Signs of nervous breakdowns in teenagers and what to do about it. “Execution cannot be pardoned”, or what to do if the child is nervous and naughty Nervous breakdown in a child of 5 years

Text: Ivan Belokrylov, consultant - Victoria V. Pakhomova, PhD, pediatric neurologist

The children in the preparatory classes for the school were given the task: to remember or come up with 2 lines, which are a complete poem. Sasha reacted instantly: “Let them consider me a bitch, but I resort to the bowl first!” The quote was from a book about cats - funny pictures with humorous couplets at the bottom. At home, everyone laughed at them, and the teacher began to scold them for a bad word, threatened to put them in a corner. Sasha, red as cancer and covered in tears, ran away from the lesson, and at home he said that he would not go to this kindergarten anymore. In the evening he had a fever. Under forty! The pediatrician, elderly and very experienced, after listening to the background, said: “Fever due to stress! In general, your boy has a nervous breakdown. It can manifest itself in another way - not as an emotional outburst, but as a quiet hysteria. It is very important that adults behave correctly in such cases!

Nervous breakdown: violent manifestation
A sign of a nervous breakdown hysterics. Under the influence of a stressor acting as too strong an irritant for a child nervous system(still fragile, excitable in babies), the child loses his temper: starts a fight, throws books and toys on the floor, is rude, shouts out unacceptable things.
Oddly enough, one can only rejoice at such a reaction! Psychologists usually advise in such cases to let the baby cry and scream. In the language of specialists, this is called "go through the situation". Let your child be discharged to the end. Freed from negative emotions, the child will come to his senses. Then you can calmly talk to him about what happened, discuss the situation over a cup of tea with mint, which calms the nervous system. Such tea will also benefit mommy, because she worries no less than her child! Don't worry, the worst is over. If the conflict situation in the kindergarten can be resolved by removing the traumatic factor, the hysteria will not happen again.
Do not resent the behavior of the child and do not force him to apologize for what happened to the whole group or the teacher: you cannot force him to relive it all over again! Putting a preschooler in the same conditions in which a breakdown arose means provoking a new emotional outburst. Not without reason, in such cases, a change of scenery is recommended up to the transition to another group or even to another. Kindergarten ik.

Nervous breakdown: silent tantrum
What could be worse than a nervous breakdown with screams and tears in front of the whole class? Only quiet hysteria! The child seems to turn to stone: freezes, withdraws into himself, does not answer questions, cries silently, sways from side to side or shrinks into a ball and begins to bite his nails, pull out his hair, eyebrows or eyelashes. Bad habits of this kind are classic signs of auto-aggression, which develops due to negative emotions driven inside.
Disciplined and ambitious children, future excellent students who are ahead in everything, are prone to quiet hysteria with elements of auto-aggression. Such people start reading at almost three, at four they solve problems from a textbook for first graders! But in the children's team, such geeks are not very fond of, because they envy their success and the fact that the "advanced" kid is constantly set as an example to others. Teach your child to form relationships with other children and explain that it is not good to brag about your successes. Say: “If Kolya still cannot read, then he needs help, then he will also share something with you, become your friend.”

Nervous breakdown: eat right
Pediatricians consider malnutrition to be one of the causes of children's nervous breakdowns. It turns out that the lack of vitamins (especially group B) and trace elements (in particular, zinc and magnesium), as well as preservatives contained in food and drinks (there are a lot of them in sausages, sausages, smoked meats, canned food), flavors, artificial fillers and dyes are not the best affect the metabolism of dopamine and serotonin in the child's brain. Because of this, he becomes more excitable, reacts sharply to trouble.
Worst of all, when products stuffed with chemicals cause allergies in the baby, which is accompanied by an additional release of serotonin into the blood, which increases the excited state. The list of the strongest allergens includes eggs, red caviar, fish, seafood, tomatoes, honey, nuts, red apples, citrus fruits, as well as exotic fruits such as kiwi, mango and pineapple. Be careful with them!
It's not worth talking about soda - it is contraindicated for children with a tendency to hysterical reactions. But American scientists have found that orange juice from a bag works no better. Within a day after its use, a lot of zinc is found in the urine test - this mineral of calmness is actively washed out of the body! And all because canned juice (unlike freshly squeezed) contains food coloring tartazine (E102), which has the ability to expel zinc from the body.
Disinhibit the baby and substances from the group of salicylates contained in coffee, olives, raspberries, oranges, apples, plums, strawberries, cherries and grapes. True, there are not so many of these compounds in berries and fruits, but black tea (not to mention coffee, which is generally not recommended for babies) should be excluded from the diet of a child who has experienced a nervous breakdown.
Sweets should also be limited! They cause a sharp rise in blood glucose and the secretion of the hormone insulin by the pancreas. As a result, the glucose level drops, and the body produces hormones, in particular adrenaline, which has an exciting effect on the baby.

Nervous breakdown: what to do for adults
Hysteria in a child does not arise from scratch. Usually, tension builds up for a while, when the situation in the kindergarten or at home is heating up, but the child tries to keep himself within the limits. And then…

Before the tantrum

Do not provoke the child if you see that he is already at the limit. The easiest way to avoid a breakdown is to smile or defuse the situation with some kind joke.
Switch children's attention, distract the child with something. If he is already on edge, the switching method must be very powerful. Try, for example, to portray a tantrum yourself or let one of the children do it. In the language of psychology, such a move is called the method of preventive or retaliatory aggression (depending on when it is used: before the onset of a hysterical reaction or when it is already in full swing). Someone else's false hysteria surprises the child, and he quickly calms down.

