Does your child do this? What is it?

[Anonymous]

1st grade DS has ASD/ADHD. He's on medication and generally fine but the one thing that causes him to completely freak out is if we're out of his sight and it's not on his terms- including in our own house. For example, in a store I might say to him that I'm going to walk to the end of the aisle but I'll keep talking so he can hear my voice. That's not enough. He will totally lose it unless he can see me. Today DH was in the bathroom while DS was showering. DH stepped out for a minute and DS came flying out the door panicked because he was in there by himself. We've lived in the same house for awhile and we've definitely never left him anywhere so I really don't understand it. We've asked him about it but to no avail. He won't let us ever close the door to his room when he's inside, even though he sleeps in there with his brother. Any ideas? I'd love to help him feel more secure and also for us to be able to be 10 feet away in a store. I'm sympathetic to the fear but it's also exhausting.

[Anonymous]

Separation anxiety. It is so tough on Parents. My son wouldn’t let me out of sight either. We finally got relief when we put him on an anxiety med. when we have tried to ween him off it, the separation anxiety returns just as strong.

[Anonymous]

DS with the same tendencies wasn't like this. He would wander off anywhere, not caring whether we were there or not. I was admonished by a passerby when he was 2 and he had run away from me. Sigh. However, he's scared of the dark, and still sleeps with his head under the covers, at 12!

[Anonymous]

OP here - do they grow out of it at some point? I get it for a younger child but... Is there anything I can do to help him? He is on medications to reduce arousal but not anti-anxiety meds specifically. Our doctor recommended against an SSRI because of some other issues she thought might be made worse.

[Anonymous]

Is this a new behavior since going on the medication?
Has your child been sick? Reminds me of my daughter when she was 7 and had PANDAS. Just a tho

[Anonymous]

Thanks PP. It's not new so I'm assuming it hasn't been caused by anything specific but I'll read up on PANDAS to check it out. Thank you.

[Anonymous]

Find a therapist to help with his anxiety. Therapy can work really well and then you don’t have to add more meds.

[Anonymous]

At the same age, my kid wouldn't close the door to the bathroom, wouldn't go upstairs in the house by herself and wouldn't go to sleep by herself. Age and medication improved things, but occasionally she still has trouble going upstairs by herself.

[Anonymous]

My almost 6 year old DS ADHD possible ASD has been going through a big "don't want to be alone" phase for the last 6 months. It started when we moved into a newer bigger house, and his freaking out isn't so much a tantrum, but more sounds like he's being silly. For a long time, i thought he was just being silly. Like, "okay, mommy, we're going to hold hands and walk to the kitchen together" and "you've got to hold my hand because i don't want to go alone, tee hee". That kind of stuff. He's our only child, so we'd either just go with or he'd wait around with us and not go to that part of the house. After a few months, i finally figured out he was actually serious -- he really didn't want to go to the other side of the house alone. Interestingly, i don't think my DS has anxiety at all - i posted a question on this forum several months ago to see if anxiety in young boys sometimes looks like something else, because other than this issue, my DS comes across as the opposite of anxious. I googled the separation anxiety thing, and it's apparently a very developmentally normal phase for 5-6 year olds, so i've just let it go. It already seems to have faded since it's peak a few months ago.

[Anonymous]

My 5 year old still has those behaviors of feeling anxiety when he does not see me. I think he will outgrow it. I think kids at that age just don't know how to properly express to us why they feel that way. It may be overwhelming but I pray it gets better soon for you. You are doing a good job mom. Keep being patient and accommodating. Hope this helps.