How Your Child’s Anxiety Differs from Adult Anxiety: Recognizing the Signs

It can be surprising and difficult for parents to learn that their children can experience anxiety. Anxiety in children often looks different from anxiety in adults, so it can be hard to understand when it's happening. Understanding the differences between adult and child anxiety can help parents recognize the signs in their children and know how to best help them.

Understanding How Child Anxiety is Expressed

Anxiety in children can look different for every child. How anxiety is expressed will depend on age as well, but there are some common similarities that appear for children. 

As a parent and adult, it can be difficult to understand when your child is feeling anxious because they might have difficulty describing it to you. Because children’s minds and communication abilities are not fully developed, when they are feeling anxious they can struggle to understand what is happening. When these feelings of anxiety become constant or irrational, they may act out or behave in unusual ways because they do not understand how to communicate to you. 

Some common signs of anxiety in children include irritability, crying and tantrums, disturbed sleep, and difficulty concentrating. For example, if you find that your child is being overly clingy, missing school, and says they feel “butterflies” in their stomach often, this may be a sign of anxiety in your child.

There are many different anxiety disorders that parents often believe only affect adults, but they can also affect children too. These include generalized anxiety disorder (GAD), separation anxiety disorder, and social anxiety disorder. The differences between these disorders may reflect in how your child’s anxiety is expressed. For example, a child with GAD may be worrying about general things all the time, while a child with a separation anxiety disorder will express their anxiety in situations where they are separated from trusted adults, such as being separated from their parents when they go to school.

As a parent, researching your child’s symptoms, and learning from supportive professionals can help you figure out what is going on and how to best help your child.

Key Differences and Recognizing the Signs

As parents, it can be difficult to understand the complexities of child anxiety as your understanding of anxiety comes from an adult perspective. Discussing some differences can help you differentiate the two, so that you can better understand your child’s anxiety.

A big difference between children and adults is the ability to realize and express anxiety. Children, unlike adults, often don’t realize when their fears are irrational or extreme, making it more difficult to verbalize their feelings. It can be confusing for parents to realize what exactly their child is feeling anxious about. They may struggle to say why they feel a specific way, and instead express their emotions through behaviors such as crying or hiding. This can make it harder for parents to realize when their children are feeling anxious, which is why it is important to pay attention to signs expressed through these behaviors and actions.

When considering the types of anxiety disorders, separation anxiety is more common among children than adults. This is because their transition from being dependent on their parents, to becoming more self-sufficient and not spending every moment with you, can feel like a big and scary change. Since this type of anxiety is more common in children, it is important to look for signs of separation anxiety mentioned above when your child starts acting out. 

Knowing these differences and understanding how your child may voice their anxiety differently than an adult will help you sympathize with their experiences, and help them cope with anxious feelings.

Strategies for Addressing Child Anxiety

Understanding your child’s anxiety and how it is expressed for them individually, is the first step to addressing the anxiety and helping your child. It may feel difficult and overwhelming to help calm your child through their anxious moments, but there are many useful strategies you can use.

Practice empathizing with your child while also challenging unhelpful thinking or beliefs that are creating anxiety and stress. Making them feel heard and understood with what they are experiencing will help them feel less alone, as children can often become overwhelmed and confused by their anxiety. 

If your child is anxious about a specific situation or event coming up, go through it with them beforehand and act out a role-play. Role-playing these feared situations with them can help ease the anxiety that they will feel and help them prepare for it. 

When to Seek Help

If you think your child’s anxiety is overtaking their lives and is becoming difficult to manage, reaching out for help for your child is always a great resource. Your child and a therapist will be able to come up with ways to manage their anxieties and provide coping mechanisms. If you feel that your child is showing signs of anxiety, contact us to book your consultation and first appointment for therapy for children. We are here to support your child in working through their anxiety, so they can feel empowered and confident!