During a nervous breakdown

Apply the mirror projection method. Repeat for your son or daughter all their actions so that they can see themselves from the outside. The younger the child, the more effective this method of psychological relief. He stops hysterical and looks at you with curiosity.
Send the broken child under a cool shower. You can take it in an armful and take it to the bathroom. Or splash in the face cold water, attach a bag of frozen vegetables wrapped in a towel to your forehead. Water washes away negative energy, and cold slows down reactions, dulls emotions and acts as distraction therapy.
Don't let your child hurt yourself or others. Now he is in a state of passion: he does not understand what he is doing, does not control himself and is not responsible for his actions. Remove everything sharp and heavy from under his hands than he can throw at someone.
Leave one in the room - let him calm down, come to his senses and think about what happened. But do not lose sight of the baby, slowly watch him!

After a tantrum

Give your child sweet tea with a few drops of motherwort tincture, and when he relaxes, put him to bed. During sleep, the brain generates saving alpha waves - a natural sedative.
If your baby is nervous and vulnerable, prone to hysterical reactions, brew herbal teas with mint, motherwort, St. John's wort, lavender or fennel for a preventive purpose.
Tell an explosive child prone to aggressive reactions this technique: when he feels that he is about to break loose, let him close his eyes and take a few deep breaths through his nose and slow exhalations through his mouth with the sound “F”. Or he will begin to massage the anti-stress point on the other with the tip of the index finger of one hand in a clockwise direction. The crease between the pressed thumb and forefinger rests on this point.

Nervous breakdown: strengthen your nerves
Psychological problems are physiological causes. Give your child B vitamins, they reduce the level of stress in the child's body and prevent unwanted emotional reactions. There are many vitamins useful for the nervous system in fermented milk products, cheese, liver, heart, egg yolk, pears, peaches, tomatoes, carrots, beets, cauliflower and spinach.
Daily offer your baby a vitamin salad with folic acid contained in greens, leafy vegetables and green parts of plants. Norwegian scientists have found that in the blood of children prone to aggressive reactions, the level of the amino acid homocysteine is increased, which does not contribute to positive emotions and good behavior. Folic acid brings this indicator back to normal, helping the child to relax. No wonder it is called the vitamin of joy. It is essential for kids too!

Children are more or less unpredictable even for their parents. Sometimes it seems that the baby is simply uncontrollable and hysterical. However, what was the impetus for this - a disease of the child's central nervous system, psycho-emotional disorders, or just a desire to manipulate?

Illness or personality traits?

If a child is very nervous, then this can affect the quality of life of both himself and those around him. This term usually means tearfulness, excitability, sleep problems, disobedience, irritability, hysteria. It is very difficult to make contact with nervous children, since such a baby reacts to any remark or suggestion with violent tantrums and protests. shows that most of the problems lie in the wrong education in early childhood.

Naughty and nervous children are such intertwined concepts that sometimes it can be difficult to understand the essence of the problem without the help of qualified specialists. Some of the most common causes of disobedience in children include:

Only in last place are disorders of the child's nervous system.

Children's neuroses

The psyche of a small child is very fragile and subject to influence from outside. Against the background of numerous prohibitions, stressful situations and lack of attention, neuroses can form. This is a neuropsychiatric disorder, which is characterized by the appearance of unusual psychosomatic and behavioral symptoms. Often nervous children are precisely because of the occurrence of neuroses.

The peak of the development of the pathological condition is considered to be the age of 5-6 years, when the child begins to behave inappropriately. In some cases, neuroses appear as early as 2-3 years of age.

Causes of neurosis

Psychologists distinguish such prerequisites for the development of a pathological condition:

Also, a nervous child of 2 or more years old can become due to the death of one of the relatives, getting into a car accident.

Symptoms of a mental disorder

The first signs of disorders in the work of the nervous system of the child can be considered the following manifestations:

Attentive parents will definitely notice some changes in the behavior of the baby. It can be excessive aggressiveness both towards other children and adults, irritability, hyperexcitability. All these manifestations give rise to contacting doctors, since letting the situation take its course can turn into negative consequences future for both parents and children.

Treatment of neuroses

Therapy for a pathological condition of the nervous system is selected in a complex manner. It's important to pass full examination with a psychologist, neurologist and other related specialists. To date, there are such methods of treatment of neuroses:

Psychotherapy is aimed at solving social problems that could cause neurosis. Sessions can take place both with parents and with the child alone. The psychotherapist uses the following methods for treatment: individual treatment, family session, art therapy, the use of hypnosis, group sessions with children to improve their socialization.
Medical therapy includes phytopreparations with a calming effect, vitamin complexes, antidepressants, tranquilizers, nootropic drugs. Treatment is selected on the basis of the established severity of the course of the pathological process.
Folk remedies that are designed to calm the child's nervous system - infusions of valerian, lemon balm, motherwort.

As an additional therapy, communication with animals - dolphins, horses, dogs can be used.

Nervous tics

Unfortunately, psychological problems do not end with neuroses. Doctors note that every nervous child from 3 to 18 years old can be nervous because of tics. There is evidence that almost one in five children experienced similar phenomena. For convenience, experts have divided the types of nervous tics into 3 groups:

According to the severity, there are local (one group of muscles is involved) and mixed (nervous tics of several types at once).

Causes of nervous tics

Specialists distinguish between primary and secondary pathological conditions. The first group is associated with such factors:

deficiency in the body of such important trace elements as magnesium and calcium;
emotional upheavals - stressful situations, severe punishments from parents, fear, lack of love and affection;
stress on the central nervous system that occurs due to the use a large number tea, coffee, energy drinks. Most often, adolescents from 12 to 18 years old suffer from this;
overwork on the background of large training loads, prolonged use of a computer, watching TV;
unfavorable heredity.

Secondary nervous tics can develop against the background serious illnesses, such as:

Tourette's syndrome;
encephalitis;
craniocerebral injuries of both closed (concussion) and open types;
a brain tumor;
congenital diseases nervous system.

Most often, nervous tics appear during the period of wakefulness of the child, while sleep can be called relatively calm.

