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  • Anxiety treatment

    What Is the Best Treatment for Anxiety in Children?

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    Children are affected by many different forms of anxiety, from separation anxiety to OCD, but the treatment options are basically the same for all of them. The most effective treatment for each child depends on factors that include: How severe the anxiety is How willing and able the child is to participate in therapy What options are available (and doable) for the family For children with mild-to-moderate anxiety, the first-line treatment recommended by most experts is cognitive behavior therapy (CBT), in which the child gradually learns how to tolerate anxiety rather than avoid it, and the anxiety fades over time. CBT is not a quick fix, but kids learn skills that they will be able to use whenever they might need them. In cases that are more severe, where children are in acute distress and the anxiety is preventing them from everyday functioning — going to school, spending time with friends, participating in activities — the recommendation is usually a combination of CBT plus medication. The medication reduces the child’s anxiety enough to enable them to participate in therapy that provides a longer-term solution. Medication alone can be the most effective treatment when families don’t have access to therapy or are not able to support kids through the process, which involves a role for parents and can take several months. While there are many different kinds of anxiety, they all involve intense, sometimes paralyzing, fear as well as physical symptoms such as rapid heartbeat, trembling, and sweating. These treatment approaches are ways to reduce those symptoms. Exposure therapy for anxiety The most common (and most comprehensively tested) form of therapy for anxiety is a specialized kind of cognitive behavioral therapy called exposure and response prevention (ERP). In ERP, often called exposure therapy, children are “exposed” to the things that trigger their anxiety in small steps and in a safe setting, supported by a therapi...

    Published On: May-07-2024
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