Help for Worried Kids: How Your Child Can Conquer Anxiety and Fear

288 Pages·2005·0.95 MB·English

by  Cynthia G. Last

HELP FOR WORRIED KIDS

HELP FOR
WORRIED KIDS
How Your Child
Can Conquer
Anxiety and Fear
CYNTHIA G. LAST, PhD
THE GUILFORD PRESS
New York London
©2006CynthiaG.Last
PublishedbyTheGuilfordPress
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Last,CynthiaG.
Helpforworriedkids:howyourchildcanconqueranxietyandfear/
CynthiaG.Last.
p. cm.
Includesbibliographicalreferencesandindex.
ISBN1-57230-858-3(tradepaper)—ISBN1-59385-219-3(tradecloth)
1. Anxietyinchildren—Popularworks. 2. Anxietyinchildren—
Treatment—Popularworks. I. Title.
RJ506.A58L372006
618.92′8522—dc22
2005014040
ToallthelittleonesImetalongtheway

Contents
Acknowledgments ix
Preface xi
PARTI Understanding Your Anxious Child
1
Do You Have an Anxious Child? 3
2
The Many Faces of Childhood Anxiety 27
3
Nature or Nurture?: 53
The Causes of Childhood Anxiety Disorders
PARTII The Anxiety Disorders of Childhood
4
“Will You Still Be There Tomorrow?”: 81
Separation Anxiety Disorder
5
“But Mom, What If ... ?!”: 114
Generalized Anxiety Disorder
6
Over and Over Again: 144
Obsessive–Compulsive Disorder
vii
viii Contents
7
Self-Conscious to a Fault: 175
Social Anxiety Disorder
8
“Mommy, Daddy, I’m Afraid!”: 208
Specific Phobias
Resources 241
Checklists and Worksheets 255
Selected Scientific Articles by the Author 265
Index 267
About the Author 275
Acknowledgments
There are many people to thank when completing a book like this.
Ifirstwanttoacknowledgethementorsandcolleagueswhoplayed
pivotal roles in the development of my career: David H. Barlow,
PhD; Michel Hersen, PhD; the late Joaquim Puig-Antich, MD; Da-
vid Kupfer, MD; and Frank DePiano, PhD.
IalsowanttothanktheadministrationoftheNationalInstituteof
Mental Health for affording me so many opportunities to investi-
gate and learn more about anxiety disorders in children.
IwanttoexpressmyappreciationtoKimSterner,whoworkedby
my side for over fifteen years, first at the University of Pittsburgh
SchoolofMedicineandthenlateronatNovaSoutheasternUniver-
sity in Florida.
Specialthanksareduetomyeditors,KittyMooreandChristine
Benton, as well as the staff at The Guilford Press, for making this
book a reality.
Iamgratefultomyhusband,BarryRubin,forsupportinganden-
couraging me throughout the writing process, especially when
times got tough.
Finally, I will always be indebted to the many children and fami-
lies I’ve had the privilege to meet and work with throughout the
years. They are the true inspiration for this book.
ix