Therapy for nervous tics

Condition requires medical care in the following cases:

nervous tic did not go away on its own within a month;
pathology causes the baby any inconvenience;
severe severity of symptoms or a combination of several varieties of tics.

In most cases, it is easy to treat if their causes were associated with psychosomatics. In more severe cases, the problem may remain forever.

Therapy for nervous tick psychological type is prescribed similar to the treatment of neuroses. It is necessary to choose a complex of soothing medications, as well as conduct several sessions with a qualified psychotherapist. In some cases it is enough folk treatment in the form of soothing tinctures of valerian, lemon balm, motherwort or aromatherapy through baths with essential oils lavender, mint.

Treatment of secondary tics caused by injuries or diseases should be started only under the supervision of a doctor who will reveal the true diagnosis and prescribe competent therapy.

Rules of conduct for parents

Nervous children are most often precisely the fault of their own mothers and fathers. Psychologists advise that in order to get rid of problems, it is necessary not only to show the baby to a specialist, but also to reconsider your own behavior model:

In addition, it is important not to show your own negative emotions, as babies can adopt this behavior pattern.

Daily routine and nutrition

A nervous child aged 3 or more should have a special daily rhythm. Psychologists give several important recommendations on this matter:

in classes that require mental activity, it is necessary to take breaks for 15 minutes every 20 minutes;
nutrition should be as balanced as possible to compensate for the lack of vitamins and trace elements;
drinks such as cocoa, coffee, strong tea should be excluded from the diet - they excite the nervous system.

It is necessary to devote a lot of time to physiotherapy, such as hardening. However, this should be done under the supervision of a pediatrician.

Age features

Treatment nervous child not always necessary, as these may be developmental features:

Parents should "grow up" with their own child, take into account his characteristics and communicate with him on an equal footing from childhood. This is the only way to maintain trust and peace in the family.

A nervous child a year or later can bring a lot of trouble, so sometimes it is easier to prevent the development of mental disorders than to treat them. Psychologists give several recommendations about this:

regardless of the situation, it is necessary to remain calm, since the nervousness of the mother is transmitted to the child, especially for young children;
it is important to teach a son or daughter to apologize for misconduct, but it is just as important to ask for forgiveness from a baby;
to raise calm offspring, you need to be patient;
you need to set a positive example with your own actions;
do not put the interests of the child above all else;
It is important to give your child the right to choose.

In addition, children of any age are in dire need of the care and love of their parents.

Conclusion

The nervousness of children is most often associated with mistakes in their upbringing or external factors. Such situations can be easily corrected only by adjusting your own behavior towards the baby. However, when serious mental pathologies their treatment should not be ignored, as this can turn into serious problems in the future.

Update: December 2018

Neuroses are special pathologies of the nervous system, both among adults and among children, in which there are no visible injuries (injuries, infections, inflammation, and other influences). In this case, there are special deviations in the functioning of higher nervous processes. These are diseases of a psychogenic nature - a person's reaction to stress, mental trauma, and negative influences.

The process of personality formation and the active development of higher nervous activity in children begins from birth, but it begins most actively from the age of three. Quite crumbs cannot clearly express their fears, emotions or internal state, therefore, as such, neuroses can be identified in general terms in a child after 3 years. How older child, the more typical and brighter will be the manifestations, especially the behavioral and emotional plan.

Neurosis is not a mental illness, like schizophrenia or psychosis, with it there is no progressive disintegration of the personality, it is a reversible disorder of the nervous system, a disturbance in mental activity of a functional nature.

With neurosis, the nervous system experiences either a sharp and strong shock, or a prolonged, obsessive irritation. At the same time, failures begin in it, expressed in mood instability with fears, anxieties, and sometimes manifestations from the organs and systems of the body (excessive sweating, problems with appetite or palpitations).

Why do neuroses arise?

Both preschool children and schoolchildren and adolescents have a particularly vulnerable nervous system due to the fact that it is not yet fully formed and immature, they have little life experience in stressful situations, they cannot adequately and accurately express their emotions.

Some parents, due to employment and other factors, often do not pay attention to the manifestations of nervous disorders in children, attributing changes in behavior to age-related characteristics or whims.

But if the child is not helped in time with neurosis, the situation can drag on, affect physical health and problems in communicating with others, developing into neurotic states in a teenager. As a result, neurosis will be the cause of already irreversible psychological changes in the personality.

The most significant factor in the increase in neurosis in children today is the increase in the number of pathologies of pregnancy and childbirth, in which hypoxia of the nervous tissues of the fetus occurs (see.

Predisposing factors for the development of neuroses are:

predisposition to problems of the nervous system, inherited from parents
psychotraumatic situations, catastrophes, stresses

The trigger mechanism for neurosis can be:

past illnesses
frequent lack of sleep, physical or mental stress
difficult family relationships

The course of the disease and its severity depends on:

gender and age of the child
features of education
type of constitution (asthenics, hyper- and normosthenics)
temperament features (choleric, phlegmatic, etc.)

Psychotrauma

Psychotrauma - a change in the child's consciousness due to any events that greatly disturb him, suppress or oppress him, have an extremely negative effect. These can be both long-acting situations to which the child cannot adapt without problems, or acute, severe mental trauma. Often, traumas received in childhood, even if the neurosis has passed, leave their mark on adult life in the form of phobias (fear of enclosed spaces, heights, etc.).

Neurosis can be formed under the influence of one unfavorable traumatic fact: a fire, war, abrupt relocation, accident, divorce of parents, etc.
Sometimes the development of neurosis is caused simultaneously by several factors.

Children react differently to events due to temperament and personality traits, for some a dog barking on the street will be just a sound irritant, and in a child predisposed to neurosis it can become a trigger for the formation of neurosis. And already repeated meetings with dogs after the first shock that launched the neurosis will gradually aggravate the situation and deepen the neurosis.

