My 10 year old niece have been hospitalized due to severe anxiety attacks

[mapuc]

It's not like it is something new, she have had these attacks before, but they were only in the slim section.

Even though she has a Mensa-brain, she has also a vivid imagination and she have problem separating the fantasy and reality.
In addition, daily she is being bullied by the other students in the school where she goes.

It is a lot more than I can put into words except I feel so terrible about this. When children is harmed I feel pain in my heart and now it is my own niece it makes it even more painfully

The doctor has order as mention my niece to be hospitalized to get correct diagnostic.

The children at the school also keep on showing her youtube clip of people dying and she gets very anxiety about that.

Markus

[Onkel Neal]

Sorry to hear that, Markus. It's very stressful on the family when a little one has severe medical issues. I know when one of my daughters went through medical problems, it was terrible. I hope you and your family can get through this, and your niece can be treated to help her.

[mapuc]

Sorry to hear that, Markus. It's very stressful on the family when a little one has severe medical issues. I know when one of my daughters went through medical problems, it was terrible. I hope you and your family can get through this, and your niece can be treated to help her.

Thank you Neal for your concern.

I also hope they find out what's wrong with her, so she can get proper medication and get some "talk therapy" with a child psychologist.

Markus

[Oberon]

Bless her, I hope she is able to get the help she needs to make it through what is a difficult time in any childs life, let alone a child in todays world. I can understand the whole fantasy vs reality bit though, she's a smart child, she has an idea with what's going on in the wider world and how scared and depressed people are, it's little wonder she wants to stay in that fantasy world where things are under her control and can't hurt her.
I think it's a form of psychological self-protection, and sadly it's always the smart ones that get the worse of the bullies, sadly it doesn't get much easier, but you do find ways to cope with it better.
Give her a hug from me when you see her next and tell her that for all the bad things in the world, there are just as many wonderful and fantastic things on our planet and out in the cosmos, human nature seems to dwell on the negative, but it mustn't blind you to the beauty out there.
I was once told by my mother, and feel free to pass this on to her if you think it will help, to think of the humble flower that over time pushes its way through thick concrete to bloom into beauty amongst the dark grey slabs of the city around it. She's that flower, things are tough and people can be very horrible, but push on and great things can happen.

[mapuc]

Bless her, I hope she is able to get the help she needs to make it through what is a difficult time in any childs life, let alone a child in todays world. I can understand the whole fantasy vs reality bit though, she's a smart child, she has an idea with what's going on in the wider world and how scared and depressed people are, it's little wonder she wants to stay in that fantasy world where things are under her control and can't hurt her.
I think it's a form of psychological self-protection, and sadly it's always the smart ones that get the worse of the bullies, sadly it doesn't get much easier, but you do find ways to cope with it better.
Give her a hug from me when you see her next and tell her that for all the bad things in the world, there are just as many wonderful and fantastic things on our planet and out in the cosmos, human nature seems to dwell on the negative, but it mustn't blind you to the beauty out there.
I was once told by my mother, and feel free to pass this on to her if you think it will help, to think of the humble flower that over time pushes its way through thick concrete to bloom into beauty amongst the dark grey slabs of the city around it. She's that flower, things are tough and people can be very horrible, but push on and great things can happen.

Thank you and I will give her a big hug, next time I see her.

The problem with her imagination is that it content "terrible things" and she have problem with "what is fantasy and what's not" what i understand, from what I heard from my little sister, this huge attack came from some youtube videos of zombies, which some children had shown to her at school

The anxiety can not be cured, but she can by help from expert learned to live with them and hopefully learned to "see" what is fantasy and whats real.

Markus

[Oberon]

Thank you and I will give her a big hug, next time I see her.

The problem with her imagination is that it content "terrible things" and she have problem with "what is fantasy and what's not" what i understand, from what I heard from my little sister, this huge attack came from some youtube videos of zombies, which some children had shown to her at school

The anxiety can not be cured, but she can by help from expert learned to live with them and hopefully learned to "see" what is fantasy and whats real.

