health care guide
Child Anxiety:
This Is When You Should Start to Worry
It’s normal for kids to have bouts of fear—but when should you start to worry about your child’s anxiety? By Stacey Feintuch
K
ids of all ages worry. Your baby cries when you leave the room. Your toddler may fear clowns. Separation anxiety may make your preschooler cry. Your elementary schooler may have a stomachache on the day of a spelling test. Middle schoolers may be nervous about making a presentation in front of their virtual or in-person class. Your high schooler may worry about getting a pimple. Children have bouts of fears, worries, and anxiety at some point; these are totally normal feelings. “If you don’t have a range of emotions, that’s abnormal,” says Joel Friedman, Ph.D., clinical director at the Center for Family Guidance in Marlton, NJ. Normal childhood anxieties from new people, places, and experiences come and go throughout a child’s life. They need time to learn about, work with, and get comfortable with something new. “Kids are resilient,” says Sanam Hafeez, Psy.D.,
34 May 2021 • siparent.com
a New York City-based licensed clinical neuropsychologist, teaching faculty member at Columbia University’s Teachers College, and founder and clinical director of Comprehensive Consultation Psychological Services, P.C. “They’re able to shake off a lot of stuff.” Some kids ask a lot of questions when they’re anxious. Others figure things out on their own, which can have negative consequences. “Children often ‘fill in the blanks’ with assumptions that can trigger anxious feelings,” says Connecticut-based psychotherapist Haley Neidich, LCSW.
Signs of Child Anxiety It can be difficult for parents to admit when their child has a problem, Dr. Hafeez says. Usually, though, it will be so obvious