The type of psychotrauma that can provoke neurosis in children depends on the age of the child.

At 2 years old, children can give neuroses when they are separated from their parents or when they start visiting children's groups.
For older children, a more serious factor can be a divorce of parents, physical punishment during education, and strong fear.

Crisis ages in the development of neuroses are the ages of three and seven years - when the age-related so-called "crisis of three years" and "seven years" occurs. During these periods, the formation of one's "I" and a reassessment of one's attitude towards oneself take place, and during these periods children are most vulnerable to stress factors.

What most often provokes neurosis in children?

Adult actions

One of the main provocative causes of childhood neurosis is the actions of adults, parental educational mistakes that give neurotic reactions, and in the future, the formation of psychological instability of the personality of an adult. Particularly negative parenting patterns would be:

rejection model, subconscious unwillingness to raise a child, in the case when, for example, they wanted a boy, but a girl was born
overprotection model with the development of unwillingness to teach the child independence and building relationships in a team
authoritarian model with the requirements of constant submission to the elders, making decisions instead of the child, and not taking into account his opinion
permissiveness model with the complete deprivation of the child of control or help from parents, with the absence of any norms and order within the family and the team.
different parenting approaches
excessive rigidity parents
family conflicts- intra-family troubles, divorces, quarrels.

They fall on the "fertile ground" of the immaturity of the nervous system of children, while the child experiences this, since in reality he cannot influence the situation and change it.

External factors

lifestyle changes– moving from the city to the village, to an unusual area, to another country
visiting a new children's group- the beginning of a visit to a kindergarten, a change in a kindergarten, the beginning of a visit to a school, a change of school, as well as conflicts in a kindergarten or school group
family changes- the birth of a child, an adopted child, the appearance of a stepfather or stepmother, the divorce of parents.

Most often, neuroses are formed under the combined influence of several factors at once, and a child's neurosis is unlikely to develop in a child from a prosperous family, even after strong fear or fright. Parents in such a situation usually help to quickly cope with the problem without upsetting the nervous system.

Features of the character of the child

Children with pronounced emotionality, sensitivity- they especially need the love and attention of loved ones, the manifestation of emotions in relation to them. If children do not receive these emotions from their loved ones, they experience fears that they are not loved, that they do not express emotions towards them.

Children with leadership qualities- it is also difficult with children who are independent and actively show their own opinion, leadership qualities. Such children have a pronounced conceit in deeds or actions, their own view of all events. They find it difficult to endure restrictions in their actions and parental dictatorship, they have a hard time with excessive guardianship and limitation of independence from an early age. Children try to protest such parental actions, to become stubborn, for which they receive restrictions and punishments from their parents. This will contribute to the development of neuroses.

Weak, sickly children- children are at risk of neurosis, often ill and weakened, often they are treated like a “crystal vase”, protecting them from everything above all measures. These children develop a sense of their own helplessness and weakness.

Children from disadvantaged families- children who are in difficult situations also suffer from neurosis life situations: in asocial families, in boarding schools and orphanages.

General manifestations of neuroses

changing children's behavior
emergence of new traits
hypersensitivity, frequent tears even for no apparent reason
sharp reactions to minor psychological trauma in the form of despair or aggression
anxiety, vulnerability.

There are also changes at the level of somatic health of children:

tachycardia and changes in blood pressure
breathing problems, sweating
indigestion to stress - "bear disease"
impaired concentration
memory loss
children react poorly to loud noises and bright lights
they do not sleep well, their sleep is disturbing and of poor quality in the morning it is difficult to wake them up.

Manifestations of different types of neuroses in children

There are quite a few types of neurosis in children, different psychological and neurological schools give different classifications. Consider the simplest classification of neuroses according to their clinical manifestation.

Anxiety neurosis or fear neurosis

It can manifest itself in the form of attacks of fear, which often occur when falling asleep or alone, can sometimes be accompanied by visions. Children's fears different ages may be different:

among preschoolers widespread fears of leaving alone in the house, fear of the dark, characters of scary cartoons or films, programs. Often, parents themselves cultivate fears, scaring children for educational purposes with frightening characters - a babai, an evil witch, a policeman.
in younger students it can be fears of school or bad grades, a strict teacher or older students. Often these children skip classes because of fears.

Manifestations of this neurosis can give a bad mood, unwillingness to be alone, changes in behavior, in difficult cases, urinary incontinence joins. Often such a neurosis occurs in sensitive domestic children who had little contact with their peers at preschool age.

Obsessive compulsive disorder in children

It can proceed in the form of a neurosis of obsessive actions (obsessions) or a phobic neurosis, as well as with the presence of both phobias and obsessive actions at the same time.

obsessive actions- involuntary movements that occur during emotional stress against the wishes of the baby, he can:

blink, blink
wrinkle your nose
shudder
stomp one's foot
cough
to sniff

A nervous tic is an involuntary twitching that occurs more often in boys, triggered by both psychological factors and the presence of certain diseases. Initially justified actions against an unfavorable background are then fixed as obsessions:

With eye diseases, habits of blinking, blinking, rubbing the eyes can be fixed.
With frequent colds and inflammation of the upper respiratory tract sniffing or coughing may persist.

They usually appear after 5 years of age. These tics affect the facial muscles, neck, upper limbs, may be from the side respiratory system, combined with urinary incontinence or. Such repetitive actions of the same type can cause discomfort to the child, but most often they become habitual, he does not notice them. .

As a rule, the tendency to neurosis is laid from an early age, when stressful habitual pathological actions are formed and consolidated:

nail biting or thumb sucking
touching the genitals
rocking of the trunk or limbs
twisting hair around your fingers or pulling it out.

If such actions are not remedied in early age, they contribute to neurosis against the background of stress already in older children.