Markus

Ah, yes, I can understand that a bit now. That is the problem with the technological world we live in now, the special effects are so good that for someone of a young age, it's almost impossible to tell that it's not real.
Gone are the days when you'd spot the wires or sticks on the Thunderbirds puppet. :dead: Things you see at that age can leave a definite psychological mark. I recall a scene in a movie my father was watching...I think it might have been 'Holocaust' and he'd put it on whilst I was in the room, I think I was about five or six at the time, and the German guard picked up this American chap and slammed him against a glass wall, then dragged him along it so that his teeth were ground against the wall. Now, up until that point I had never had a problem with the sound of nails on a chalk board...after that...nope, nope, nope.
Needless to say when Mum walked in and saw what Dad was watching with me in the same room, his ears were ringing for a while after. :haha:

I think that, in due time, she'll start to see the difference between fantasy and reality, but I hope that she always keeps a little part of that imagination and fantasy with her, because that creative spark is what gives rise to some of the greatest works of art and literature this world has seen.

[Commander Wallace]

Sorry to hear about this. Hopefully the hospital and docs can get it all figured out for her. It seems there are so many stressors today with facebook,youtube and the like.

All the best to your niece and family that they all come through this .

[Cybermat47]

I hope she's okay. I have anxiety, but not enough to put me in hospital, so I can't imagine what it's like for her :(

[u crank]

Hope she's alright Markus. All the best to you and your family.

[Reece]

That's terrible Markus, typical of children though, they can be very cruel!!:-?
I will pray that the doctors can help her and that she hopefully can be cured.:yep:
Give her a hug for me, and hopefully the children at the school can be educated about this and stop teasing/bullying her.:timeout:
All the best my friend.:up:

[NeonSamurai]

Is she going to a psychiatric hospital or is it a psychiatric inpatient unit? Speaking from experience in the US working as a clinical social worker in an inpatient unit for children starting at about her age, I would be leery of accepting an actual diagnosis from the inpatient unit, for the simple reason that the vast majority of psychiatrists spend almost no time at all with their patients (typically about 5 minutes a day plus maybe a 30 minute family meeting), and they are the ones that issue the final diagnosis. She would be better off seeing a private therapist when she leaves the hospital and having the therapist formally diagnose her.

Anyhow, medication may or may not be the answer or part of the answer. Medication comes with its own problems the big one being side effects. A large number of clients experience side effects from anti anxiety medications, and some of the side effects can be pretty severe including things like massive weight gain which can increase health risks. Also one on medication it is likely that they will be taking those meds for the rest of their live. So medication is a double edged sword, and not a cure.

Also so you know (and I believe this applies in Denmark too) the following are the general roles played by mental health professionals.

Psychiatrists: primarily responsible for medications including prescriptions. Some also perform therapy but most do not. They have a medical degree with a specialization in psychiatry.

Psychologist: they typically administer different types of psychological tests and profiling, in private practice they often act as therapists too. They have a PHD in psychology.

Clinical Social Worker: they perform a wide variety of roles, and are often primary therapists, and case managers. Requires a masters degree in social work, generally with a clinical specialization or focus.


Depending on what she has she could potentially benefit from therapy techniques such as play therapy, and possibly CBT depending on how intellectually advanced she is. I would also suggest that she learn meditation as meditative practice would be very helpful for her to cope with her fears and the bullying.

Anyhow I hope things go well for her and her family.

[mapuc]

Thank you for your reply NeonSamurai. It is at something called children's psychiatric hospital she has been hospitalized.

a little more information about her situation (from what I have heard from her mom)

She runs outside in the night after she have woken and she sits on the lawn crying and are very afraid of going inside, ´cause she see dead people

Last night, she kept on saying there are dead people who wants to leave their house and they(the dead people) keep on knocking on the door. My sister had to leave in a rush, TV lights computer was stil on when the left, and their cats were outside and their two dogs(they are little) had to be left home alone for many hours)


I'm not an expert on this thing-the psychological part of our brain. But it looks like that her brain is playing her a (forgot the word) and because of this she can not see what is real an not.

My sister(her mom) said to her several times-stop there are absolutely nothing there.

My mon and her neighbors are so convinced that she really can see dead people.(Told my mom, if that is the case, then see should see them every where and not just in their house)

In her "reality" she see these things(hallucinations) and it is (this is so complex to explain)things that has happen around her together with her brain that have created this situation.

