Helping Children Cope

There can be many reasons for your child's behavior and it is not always easy to recognize why your child is behaving in an unusual way. Here are some signs to look for if you suspect your child may be in need of increased parental or professional support.

• An exaggeration of normal responses
• Verbalizing despair (maybe I should just kill myself so you and dad don’t have to fight)
• Accident proneness
• Giving away their possessions
• Withdrawal to the point of isolation
• Significant weight loss or gain
• Extended change in sleeping and/or eating habits
• Frequent nightmares
• Preoccupation with illness of self and others
• School troubles (changes in peer relations, classroom behavior and/or academic performance)
• Lying
• Destroying own and other people’s property
• Deliberately hurting or wounding themselves
• Significant change in personality over time (quiet child becomes hyperactive or an outgoing child withdraws)
• Refusing to stay with formally trusted adults
• Explosive behavior (rages, screams, tantrums)
• Stealing
• Running away from home
• Health complaints and health changes (frequent headaches, stomach aches, diarrhea, constipation, skin reaction)
• Becoming unusually rigid about everyday patterns
• Intense, unrealistic fears