Phobic manifestations usually expressed as a particular fear:

fear of death or illness
closed spaces
various objects, dirt.

Often children form special thoughts or ideas that are contrary to the principles of education and morality, and these thoughts create anxieties and feelings, fears in them.

Depressive neuroses

For kids, they are not typical, usually children at school age are prone to them, especially during puberty. The child tends to be alone, withdraws from others, is constantly in a depressed mood with tearfulness and a decrease in self-esteem. Physical activity may also decrease, insomnia occurs, appetite worsens, facial expressions are inexpressive, speech is quiet and scarce, constantly sadness on the face. Such a state requires special attention because it can lead to serious consequences.

Hysterical neuroses

Preschoolers are prone to them, with a discrepancy between the desired and the actual. They usually give falls with screams and screams on the floor or surfaces, beating limbs and head against solid objects. There may be attacks of affect with imaginary suffocation or hysterical coughing, vomiting, if the child is punished or does not do what he wants. Older children may experience analogues of hysteria in the form of hysterical blindness, skin sensitivity disorders, respiratory disorders.

Neurasthenia

She is also called asthenic neurosis, occurs in schoolchildren as a result of excessive loads of the school itself or an excess of additional circles. It often occurs against the background of a general weakness of children due to frequent illnesses or lack of physical fitness. Such children are disinhibited and restless, they get tired quickly, are irritable and often cry, they may sleep and eat poorly.

Hypochondria

Children are concerned about their condition and health, unmotivated fears of the formation various diseases, this often occurs among adolescents with a suspicious character. They look for symptoms and manifestations of various ailments, worrying about it, nervous and upset.

Neurotic logoneurosis - stuttering

Stuttering or logonerosis of a neurotic nature is more typical for boys under five years of age during the period of active development of speech, the formation of a phrasal conversation. It occurs against the background of psychological trauma against the background of family scandals, separation from loved ones, acute psychological trauma or fear, fright. Information overload and parental coercion of speech development and general development may also be causes. The child's speech becomes intermittent with pauses, repetition of syllables and the inability to pronounce words.

Somnambulism - sleepwalking, sleepwalking

Neurotic sleep disorders can occur in the form of a long and difficult falling asleep, restless and disturbing sleep with frequent waking, having nightmares and night terrors, talking in sleep and walking at night. Sleepwalking and sleep-talking are associated with the peculiarities of dreams and the functioning of the nervous system. Often in children it happens from the age of 4-5 years. Children in the morning may not remember that they walked or talked at night. .

Anorexia nervosa

Appetite disorders in childhood are common in both preschoolers and adolescents. Usually the reasons are overfeeding or forced feeding, the coincidence of meals with scandals and quarrels in the family, severe stress. At the same time, the child may refuse any food or some of its types, he chews for a long time and does not swallow food, he is extremely suspicious of the contents of the plate, up to the gag reflex. At the same time, against the background of poor nutrition, mood changes, whims at the table, crying and tantrums are expressed.

Separate variants of neuroses are:

children's neurotic enuresis (urinary incontinence)
encopresis (fecal incontinence).

They arise against the background of a hereditary predisposition and, possibly, diseases. They require a special approach in treatment, and the mechanisms are not yet fully understood.

How to make a diagnosis?

First of all, you should go to an appointment with a pediatrician or neurologist, talk with an experienced psychologist and psychotherapist. Doctors examine and remove the organic causes of disorders, diseases that could lead to this. Neurosis is diagnosed in several stages:

Dialogue with parents a detailed analysis of the psychological situation in the family is carried out, and here it is important to tell the specialist frankly all the details: the relationship in the family between parents and the child, the parents themselves, as well as the relationship between the child and peers, relatives.
Parent surveys and close relatives who are directly involved in the upbringing of the child, the study of the psychological climate of the family with the identification of errors in behavior and upbringing.
Conversations with a child- a cycle of conversations with the child during the game and communication on pre-designed questions.
Baby monitoring- detailed observation of the child's play activity, which occurs spontaneously or is organized in advance.
Drawing and detailed analysis of drawings, by which it is often possible to understand the experiences and feelings of the child, his desires and emotional state.

Based on all this, a conclusion is made about the presence and type of neurosis, then a detailed treatment plan is developed. Usually psychotherapists or psychologists are engaged in therapy, treatment is carried out on an outpatient basis and at home, it is not necessary to put a child with neurosis in the hospital.

Treatment methods for neurosis

In the treatment of neurosis in children, the main method is psychotherapy. It is important for parents to understand that on their own, with the help of books, the Internet or toys, they will achieve a little, and sometimes they can do harm, aggravating the course of neurosis. Psychotherapy is a complex systemic impact on the child's psyche and the characteristics of his character; in the treatment of neurosis, it has several directions:

group and individual therapy for the study and correction of the psychological climate of the family
role-playing games with the participation of the child, helping to teach him to overcome difficult situations
application of art therapy(drawing) and drawing up a psychological portrait of the child according to the drawings, tracking the dynamics of changing the drawings
hypnosis - suggestion (autogenic training)
treatment through communication with animals– canistherapy (dogs), feline therapy (cats), (horses), dolphin therapy.

Psychotherapy is aimed at normalizing or significantly improving the intra-family environment and relationships, and correcting upbringing. Additionally, to correct the psychosomatic background and achieve b about Greater success in psychotherapy is also used medications, reflexology and physiotherapy. An individual treatment plan is developed only by a specialist for each child separately, and, if necessary, for family members.

The use of psychotherapy

They use both group and individual or family psychotherapy. Of particular importance in the treatment of neuroses is the family form of psychotherapy. During the sessions, the doctor directly reveals the problems in the life of the child and his family, helps in eliminating emotional problems, normalizes the system of relationships and corrects the manner of education. Work in the family with preschool children will be especially effective when its effect is maximum and it is easiest to eliminate the negative impact of the main mistakes in education.

