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Social Anxiety Disorder in Kids
Most children get nervous or feel varying degrees of anxiety in such situations as the first day of school, when they perform or make a presentation in front of an audience, or when they attend a party in which there are guests they don't know.
Fleeting feelings of shyness or self-consciousness are common and to be expected. However, for some children the level of fear and anxiety they experience in social situations can feel overwhelming and become debilitating: Their hearts pound, their palms become sweaty, and they may even begin to shake out of fear that they will be teased, humiliated, or judged critically.
If left untreated, social anxiety disorder can have long-term, injurious effects on a child's self-esteem and their ability to make friends and do well at school. Over time, children with social phobia may develop depression, or other emotional problems.
The condition usually has an onset in childhood or adolescence and rarely develops after age 25. While most adults who continue to suffer with social phobia recognize that their fears in social situations are extreme or unreasonable, children with the condition are usually unable to appreciate that their feelings of fear and anxiety are excessive.
Typical Symptoms
Things to look for if you think your child might be suffering with social anxiety disorder include:
**The child's anxiety will be expressed by crying, tantrums, clinging, freezing or shrinking from social situations with unfamiliar people.
**The child's anxiety must also occur in peer settings, not just in interactions with adults.
**There must be evidence of the child's capacity for age-appropriate social relationships with familiar people.
**For children under the age of 18, the symptoms must have lasted for at least six months.
Current Research Efforts
The research to define the cause(s) of social anxiety disorder is ongoing:
**Some investigations implicate a small structure in the brain called the amygdala. The amygdala is believed to be a central site in the brain that controls fear responses.
**Some studies suggest social anxiety disorder may be inherited.
**One line of research is developing a biochemical basis for the disorder and they are exploring the idea that heightened sensitivity to disapproval may be physiologically or hormonally based.
**Other researchers are investigating the environment s influence on the development of social phobia. Children may initially acquire their fear by observing the behavior and consequences of others, a process called observational learning or social modeling.
Kids Depend On Us To Get Them the Help They Need
The earlier a child's social anxiety disorder is recognized and treated, the sooner they can move through childhood unencumbered by disproportionate fear and anxiety. There are therapists who are especially skilled at assessing social phobia in children, helping to relieve their symptoms, and then guiding them towards achieving optimal self-confidence in social situations.
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