Childhood phobic disorders; should they be sorted out early?

Scared childPhobias are an irrational and overwhelming fear of a predicament or object. Phobias are much more distinct than just being slightly concerned about something; it is a severe fear and avoidance of a particular scenario or object that characterises a phobic anxiety. In really serious cases, phobic anxiety can cause isolation, anxiety and panic attacks and depression symptoms. Individuals who suffer from a fear of spiders have an overwhelming and debilitating fear every time they come into contact with any sort of spider.

Typically, phobias are long lasting and can occur at any age. They often occur because of a given incident or trauma (e.g. being frightened by an episode with a pigeon in early childhood) or maybe a learned behaviour from a brother or sister or parent. Many children will be scared of something sooner or later in their life, being afraid of strangers, separation anxiety or just being afraid of the dark. A good number of these fears will disappear and this is an entirely normal part of a child’s progression. If these worries and anxieties build into something more, parents ought to keep a close eye and strive to recognise the signs and symptoms in an attempt to lessen any adverse outcome for the child.

If childhood phobias are not addressed in the early stages, these behaviours rapidly turn into a habit and can vary from mild anxiety to substantial terror and panic and anxiety attacks. When the phobia is severe, it can have an unfavourable impact on the child’s social progression and well-being. These phobias can be anything from a fear of balloons to a fear of going to school. For some people, parents tackle these behaviours early by suggesting the child face up to the situation that cause the anxiousness. In a few circumstances, this approach can work well and make the anxiety subside on the other hand it could also strengthen the fear and then make the child want to stay away from the object more.

Avoidance can be very attractive but it contributes to these behaviours becoming habit forming. These phobic habits must be resolved rather than avoided to reduce the chance of carrying these phobias over into the adult years.

By tackling these habits early, hypnosis may help the child overcome these phobias in a simple and helpful way. Hypnotherapy processes are extremely beneficial in treating children and teenagers as they have a much better imagination at their young age. Children enjoy visualising and utilising their creativity to produce the tools and strength to get rid of their fears.

Hypnotherapy approaches can be a very useful and productive treatment for children and most only need 1 or 2 sessions.

The Surrey Institute of Clinical Hypnotherapy is committed to raising awareness to the help that hypnotherapy can bring to sufferers of psychological issues. They have specialists that cover various issues such as anxiety, weight control, insomnia, psoriasis and smoking. They have been in practice since 2002 and have male and female therapists on staff.


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1 thought on “Childhood phobic disorders; should they be sorted out early?”

  1. Pingback: Childhood phobic disorders; should they be sorted out early? - Hypnotherapy spot

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