I hope they will find what is wrong with her.

(my senses tells me it is - some kind of schizophrenia )

Markus

[fireftr18]

Prayers for your whole family Markus. Be supportive for your sister, her family, and your niece. Help out any way you can. Best of luck for your niece.

[Alex]

I hope they will find what is wrong with her.
Keeping fingers crossed for that myself.
I wish you and your family the best, man. Hang in there, and stay strong, Markus !

[Red October1984]

Sorry to hear of this. I've not been in her position but i've been in some medical troubles.

It's not fun.

I'll pray for her and your family, Markus. :salute:

[Reece]

My grandson suffers from OCD (Obsessive Compulsive Disorder). He has just turned 9. It is fearful what these little ones suffer without our knowledge. He has started psychology sessions and unfortunately is on medication. He also has an obsession with zombies, but also his psychology sessions have identified a fear of water and sharks. We have no idea where these fears originated however are suspicious of some of the computer/X-box games out there. Although our daughter has always been cautious of what her children are allowed to see/play, you can't watch a child 24/7 and children at school are not necessarily so well monitored. Once again - this is a highly intelligent child - the psychiatrist has explained that his brain is working faster than the average. He is constantly counting in his head (to four) and relating 4 to bodily functions, i.e. his breathing. If he is reading out loud he has to take a big breath each time his brain counts to 4. If he bites his nails - he has to bite them 4 times - and if he accidentally bites them 5 times he has to bite them another 3 times to make a multiple of 4. When asked by the psychiatrist how he copes if for example his mother hugs him and squeezes him twice, he replied that he has to do something twice to make it up to 4, eg two shrugs of his shoulder. It is because of this that he has had to end up on medication, because human intervention cannot overcome the counting. If his mother was to hold his shoulder so he couldn't shrug it his brain would make another part of his body twitch two times to make up for it.
It is very, very sad to see small children struggle with these psychological problems. We are just very fortunate at the present time that he attends a very small rural school - only about 40 children all up - so bullying hasn't become an additional issue. Not to say it won't be when he reaches high school age. The medication is supposed to slow down his brain - he's been on medication for about a month and at this stage it doesn't seem to be making any difference. This is an additional concern as, naturally, it is not ideal for him to have to be taking meds and likelihood is that the dosage will be increased if there is no result.
So I share your distress Markus - and being an active Christian will be sending my prayers to support yourself, your niece and your family through this traumatic time.

[Jimbuna]

Best wishes for a speedy recovery :sunny:

[NeonSamurai]

Thank you for your reply NeonSamurai. It is at something called children's psychiatric hospital she has been hospitalized.

a little more information about her situation (from what I have heard from her mom)

She runs outside in the night after she have woken and she sits on the lawn crying and are very afraid of going inside, ´cause she see dead people

Last night, she kept on saying there are dead people who wants to leave their house and they(the dead people) keep on knocking on the door. My sister had to leave in a rush, TV lights computer was stil on when the left, and their cats were outside and their two dogs(they are little) had to be left home alone for many hours)


I'm not an expert on this thing-the psychological part of our brain. But it looks like that her brain is playing her a (forgot the word) and because of this she can not see what is real an not.

My sister(her mom) said to her several times-stop there are absolutely nothing there.

My mon and her neighbors are so convinced that she really can see dead people.(Told my mom, if that is the case, then see should see them every where and not just in their house)

In her "reality" she see these things(hallucinations) and it is (this is so complex to explain)things that has happen around her together with her brain that have created this situation.

I hope they will find what is wrong with her.

(my senses tells me it is - some kind of schizophrenia )

Markus

I really would not jump to the schizophrenia conclusion yet, its too early in the process. First off, other than in some rare exceptions, schizophrenia is most likely to develop when a person is in their mid 20s to mid 30s. Schizophrenia (or the variations of it) is exceedingly rare in children her age, so the odds are in her favor. Also if she were schizophrenic, she would generally be seeing these hallucinations virtually all the time for the duration of her psychotic episode.

