How do you resolve anticipatory anxiety in a six year old?

Question

My 6 year old son is a very bright, sensitive, intelligent, athletic, good looking little boy. But he is very shy and anxious. He fears anything involving dealing with people he doesn't know (playing with kids at recess, taking the bus, approaching teachers, etc.). It has gotten to the point where he is making himself physically ill, throwing up before school. He obsesses over time and perfection in everything he does. Last night I overheard him telling himself "I hate me". He said it was because he can't ride his bicycle perfectly yet. (He just learned to ride without training wheels last week.)
My wife and I have constantly tried to get him to lighten up and support him in everything he does. We've explained many times that nobody is perfect and we don't expect him to be. We've told him how proud we are of him. We are scheduled to see a child psychologist soon, but in the meantime I would be appreciative of any advice.

My mistake - he will be seeing a psychiatrist, not a psychologist. Thanks for the kind words.

Answer 1

Welcome to my world...... We have been taking our son to a therapist for 2 years now to get past having panic attacks at school.
Please don't blow this off. I know its upsetting for parents and downplaying it might be easiest. Especially when you have to listen to him say the same things over and over again that you might feel are unwarranted. Depression and Anxiety are very real issues for children too.

Good Luck to him and to you.

Answer 2

hire a child psychiatrist not a psychologist. someone needs to get through to him on a deeper level at this point. low self-esteem, self doubt, perfectionism can ALL be dealt with easier at age 6 than at 16! i have a step daughter that has exhibited this same behavior through the years... she thinks everything she does "COULD" have been done better... we just tried building her up ourselves as all parents try! about a year ago we enrolled her into therapy and she loved the psycholoGIST... things were getting better, there was improvement THEN i found 3 poems she was writting about how she doesn't want to live anymore... and EXACT details about HOW she would kill herself. we acted quickly. she was admitted at an inpatient mental health hospital LAST WEEK. she was only there for 3 days, but she did get a chance to see a psyciaTRIST. now we, as parents, are watching for the warning signs, and we have some new coping skills. she admits that she gained a great deal from her stay. I AM NOT suggesting that you admit your child anywhere, he's 6... but get him in to see someone that is really capable of helping. to do it all over again, i would have went straight to a child psychiaTRIST (an actual doctor), instead of the psychologist (a highly paid friend to chit/ chat with). there's no a great deal that you can do while waiting to see the doctor... it sounds like you are doing EVERYTHING a good parent should do! BEST OF LUCK TO YOU!

Answer 3

These are signs of early anxeity disorder.My son has it and started symptoms at 7 or so.He is 11 now and we have him on meds.He is so much better!!!If it is noticable to teachers or effects his schedule then you need to talk to you ppc and get a referall so he can be monitored while on meds.I tryed coping skills first but it is hard to tell a child "its in your head" I myself have had problems with anxiety all my life but dont need meds...it took me years and years to get here though.It was a hard call to make with my son but seeing him now...I wish I had done it sooner.

Answer 4

Eliminate Social Anxiety Shyness : http://SocialAnxiety.uzaev.com/?Zdsr

Answer 5

sounds like my child but iam not a doctor so i am going to say its asperger but have him tested for it
my son has aspergers and i have been have to go throught these very 7 months now but he is 7 years old so dont wait ok

Answer 6

I hope he gets better. The psychologist is going to be your best bet.

Answer 7

CRUSH his dreams and hopes beyond all expectation and the anxiety will go away.