scared of going to school

[jadeen]

Hi, just want to know if anyone could advise me about my daughter.She hasn't been to school for about 3 or 4 months.The very thought of going into school keeps her awake at night and if she tries to go she has panic attacks and ends up on the floor crying.There is no bullying or problems at school, and we don't understand why she feels this way.
She is currently taking fluoxetine and hasbeen taking it for about 10 weeks, but it is only helping her depression and it dosen't seem to help her anxiety.Has anyone had experience with a child taking fluoxetine, and does it help anxiety? It would be so helpful if anyone can advise me, I just don't know how tl help her anymore

[anthrokid]

Sounds like your daughter is having a really tough time with anxiety at the moment. I knwo how hard it must be for you to see her this way and not know how to help her. I know you said she is on fluoxetine and that it has helped with the depression, which is one good sign at least. Fluoxetine tends to work a bit slower in the treamtment of anxiety compared to the treatment of depression, so it's likely that it may be a little longer before you start to see any changes in her anxiety just due to the fluoxetine. May I ask if she is currently seeing anyone for her anxiety as well? For example, a therapist or psychologist? The most effective treatment for anxiety is a therapy called Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT). It is a form of counselling that focuses on changing the way a person thinks and restructuring thoughts so that you can look past the negative thoughts and change them into a more realistic or positive thought. This is obviously very effective for anxiety because one of the biggest problems with anxiety is that you automatically think of the worst or fear that something bad will happenb, even if it is extremely unlikely or even impossible. If your daughter isn't already doing some form of CBT it might be a good idea to try it out. I hope I've been able to help you out a little.