Daughter & Anxiety Disorder

[lallieth]

My 16 year old is concerned she may have anxiety disorder.She told me that twice she has had an episode where she felt so nervous/anxious.I told her to describe to me how she felt physically and emotionally and she told me she felt as if she had strong butterflies in her tummy,she got really shaky/sweaty and almost vomited.

When I asked her if she remembered if she knew the cause of those feelings,she said she didnt remember,which is common.I asked her if she remembered what she felt emotionally and she said "really scared"

My whole family has had bouts with anxiety/panic disorder and while right now I am not going to read too much into this,I will keep my eyes open

I assured her that it's not uncommon for someone to feel like that once in a while and that it doesn't mean that the person has anxiety disorder.

Is there anything else I can tell her?

 

[David Baxter PhD]

Yes. That it isn't necessary for her to continue to suffer that kind of anxiety and that she should probably talk to her family doctor as a starting place to rule out simple physical issues like thyroid disorder. Once that's done, she can talk to her doctor about alternatives for managing her anxiety.

It sounds exactly like a panic attack to me.