Seperation Anxiety

​Separation Anxiety Disorder (SAD) is characterized by excessive anxiety about being away from home or one’s caregiver.  Children with SAD often worry that something bad will happen to them (e.g., getting kidnapped) or their caregiver (e.g., car accident, heart attack) if they are apart.  This separation-based worry and anxiety can lead to impairments in several domains of a child’s functioning including school (e.g., school refusal), social activities (e.g., avoidance of sleepovers), and adaptive independent behavior (e.g., difficulty sleeping alone at night).  Key symptoms include:

• Excessive anxiety about separation from home or caregiver
• Excessive worry about loss or harm to self or caregiver
• Fear of being alone without adults
• Fear of sleeping without a caregiver nearby
• Nightmares about separation
• Complaints of physical symptoms when away from the caregiver

School refusal behavior