Family Therapy

It is carried out in several successive stages:

Stage 1 - a survey is carried out in the family and the so-called "family diagnosis" is made in the total set of personal, social and psychological features, deviations in any areas of relationships with the child.
Stage 2 - there is a family discussion of problems with parents and relatives, all their problems are noted. During the conversations, the role in the upbringing of parents is emphasized, the need for cooperation with a specialist, and the perspective in the pedagogical approach is determined.
Stage 3 - followed by classes with the child in a special equipped playroom, where there are toys, writing instruments and other items. Initially, the child is given time for independent games, reading or classes, as soon as emotional contact is established, a conversation will be held in a playful way.
Stage 4 - joint psychotherapy of the child and parents. Preschoolers conduct joint activities with subject games, buildings or drawing, schoolchildren introduce subject games and discussions on various topics. The specialist evaluates habitual conflicts and emotional reactions in the interaction of children and parents. Then the emphasis switches to role-playing games, which express the communication of children in life - games in a family or school. Scenarios are used that are played out by parents and children who are interchanged, and the psychotherapist during these games will demonstrate the most optimal models in family relationships. This gradually creates the conditions for rebuilding family relationships and eliminating conflict.

Individual psychotherapy

It is carried out using numerous techniques that have a complex effect on the child. It uses the following methods:

Rational (explaining)

The doctor conducts explanatory therapy by sequentially passing through the stages. In an age-appropriate form for the child, after he establishes a trusting and emotional contact with him, he tells why and what is happening to the child. Then, in the form of a game or in the form of a conversation in the next stage, he tries to determine the sources of the baby's experiences. The next stage will be a kind of " homework"- this is the end of the story or fairy tale begun by the doctor, where analyzing different variants at the end of the story, attempts are made to resolve difficult situations, conflicts, either by the child himself, or with the help and prompting of a doctor. Even very small successes in mastering situations, with the approval of the doctor, can contribute to the further improvement of relations and the correction of pathological traits in character.

Art therapy

Art therapy in the form of drawing or modeling can sometimes give much more information about the child than all other methods. When drawing, the child begins to understand his fears and experiences, and watching him in the process can provide a lot of necessary information in terms of character, sociability, fantasy and potential. It will be informative to draw on the topics of the family, reflections of fears, experiences. Sometimes sculpting or paper appliqué techniques are used instead. Often, according to the pictures, you can get a lot of hidden information, and also work out his fear with the child from the story about the picture.

play therapy

It is used in children under 10-12 years of age, when they feel the need for games, but at the same time, games are organized according to a special plan and emotional participation in them and a psychotherapist, taking into account the ability of children to reincarnate. They can be used as spontaneous observation games, so directed, without improvisation. In games, you can work out the skills of communication, motor and emotional self-expression, relieving stress and eliminating fear. The doctor during the game creates situations of stress, dispute, fear, accusations and gives the child the opportunity to exit independently or with his help. Especially well neuroses are treated with this method at the age of 7 years.

A variant of play therapy is fairy tale therapy, in which fairy tales are invented and told with the manufacture of special characters, puppets or puppets. Special therapeutic tales can be listened to in the form of meditation, to calm music in a lying position. There may also be psycho-dynamic fairy tale meditations with the reincarnation of a child in animals and exercises.

Autogenic training

Treatment with autogenic training is carried out in adolescents - this is a method of muscle relaxation, especially effective for systemic neuroses with stuttering, tics, urinary incontinence. Creating a positive attitude through the speech and actions of the doctor (for example, imagine yourself in the most pleasant place) leads to muscle relaxation, reduction or even complete disappearance of manifestations. As the sessions progress, this state is fixed in the subconscious, the belief that it is quite possible to recover increases.

Suggestive (method of suggestion) psychotherapy

This is a suggestion to a child in a state of wakefulness, under hypnosis or indirect suggestion of certain attitudes. Often, children are good at suggestion indirectly - for example, taking a placebo will give them a recovery. At the same time, they will think that they are taking special effective drug. The method is especially good for hypochondria, at school and adolescence.

Hypnosis

Hypnotherapy is used only in particularly difficult cases in order to mobilize the psychological and physiological resources of the body. It quickly eliminates certain symptoms. But the method has many contraindications and is used to a limited extent in children.

Group psychotherapy

It is indicated in special cases of neurosis, it includes:

prolonged course of neurosis with adverse personality changes - elevated level demands on oneself, self-centeredness
difficulties in communication and related disorders - shyness, timidity, shyness, suspiciousness
in difficult family conflicts, the need to resolve them.

Groups are formed as individual therapy by age, there are few children in the group:

under the age of 5 years - no more than 4 people
aged 6 to 10 years - no more than 6 people
at the age of 11-14 years - up to 8 people.

Classes last up to 45 minutes for preschoolers and up to an hour and a half for schoolchildren. This allows you to play complex stories and involve all group members in them. Grouped children visit exhibitions and museums, read interesting books, discuss all this, share their hobbies. Thus, the child's tension is relieved, the children open up and begin to communicate, share their sore and experiences.

In comparison with the individual, the effect of group training is greater. Spontaneous and specialist-guided games are gradually introduced, training of mental functions begins, adolescents are taught self-control. As homework, various kinds of tests with drawings are used, which are subsequently discussed in the group.

In the classroom, relaxation and suggestion of positive personality traits acquired in the classroom are carried out. At the end of the course, a general discussion and consolidation of the results is held, which helps the child to work independently on himself in the future.

