Separation Anxiety – No Need For Anxious Children Anymore

If you are a parent of a small child, then you likely are all too aware of separation anxiety. For those who are unfamiliar with the term, separation anxiety is a common problem seen in young children starting between the ages of eight to twelve months old.

Children with this problem become very tearful and overly upset, sometimes to the point of hysteria, when their parents leave them with another caregiver. When a child has separation anxiety, it can be a random individual they don’t want to leave, or it could be a specific person that they never want to lose sight of.

One of the most troubling issues for parents is separation anxiety as when a child becomes so emotionally tied to the parent that they become extremely upset if someone else takes care of them or even if they do not have the parent in their immediate sight. The child’s emotional tumult can take its toll on the parent, too.

Often a child who suffers from separation anxiety may actually need to be constantly in physical contact with you. This can often make it difficult to do even the most mundane of tasks. So it can impact your ability to do the cooking, cleaning, and go about your daily business. If you have to work each day then leaving for work can be difficult. Even if you need some downtime for yourself after work, you may have a nightmare of tantrums.

Parents should understand that a child’s separation anxiety is a normal part of their development. It is not caused by parents being overly involved or neglectful in their child’s life. Although not every child experiences this or the extent of the separation anxiety will vary, it is a normal part of your child growing up.

Put aside a consistent time every day to address separation anxiety issues, such as informing your child that you need to leave but will come back shortly. You must then leave the house for approximately five or so minutes. Stay out of sight of the windows in case your child looks out. Your child may have a tantrum, but when you come back in the house, greet him or her as if nothing unusual happened and go about your normal routine, whether it’s to read or watch TV. Let the child come over to you, but without any fanfare. If this is done enough times, your child will eventually get the idea and will have the secure feeling that you are there for him/her and feel less anxious.

Following the same routine over and over may help the child who is experiencing separation anxiety. As an example if your child is having a temper tantrum every time you must leave for work, try using the same approach every day and eventually your child will become used to the idea.