Jeremy: Separation Anxiety Disorder
Jeremy is a 9-year-old boy in his third grade who has encountered several difficulties in her interactions with the social world that entails playing with friends and interacting with the teachers at school. It is quite imperative to note that Jeremy has shown signs of oversensitivity and fear of social with everyone at school based on the teachers' report. Given the context of social phobia that describes the behavior of Jeremy, it is evident that Jeremy suffers from a separation anxiety disorder. As observed by Hannesdottir, Sigurjonsdottir, Njardvik, and Ollendick (2018), separation anxiety disorder is a mental health complication that arises from a horrific past experience of a person. Separation anxiety disorder is defined by the behavior of a person, especially in circumstances where a person feels insecure around other people who are either of the same age or older. The case study outlines the fact that Jeremy has had a disturbing past experience based on his health conditions of struggling with upper respiratory infections that made him miss school and classes on numerous occasions. The frightening experience that Jeremy faced comes out as a solid platform for understanding the nature of his separation anxiety disorder.
The facts of the case display the fact that Jeremy had missed school for 20 days between August and November. The concern of missing school and classes is conclusive evidence that the 9-year-old boy experienced a lack of social connection with his friends, and this outlines the reason for social phobia, as evident in the case study. Ideally, losing the social connection at such a tender age where a child is expected to experience all aspects of developmental psychology through cognitive development and by interacting with fellow friends confirms the reason for being diagnosed with the separation anxiety disorder (Kring, Davison, Neale & Johnson, 2007). Besides, the case study affirms that Jeremy experienced headaches and stomachaches every morning prior to attending school and would opt to stay at home with his mother. This scenario depicts a concern of impaired social connection and fear of being around other people based on a health condition. It is evident that Jeremy was quite sensitive about what others would say about him at school with regards to his medical condition, and as a result, he would rather prefer to stay at home with his mother. The fact that Jeremy is reluctant to play with friends outside the home based on an extreme connection with his mother is a sign of separation anxiety disorder (Mroczkowski et al., 2016). The comorbidity of social phobia displayed by Jeremy depicts a low-self-consciousness since Jeremy is not fully aware of the mental health benefits that come with social interactions.
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In as much as Jeremy is perceived to be suffering from a separation anxiety disorder, it is also evident that Jeremy experiences episodes of depression that enlightens the possibility of a mild mood disorder. The case study reveals that Jeremy showed symptoms such as sadness, diminished appetite, and suicidal ideation, which confirm the symptoms of a mild mood disorder. As noted by Hannesdottir et al. (2018), a mild mood disorder is experienced in cases where a person shows a chronic level of depression either based on his experiences with the social world, loss of a loved one, or repulsive responses arising from medical treatments. The mild mood disorder connects with the case of Jeremy based on the disclosure of intermittent statements such as "I want to die" that signifies suicidal ideation. Besides, this scenario confirms the fact that Jeremy had almost lost social connection with the society that is only experienced as impaired social functioning. Hence, the treatment justification based on his mild symptoms means that remittance should occur with the specified period, usually six months.
Jeremy's condition of separation anxiety disorder could also stem from his experiences as he grew up as idealized by the comments of his parents, considering him as a "sickly" child. In this context, the ideation of being termed as ever weak and sickly outlines the concern of fear of rejection not only by friends but also by the teachers at school. This situation proves the reason as to why Jeremy would prefer social seclusion by staying indoors with his mother rather engaging in sports activities with his peers. Additionally, the fact that Jeremy missed several school days by undergoing the treatment of upper respiratory infection could be fundamental reasoning as to why Jeremy showed low self-esteem, especially by being insecure around his friends (Kring et al., 2007). The separation anxiety disorder outlines the for focusing on issues related to developmental psychology in a bid to battle with the concern of depression that continues to cause havoc to the cognitive development of the kids in the modern society (Wilgus, Packer, Lile-King, Miller-Perrin & Brand, 2016). Jeremy tends to suffer from an anxiety disorder since he tends to ask himself several questions as appertains to his mental health complications but does not find the answer. The reality of coming into terms with the fact that even his parents do not have the capability to help him redefine his mindset and adopt a positivistic culture outlines his decision to choose to seclude himself from the social setting. The fear of rejection by society demystifies the adverse mental health complications that come with a separation anxiety disorder. Further, the case reveals Jeremy's teachers perceiving him a sensitive child denotes the kind of brain hemorrhage and psychosocial issues that the 9-year-old kid experiences.
In conclusion, it is quite imperative to affirm that Jeremy suffers from a separation anxiety disorder showed by his behaviors that are characterized by low self-esteem and low self-consciousness. Besides, Jeremy shows mild symptoms of mild mood depression as demystified by being sad all the time, diminished appetite, and suicidal ideation. Fundamentally, it is essential to note that there could be several factors that contribute to Jeremy's condition of separation anxiety disorder, and this calls for a comprehensive diagnosis in a bid to determine the treatment specification that could improve and resolve his condition (Wilgus et al., 2016). Given the context of Jeremy's age, it is remedial action needs to be taken for the reasoning of alleviating severe health complications that could arise in the foreseeable future. The fact that Jeremy is still a kid, the requisite medication or treatment specification is psychotherapy. In this case, the boy needs to be shown love by the closest people he interacts with, especially his parents, for reasons of redefining his mindset and perception about social life. Ideally, the boy lacks a person who gives him confidence about the need to explore and find his potential in life. As a result, the decision lies on the parents to find the techniques of making the boy accept his condition and make friends in a bid to boost his social life, and this entails psychotherapy (Mroczkowski et al., 2016). Furthermore, separation anxiety disorders compromise the cognitive capability of a person and make a person, and this makes a person insecure about his personality, and as a result, a person may opt to seclude himself/herself from the social world based on fear of rejection. Ultimately, given the context of the medication approach, I would recommend that Jeremy be given antidepressant and antianxiety medication based on his horrific experiences of developing suicidal ideation that comes with depression.
References
Hannesdottir, D. K., Sigurjonsdottir, S. B., Njardvik, U., & Ollendick, T. H. (2018). Do Youth with Separation Anxiety Disorder Differ in Anxiety Sensitivity From Youth with Other Anxiety Disorders?. Child Psychiatry & Human Development , 49 (6), 888-896.
Kring, A. M., Davison, G. C., Neale, J. M., & Johnson, S. L. (2007). Abnormal psychology . John Wiley & Sons Inc.
Mroczkowski, M. M., Goes, F. S., Riddle, M. A., Grados, M. A., Bienvenu, O. J., Greenberg, B. D., ... & Knowles, J. A. (2016). Dependent personality, separation anxiety disorder and other anxiety disorders in OCD. Personality and mental health , 10 (1), 22-28.
Wilgus, S. J., Packer, M. M., Lile-King, R., Miller-Perrin, C. L., & Brand, B. L. (2016). Coverage of child maltreatment in abnormal psychology textbooks: Reviewing the adequacy of the content. Psychological trauma: theory, research, practice, and policy , 8 (2), 188.
