Seperation anxiety.

Essay by sillymemom October 2003

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This is an essay that views all aspects of anxiety in children. Also included is a friends battle with anxiety written in first person per their request. This problem is very revelent in todays society.

Anxiety to Last a Lifetime

Early childhood development is one of the many studies of psychology. There are many stages that a child goes through in order to progress physically, mentally, and most importantly emotionally. Infants instinctively develop strong emotional bonds with their parents or other full time guardians. Children express these bonds when their parent/guardian leaves them with a short term caregiver. The child may become scared that its parents are not going to return. More formally this is known as separation anxiety. There are several categories, which show a child's level of attachment to the parent. Securely attached children are stable and they have a positive emotional bond. Insecure-avoidant children have an "anxious emotional bond."

(Coon) These children will try to avoid contact with their mother when she returns. Another anxious attachment is the insecure ambivalent child. These children want to be near the mother when she returns, but at the same time avoid contact with her. The purpose of this paper is to show just how badly a person can be damaged if they do not have strong bond with their parents.

You may locate a study of these attachment theories at http://www.personalityresearch.org/attachment.html. This particular study shows how an infant goes through three emotional stages when separated from the parents. First, an infant will protest to the parent leaving. This consists of crying, temper tantrums, and refusal to be comforted by others. The next stage is despair, in which the child is sad and passive. The third stage of detachment can be crucial. Detachment is how a child will show the...