Some of this stuff is not that unusual for kids with active imaginations (which it sounds like she definitely has). My suspicion is that her active imagination is intermingling with her elevated anxiety and causing her mind to act out these things that the kids had been bulling her with. Kids are also good at blurring the distinction between dreams and reality, especially with nightmares. Some of what you said suggests she is having these episodes after waking up from a dream. Kids are also really good at convincing themselves that they can actually see what they are imagining, and that these things are almost real, which is an integral part of their playing.

Almost everyone jumps for the schizophrenia diagnosis who don't work in the field, as its the mental health issue everyone has heard about and thinks they know about. I can't count the number of worried parents I have had who were absolutely certain the child was schizophrenic, when the child clearly wasn't.

So try not to get too worried about the situation yet, and be careful of accepting a diagnosis too quickly, as they often tend to stick to a child once applied.

[NeonSamurai]

My grandson suffers from OCD (Obsessive Compulsive Disorder). He has just turned 9. It is fearful what these little ones suffer without our knowledge. He has started psychology sessions and unfortunately is on medication. He also has an obsession with zombies, but also his psychology sessions have identified a fear of water and sharks. We have no idea where these fears originated however are suspicious of some of the computer/X-box games out there. Although our daughter has always been cautious of what her children are allowed to see/play, you can't watch a child 24/7 and children at school are not necessarily so well monitored. Once again - this is a highly intelligent child - the psychiatrist has explained that his brain is working faster than the average. He is constantly counting in his head (to four) and relating 4 to bodily functions, i.e. his breathing. If he is reading out loud he has to take a big breath each time his brain counts to 4. If he bites his nails - he has to bite them 4 times - and if he accidentally bites them 5 times he has to bite them another 3 times to make a multiple of 4. When asked by the psychiatrist how he copes if for example his mother hugs him and squeezes him twice, he replied that he has to do something twice to make it up to 4, eg two shrugs of his shoulder. It is because of this that he has had to end up on medication, because human intervention cannot overcome the counting. If his mother was to hold his shoulder so he couldn't shrug it his brain would make another part of his body twitch two times to make up for it.
It is very, very sad to see small children struggle with these psychological problems. We are just very fortunate at the present time that he attends a very small rural school - only about 40 children all up - so bullying hasn't become an additional issue. Not to say it won't be when he reaches high school age. The medication is supposed to slow down his brain - he's been on medication for about a month and at this stage it doesn't seem to be making any difference. This is an additional concern as, naturally, it is not ideal for him to have to be taking meds and likelihood is that the dosage will be increased if there is no result.
So I share your distress Markus - and being an active Christian will be sending my prayers to support yourself, your niece and your family through this traumatic time.

Ya that is classic OCD. The good news is that people generally do recover from it with the help of appropriate therapy. Anyhow here is how it works... OCD is basically an anxiety disorder, the obsession is generally a feeling that is unwanted and causes the person a great deal of anxiety, to manage that anxiety the person develops compulsions which tend to be rather ritualistic and superstitious, the compulsions help alleviate the persons anxiety, and as OCD develops the rituals tend to get longer and more complex.

So for example a person starts having strong sexual desires, desires that are incompatible with that person's belief system (these feelings are very wrong), this triggers a lot of anxiety (i am a bad person for having these thoughts/feelings), this person happens to also be catholic, so to dispel the feelings, they pray the rosary and cross themselves, the anxiety decreases and the rosary develops into the compulsion. As the OCD develops, saying the rosary is no longer enough because it no longer removes the anxiety, so the person adds 8 crossings, then 16, then they do 8 backwards, and 32 forwards, and so on.

To be honest I am also a bit concerned about the medication, but I also don't know which medication it is (and I am not overly pro-medication). People with OCD are often given anti-anxiety medications, but they don't exactly "slow the mind down" (to be honest, that whole bit confuses me). So I am uncertain what the medication is. The treatment for OCD ultimately is to figure out and understand the obsession, and help the person cope with the obsession, and help them deal with their anxiety around the obsession.

Anyhow with time and the right therapy, the prognosis should be good for your grandson.

[NeonSamurai]

I should also mention. Please do not take anything I write as being a diagnosis of any kind. It is impossible for me to offer any kind of diagnosis without having met face to face with the person for a couple of sessions. While I am happy to offer suggestions or explain things like mental illness, treatment options, and treatment types, I cannot give diagnoses or make actual treatment recommendations.

