Treatment of social phobia in children and adolescents

Social phobia is a disorder that provokes in the person who suffers from intense discomfort due to the fear and anxiety that generates to be in various types of social situations. This type of disorder can occur in anyone regardless of age or sex and treatment will depend on the particular situation of each individual. However, treatment when it comes to children and adolescents also includes parents or guardians who can with their words and actions contribute to their improvement. But, ¿What can parents or adolescents do to help them overcome social phobia?, ¿What is the conventional treatment to be submitted to eliminate it? In this Psychology-online article: Social phobia treatment in children and adolescents, We will know the symptoms of social phobia in children and adolescents to finally provide you with a series of guidelines and recommendations focused on eliminating this condition.

1. Symptoms of social phobia in children and adolescents
2. Social phobia in children and adolescents: treatment
3. Tips to help overcome social phobia to children and adolescents

Symptoms of social phobia in children and adolescents

The children and adolescents with social phobia They usually have a series of symptoms that make it evident. Among the main symptoms, the following stand out:

• Difficult to focus.
• Stomach pains.
• Sleep disorder.
• Loss of appetite.
• Fear of separating from parents.
• Diarrhea.
• Muscle tension.
• Redness.
• Excessive fear to participate in class in front of the classmates.
• Avoidance and inhibition in interaction with people of their age and adults.
• Avoiding school work or group games.
• Refuse to attend school.
• Exaggerated fear of making a fool of yourself in front of others.
• Refuse to carry out extracurricular activities due to the anxiety that causes to have to relate to others.

There are many more symptoms that may indicate that a child or a teenager suffers from social phobia, they all have in common Exaggerated fear and the avoidance of everything that implies interaction with other people.

Social phobia in children and adolescents: treatment

It is important that children and adolescents suffering from social phobia, carry out a psychological treatment With a professional, since if this condition is not attended, it can increase until it reaches the stage of adulthood which is what happens on many occasions. Psychological treatment can sometimes be accompanied by a pharmacological treatment depending on the individual situation of each person.

Psychotherapy

In the case of the cognitive-behavioral therapy, Its purpose is aimed at modifying the irrational thoughts and ideas that the child or adolescent has for more objectives that allow him to relieve his fears and adapt better.

He is also taught to regulate his emotions so that he can begin to carry out the actions that cause fear and gradually face them. By stopping avoiding situations that cause fear, your fear will decrease. For this, relaxation exercises are also carried out, among others, which allow you to feel safer when facing feared situations.

Tips to help overcome social phobia to children and adolescents

As mentioned at the beginning of this article, the parents and/or tutors of children and adolescents can contribute considerably to help them overcome this problem that, without hesitation, limits each of the areas of their life and which but but It is treated on time, it will increasing. There are a number of tips or guidelines that can be followed at home to help children get ahead and overcome social phobia. Some of these guidelines are the following:

• Find out about this disorder. In order to help children get ahead, it is necessary to understand what they are happening, since sometimes it is difficult to really put themselves in their place. In order to understand the situation that children are going through, it is necessary to be well informed about this disorder and the way it affects the emotional well -being of the children.
• Get involved in treatment. It is necessary to be involved in the treatment together with the children. You can, for example, accompany them to the psychotherapy sessions even if they do not enter them, be aware of what they are working on in the session, talk to the psychologist (a) to see how it can be contributed, etc.
• Active listening. This is a fundamental part, since for the child or adolescent who suffers from social phobia, he feels understood and attended, it is necessary to hear it carefully. It is not necessary to share with the same ideas and beliefs, it is simply. When a person feels heard and treated, he also feels better with himself.
• Do not ridicules. The child or adolescent already suffers quite a lot to suffer from this limiting disorder and if the adult plays jokes or simply ridicule it using his problem, the only thing that will happen is that he will be increasingly increasing.
• Reinforces your achievements. If the child or adolescent is achieving the objectives established in the therapy, it is increasing. For example, you can make positive and motivational comments by letting you know how brave it is and how much you have been advancing.
• Do not criticize them. It must be remembered that the criticisms made to the children must be only constructive, since if not their insecurity will increase considerably which will worsen their problem.
• Foster its independence. As far as possible and according to their age, independence must be encouraged in the children, entrusting them with small tasks that can be performed by themselves. In this way, realizing that they can be able to carry them out on their own, their trust and self -esteem will improve, which will contribute to the elimination of their condition.

This article is merely informative, in psychology-online we have no power to make a diagnosis or recommend a treatment. We invite you to go to a psychologist to treat your particular case.

If you want to read more articles similar to Treatment of social phobia in children and adolescents, We recommend that you enter our category of emotional and behavioral disorders.