Medical correction

Drug therapy in the treatment of neuroses is of secondary importance, while it affects certain symptoms. Drugs relieve tension, excessive excitability or depression, reduce the manifestations of asthenia. Medication usually precedes psychotherapy, but may also complex treatment when psychotherapy is carried out in conjunction with physiotherapy and medications. Especially important drug treatment neurosis on the background of encephalopathy, asthenia, neuropathy:

fortifying drugs - vitamin C, group B
dehydration herbal medicine -, kidney tea
nootropic drugs - nootropil, piracetam
drugs that reduce asthenia - depending on the cause and type, the doctor will select
herbal medicine (see), tinctures from medicinal herbs can be prescribed for up to one and a half months. Most drugs have a sedative effect - motherwort, valerian.

With asthenic manifestations tonic and restorative treatment is recommended: calcium preparations, vitamins, tincture of Chinese magnolia vine or zamanihi, lipocerbin, nootropics (nootropil, pantogam).

With subdepressive manifestations tinctures of ginseng, aralia, eleutherococcus can be shown.

For irritability and weakness good effect possess Pavlova's mixture and tinctures of motherwort and valerian, use coniferous baths, physiotherapy in the form of electrosleep.

C will be more difficult, they can make psychotherapy difficult. They are used for hyperactivity and disinhibition based on the characteristics of the child and the diagnosis:

hypersthenic syndrome - drugs with a sedative effect (eunoctin, elenium)
with hyposthenia - drugs of tranquilizers with an activating effect (trioxazine or seduxen).
with subthreshold depression, small doses of antidepressants can be prescribed: amitriptyline, melipramine.
with strong excitability, sonopax can be used.

All drugs are prescribed exclusively by a doctor, and are used strictly under his supervision.

We are accustomed to write off the unusual behavior of the child as whims, poor upbringing or transitional age. But it may not be as harmless as it seems at first glance. This can mask symptoms. nervous breakdown child.

How can neuropsychiatric disorders manifest themselves in children, how to recognize psychological trauma, and what do parents need to pay attention to?

The health of the child is a natural concern of parents, often already from the period of pregnancy. Cough, snot, fever, sore stomach, rash - and we run to the doctor, look for information on the Internet, buy medicines.

But there are also non-obvious symptoms of ill-health, to which we are accustomed to turn a blind eye, believing that the child will "outgrow", "this is all the wrong upbringing", or "he just has such a character."

Usually these symptoms are manifested in behavior. If you notice that the child behaves strangely, this may be one of the symptoms of a nervous breakdown. Doesn't make eye contact, doesn't talk, often has tantrums, cries all the time or is sad, doesn't play with other children, is aggressive at the slightest provocation, hyperexcitable, has poor attention span, ignores behavior rules, is shy, overly passive, has tics, obsessive movements, stuttering, enuresis, frequent nightmares.

The behavior of each child is to some extent unpredictable and even incomprehensible to parents. True, few people are concerned about this state of affairs. The fact that the child is very nervous is often attributed to the peculiarities of age, they hope that he will outgrow it. Moreover, some even encourage the harmfulness and whims of the baby, as they try to give him everything he needs.

In any case, raising a child is a responsible and difficult task that parents must perform. On their shoulders lies the burden of socialization, which adapts the little person to an independent life, communication with other people and proper behavior.

If children consistently disobey their parents, are constantly naughty, behave nervously and even aggressively, regardless of their upbringing, you should definitely consult a doctor. These symptoms may indicate the development of neurosis, which must be treated.

Why is the child not listening?

No matter how old a toddler or even a schoolboy is, nervous behavior and disobedience can have common roots. All the reasons that cause a similar picture in children are psychogenic and are associated with the characteristics of the child's psyche.

An important role is played by increased nervous excitability in a child. This is a physiological quality that affects the rate of response, the temperament of a person. The excitability of the nervous system controls the strength of affective reactions and nervous breakdowns in children.

It is known that some children are actually born as such and misbehave from a very young age. Others, on the contrary, at some point become naughty, aggressive. In the first case, these are the innate features of a small personality that is just being formed. In the second, the reaction to external conditions, upbringing or some events in the life of the family.

Such behavior can be observed constantly, as a component of character, and can form seizures. Nervous breakdowns in children are the result of accumulated psycho-emotional stress, which is trying to find a way out.

In each individual case of children's whims, tantrums and even tears, there is a subconscious factor that explains why the child is nervous.

It is important to be able to recognize these factors and correct behavior in time. Otherwise, it will carry over into adulthood.

The main factors that can cause changes in children's behavior are:

Lack of attention. Often, nervous children feel an urgent need to communicate with other people, they need interaction even when they are not yet able to speak. Often, at the age of up to 3 years, parents behave with the baby, as with an ordinary doll that needs to be washed, fed, dressed and put to bed. Possibly at the pace modern world there is not enough time for communication or not enough attention is paid to this, but the general trends indicate that children have begun to talk less. This connection, which is so necessary for the baby, is replaced by expensive toys, constructors and cartoons, fairy tales are read through headphones, educational lessons are assigned to children's cartoons and series. Thus, children do not receive the attention they need from others and try to achieve this in any way possible.
Significance. Even the youngest children need recognition for their own opinion. The constant imposition of one's instructions on the child leads to a belittling of the significance of the child's personality. Even under the age of 3, babies need self-expression, they begin to realize their individuality, identify themselves with other people and demand an appropriate attitude from them. If a child is treated as a weak-willed person, they do not ask for opinions and in every possible way downplay his importance, this can cause a rebellious response. A constant commanding tone, a leadership attitude towards the baby will provoke changes in behavior.
Self-esteem. Importance for the child has also self-confidence. In childhood, self-esteem is quite fragile and easily influenced by outside opinions. If you often tell the baby that he is incapable, flawed or naughty, accordingly, his behavior will be equal to these opinions. That is why the words thrown out of anger towards the child are quickly forgotten by the parents, but are remembered by the children for a very long time. If good actions are not judged by praise, the nervous child does not feel the need to do the right thing and stick to the rules.
Revenge. For a child, psycho-emotional reactions are quite simple and are not analyzed. If you offend him, he will want revenge. If you praise, accordingly, he will try to please again. It must be remembered that a child's self-giving is always several times stronger. Ordinary resentment can turn into rebellious behavior, disobedience. If the child suddenly began to act up, behave aggressively, you should pay attention to whether he is offended. It must be remembered that even parents make mistakes and the usual apologies to the child do not diminish their reputation in any way, but show a good example of behavior.

