ANXIETY
Anxiety comes in different "flavors" -- generalized, separation, social, panic, somatic, obsessive or traumatic. Taking some steps to try to sort through the type of anxiety a person experiences can help guide treatment. We recommend using the SCARED (child & parent) when possible during your assessment.
Screening
We most often recommend the Screen for Child Anxiety Related Disorders, or "SCARED" as a good starting point for assessment of anxiety. Though scoring can take a few minutes, it will help characterize the type of anxiety, compare child and parent perspectives, and can be repeated over time to track progress
The GAD-7 is a quick, 7-item self-report questionnaire that is useful for assessing both baseline and response for young people with Generalized Anxiety Disorder
Developed at The Children's Center, the Traumatic Experiences Questionniare is useful for understanding the contribution of traumatic experiences
Management
We have included this flowchart for the consideration of primary care providers who are tasked with managing anxiety disorders in children and teens. It includes some basic guidelines around assessment, medication choices and therapy recommendations
Additional Resources
Turnaround Anxiety is a great, CBT home-based program for familes with children ages 5-13. It can be used alone, or a supplement to in-person therapy
