Ask Lisa: The Psychology of Raising Tweens & Teens  cover image

94: My Clingy Teen Hates Going to School. How Do I Help?

Ask Lisa: The Psychology of Raising Tweens & Teens

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Separation Anxiety in Younger Kids

The way we have thought about separation anxiety is that it can be accounted for by very high levels of anxiety overall where a kid only feels safe in the parent's presence. The other explanation that has been useful to me clinically and that I want parents to have again, especially when we're thinking about younger kids is that sometimes a child who is struggling to separate from their parents is mad about something. And through an unconscious process, sometimes kids will cling to their parents as a way to deal with their angry feelings. So understanding that in separation anxiety, especially for little kids, feeling mad about something or frustrated about something can be an element opens up a path for intervention.

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