What is Separation Anxiety Disorder?
Occurring in approximately 4% of children and adolescentes, separation anxiety disorder is a disorder of childhood in which the young person experiences very significant distress when separated from a caregiver and is unable to tolerate periods of separation which would be expected for typical same-age peers.
The distress of the separation and/or the anticipation of the separation may manifest itself in a number of ways, including emotional upset, physical symptoms (e.g., stomach ache, headache, dizziness), checking behavior, and/or reassurance seeking. This distress and the responses to the distress interfere with developmentally appropriate functioning.
Treatment for Separation Anxiety Disorder
CEH clinicians provide evidence-based cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) for families struggling with separation difficulties. This treatment involves teaching children coping skills to build distress tolerance and psychological flexibility. The family is then provided exposure-based therapy in which the the child is guided in gradually engaging in separation from their caregivers, leading to a reduction of anxiety over time. Contingency management strategies (i.e., reward systems) to encourage “brave behaviors” are used to increase motivation and reward the child for successes.