What are the symptoms and signs of separation anxiety disorder?
Symptoms of separation anxiety disorder may include • repeated excessive anxiety about something bad happening to loved ones or losing them; • heightened concern about either getting lost or being kidnapped; • repeated hesitancy or refusal to go to day care or school or to be alone or without loved ones or other adults who are important to the anxious child; • persistent reluctance or refusal to go to sleep at nighttime without being physically close to adult loved ones; • repeated nightmares about being separated from the people who are important to the sufferer; • and/or recurrent physical complaints, such as headaches or stomachaches, when separation either occurs or is expected. To qualify for the diagnosis of separation anxiety disorder, a minimum of three of the above symptoms must persist for at least a month and cause significant stress or problems with school, social relationships, or some other area of the sufferer’s life. Also, the disorder is not considered to be present if
