1.     Physical symptoms

Children and teens who struggle with anxiety will often complain of having headaches, stomach aches, fatigue, muscle tension (e.g., in their jaw due to clenching their teeth, in their shoulders due to tensing up, etc.), muscle aches, twitching, sweating, trembling, vomiting regularly, using the toilet often, or having panic attacks (racing heart, shortness of breath, dizziness). If your child or teenager often goes to the nurse’s office in school and they cannot find a physical cause of their symptoms, it might be anxiety.

2.     Behavioral signs

Some behavior signs of a child or teen with anxiety include difficulty concentrating, pacing back and forth, not eating or eating too much, withdrawing from activities they used to enjoy, isolating in their room, lashing out at others, going from zero to sixty, violent behavior (hitting, biting, kicking, yelling, screaming, tantrums, etc.), crying spells, picking their nails or face, pulling out their hair, fidgeting with their hands or feet, not speaking outside the home (selective mutism). When a child or teens behavior changes suddenly, it could be a sign that they are struggling internally.

3.     Emotional signs

Some emotional signs of anxiety in children and teens include feeling irritable, anger outbursts, being scared and clingy and not wanting to be separated from their primary caregiver(s), feeling overwhelmed, worrying a lot about anything and everything, and ruminating on negative thoughts or the worst-case scenario. Some children or teens with anxiety also struggle with sadness or depression because they are unable to feel “normal”.

4.     Sleep issues

Some children and teens who struggle with anxiety will often have trouble falling asleep or will wake up several times in the middle of the night. Others will complain of having nightmares regularly (e.g. their house being robbed, them or their siblings getting kidnapped, their parents dying, etc.). Others will refuse to sleep alone and will want to sleep with a parent or sibling to feel safe.

5.     Avoidance

One of the biggest signs of anxiety in children or teens is avoidance. Children will avoid anything they deem to be scary (e.g. school, sports, clubs, parties, church, crowded places or events, hard classes, homework, their bedroom at night, the mall, the grocery store, etc.). Some children and teens will even avoid doing things they used to enjoy like hobbies or hanging out with people they used to spend time with regularly.