[vienna]

So sorry to hear about your niece and her condition. Anxiety attacks can be a major stress for cognizant adults who experience them; I can only imagine how horrifying they can be for children who have little to no cognition of what is afflicting them. I wish the best outcome for her and for your family...


<O>

[mapuc]

I really would not jump to the schizophrenia conclusion yet, its too early in the process. First off, other than in some rare exceptions, schizophrenia is most likely to develop when a person is in their mid 20s to mid 30s. Schizophrenia (or the variations of it) is exceedingly rare in children her age, so the odds are in her favor. Also if she were schizophrenic, she would generally be seeing these hallucinations virtually all the time for the duration of her psychotic episode.

Some of this stuff is not that unusual for kids with active imaginations (which it sounds like she definitely has). My suspicion is that her active imagination is intermingling with her elevated anxiety and causing her mind to act out these things that the kids had been bulling her with. Kids are also good at blurring the distinction between dreams and reality, especially with nightmares. Some of what you said suggests she is having these episodes after waking up from a dream. Kids are also really good at convincing themselves that they can actually see what they are imagining, and that these things are almost real, which is an integral part of their playing.

Almost everyone jumps for the schizophrenia diagnosis who don't work in the field, as its the mental health issue everyone has heard about and thinks they know about. I can't count the number of worried parents I have had who were absolutely certain the child was schizophrenic, when the child clearly wasn't.

So try not to get too worried about the situation yet, and be careful of accepting a diagnosis too quickly, as they often tend to stick to a child once applied.


You are right. I made a search for the word schizophrenia and there was no bell ringing.

but a bell was ringing when I read Reece latest post.

It was like reading about my niece. Some years ago, can't remember exactly when she was very afraid of going to sleep. She was afraid of cannibals. My sister couldn't understand where she got the information from. And as Reece also wrote " his brain is working faster than the average"

The same goes for my niece, maybe her body is 10 years, her brain however seems to be older and work like she in reality was 15 or 16.

This could very well be the reason to why she seeks friendships with girls that is older than she is.

Markus

[NeonSamurai]

You are right. I made a search for the word schizophrenia and there was no bell ringing.

but a bell was ringing when I read Reece latest post.

It was like reading about my niece. Some years ago, can't remember exactly when she was very afraid of going to sleep. She was afraid of cannibals. My sister couldn't understand where she got the information from. And as Reece also wrote " his brain is working faster than the average"

The same goes for my niece, maybe her body is 10 years, her brain however seems to be older and work like she in reality was 15 or 16.

This could very well be the reason to why she seeks friendships with girls that is older than she is.

Markus

It sounds like she is going through a bit of an awkward phase, which is quite common for the more bright children. They often will try to associate with older people but will not quite fit in there either, as they lack development in other areas. Unfortunately this means they don't fit in well anywhere, and that often triggers bullying.

Please also do not jump to the conclusion that your niece has OCD, as from what you have said so far about her, she does not have any symptoms of that. What makes Reece's grandson have OCD is the counting behavior, where everything he does, has to add up to the number four, or be a multiple of four. That is the ritual component or the compulsion that makes it OCD.

I would also be very careful not to turn her situation into a medical or mental health problem yet. Most kids have all kinds of different fears, some real, some imagined, some more fantasy based ones that are actually grounded in real life fears. Like in the case of your niece, It sounds like she is afraid of death (her own death in specific), which is being expressed in all of these forms from ghosts haunting her, to cannibals coming to consume her. Some of these things are probably associated with her day to day stresses and problems with her peers.

[mapuc]

@ NeonSamurai

I copied a part of Reece post, because it was like reading about my niece.

I have not since my "homemade diagnosis" made any new because I'm not educated to do this.

My niece is home again.

The only thing I have been told is she got some kind of tool she can use, if she suffer one of these attacks again or if she feel one is on coming. Of course her mom have learned to use this tool to, so she can do it together with her daughter.

Markus

[NeonSamurai]

Glad she is back home, hopefully the tools she was taught will be helpful to her in managing her anxieties.