Be sure to take into account that such symptoms are included in mental disorders. childhood. Therefore, if the situation worsens, you need to seek help from a doctor.

Features of each age period

Bad behavior, whims and even performances that the child arranges from time to time are signs of disobedience and nervousness in children.

Depending on the specific age, certain behavioral changes are observed. You should also take into account the features and stages of personality development that take place in childhood:

Up to 3 years. Most often, if the child is nervous in this period, this is an innate behavioral feature. The baby is constantly crying, mischievous, sleep disturbances are observed. In some cases, there may be an allergy to nerves in a child. The birth of a younger brother or sister in the family is also of great importance. Then attention to the elder is significantly reduced, the role of an older person in the family is transferred to him, and this is not always to the liking of the child himself. He begins to get nervous, worried, trying by any means to attract attention. Often, children will say that they have a stomach ache or exacerbate other symptoms to evoke sympathy. In some cases, they even learn to manipulate other people with the help of tears, whims and a nervous state.
From 3 to 4 years. It represents the early preschool period, which is characterized by the knowledge of not oneself, but the world around. The child asks a lot of questions, is interested in everything that surrounds him, gets acquainted with other rules of society, in addition to those restrictions that parents set. Also at the age of 3-4 years, he begins to interact with other children, goes to kindergarten or circles, begins to identify himself with certain groups of people. Usually, rebellious manifestations, stubbornness and meaningless ultimatums are observed. The child begins to resist what others say, doing everything opposite to the instructions. At 3-4 years old, such negativism indicates the resistance that he is trying to create as a way to influence his life.
From 5 to 7 years. At this age, the child belongs to the senior preschool period. He is quite calm and there are practically no nervous breakdowns in children over these 3 years. It is mainly cognitive processes that develop that stimulate the child to study, he begins to understand his success and capabilities, tries to prove that he is better and works on it. The spirit of competition is strong, so failure in the process of learning something or even in games can lead to a change in the child's behavior.
From 8 to 10 years. During this time, learning and learning about the new world have time to leave their mark on the impressions of the child. Awareness of oneself as a part of society is formed, one's opinion is developed about important philosophical issues. During this period, latent aggression may appear, which the child splashes out at home or in the classroom. Bad behavior is observed as a consequence of incorrectly chosen ideals. Up to 10 years, this is not scary and it is easy for parents to adjust on their own.
From 10 years to 16. In fact, this group includes children and adolescents who have a certain degree of freedom of action. They are able to react very sharply to adverse conditions, some situations in their lives. For children from 10 to 16 years old, almost every problem is seen as terrible and insoluble, and therefore their actions are full of demonstrativeness and radicalism. You need to be especially careful, since behavioral changes are accompanied by hormonal changes, mood swings.

Absolutely all parents sooner or later face the problem of one or more difficult periods in the life of their child. At first, of course, they try to turn a blind eye to this, but when changes in behavior get out of control, something needs to be done about it. Every parent should know how to deal with a nervous child so as not to make the situation worse.

The most important thing is to avoid nervous breakdowns in your child. They can be dangerous, both for children and for others. That is why, in raising nervous children, you need to follow a few doctor's advice:

Calm. It is strictly forbidden to break loose on a child or take out your anger with aggressive behavior. You should share all working moments and remember about education before yelling at children for your bad mood.
Apologies. One of the important forms of interaction between parents and a child. Thereby, small man learns what a mistake is and why it should not be repeated. In addition, if the parents apologize, he realizes the importance of asking for forgiveness.
Patience. An important trait of a good parent. It is not immediately possible to teach a child to behave correctly or to convey to him the right idea. In most cases, this takes patience and time. The whims, stubbornness of the child is his way of speaking out and this should be respected. If you are patient with such manifestations, you can see the hidden message in such behavior.
Example. Children inherit the behavior of their parents constantly, because they are the only link with the outside world. If the father or mother behaves incorrectly, defiantly, use obscene language, very soon the child will do the same. Therefore, it is important to take care not only of children, but also of yourself.
Roles. You can not spoil the child immensely and put him at the center of the family. The importance of each person to whom he is related should be distributed. The child must understand that he should not always get all the attention, be able to share and calmly perceive that he is far from the only concern of his parents.
Choice. It is important that children feel their importance and importance. You can't make all the decisions for them. Even at the age of three, you need to ask the baby what he would like for dinner, how he would like to dress. Naturally, these desires must pass criticism, but it must be explained why this time they did not listen to him.
Refusal. Each prohibition or rule that is established regarding children must be clearly argued. “Because I said so” is completely inappropriate for a child. To avoid similar situations next time, you should explain what exactly is considered incorrect in this pattern of behavior. So that refusals and rules are not perceived too sharply, you should set up a trusting relationship with the child, create authority, endearing yourself, and not intimidating.
Communication. Contact and confidential conversation are of great importance even if it is an infant. Children and their ideas about the world are very fragile, so a trusting relationship with their parents will form a strong support circuit. Only after talking, you can understand how to raise a nervous child correctly. It is categorically impossible to shift such children and their upbringing onto the shoulders of teachers in kindergartens and schools. A close relative will quickly find the way that will help the child open up.

Children are inherently prone to changeable behavior and affective reactions, their mental processes are not yet mature and are just beginning to function. That is why, every parent should know what to do if his child is nervous and naughty. If increased excitability is not noticed and corrected in time, a child may develop hyperkinetic syndrome, which is considered a mental spectrum disease and needs qualified help.