely inclusive and understanding when their children talk about their anxiety. They should not criticize their anxious children about their anxiety and act in a way that encourages them to express their feelings. Especially in the cognitive-behavioral therapies school, mothers and fathers become assistants of therapists and if necessary, help the child to do what is done during the psychotherapy session at home