6 year old with obsessive worrying and anxiety

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Hi everyone. My six year old son has started in the last few months having severe, unrealistic worries. Some examples is he is afraid he will say "I wish I was never born". I tell him you have control over what you say, and even if you said that it isn't going to change that you were born. Or he will see a kid's show where someone turns into a frog and he starts worrying he is going to turn into a frog. His worrying seems to worsen on days he will be leaving my house to sleep at his dad's. He calls me crying from his dad's wanting me to pick him up. He has gotten himself so worked up in the last week that he has thrown up twice at his dad's. I feel so helpless. I hate seeing him this way. Can anyone relate or have any suggestions? We just started seeing a counselor and this week will be our first visit with my son there.

Anyone? Forgot to add my son son was diagnosed with PDD nos. Is anxiety and obsessing common in ASD?

My NT son actually has had problems with anxiety similar to yours. Through the years it has lessened quite a bit. We talk anxieties through, and gradually provide exposure when applicable to anxiety inducing situations.

I guess my advice would be don't cut him off from discussing his anxiety, but don't let him spiral. He needs acceptance that his fears are real (to him) which might help him work through things. As he gets older, he can learn more coping skills too.

That level of anxiety is not tantamount to ASD. I have another son diagnosed HFA who has few issues. He does obsess, but over things he enjoys.

Good luck.

my thought would be - has something changed recently. Once common trait is a difficulty with change - even small ones. Rather than being able to say, I have a new bus driver or there is a new person living next door the anxiety comes out in behavior that has nothing to do with the real issue.

Therapy is definitely the right step to begin with. I have a daughter who is not on the spectrum who has anxiety issues. We found that a counselor was able to help her learn ways to cope and she is slowly getting less anxious.

God Bless.

Thanks you for the replies. His dad has a new girlfriend but he happens to like her. I really think it has to do with him having anxiety over switching houses. It has always been there but now that he is getting older he talks more about not wanting to go to his dad's or not wanting to be away from me (or our dogs, or our house,etc). It's very tough. I have always had issues with anxiety so he probably gets it from me. Thanks again. Hopefully the counselor can help!

My 7-year-old AS son takes medicine for his anxiety. About 6 months ago he asked me to take him to a doctor for how much he worried.

While the medication helps significantly, I'm not sure I would have opted for that route had he not asked.

Finding coping mechanisms and life skills to deal with the worry is something that's hard to go wrong with. What helps him relax? There are a lot of different methods out there. I find it helpful to imagine the worst case scenario--and then I often realize that life would go on and I am okay. That idea would NOT work for my son.

My son tends to get worked up about something, like he can't not think about it. Even though he is a very logical thinker, logical suggestions don't help him a bit when he's worried--it's like he doesn't have his brain anymore. For him, a lot of strong distractions help. He's not to the self-help level on that yet, but we know distractions help him. It hasn't been that helpful for him to talk about his anxiety. That was a mistake we made too frequently in the beginning (because, I do think it's *okay* to be worried and I'd naturally want to validate that).

My son has less anxiety episodes when he's had a lot of physical activity, heavy lifting, and lots of contact with nature. Preferably, we find ways to get all 3 in a single activity (helping with gardening, hauling logs, hikes, etc.).

Does your son meditate or pray? Some type of spiritual activity can be really useful for reducing anxiety. My son does both. Meditating, in particular, really helps him calm himself when the anxiety is light. If he doesn't do either, but you do...try doing it more often in front of him and tell him how much better you feel afterwards.

I hope you are able to help him help himself to feel more comfortable soon. Untreated anxiety often leads to depression at some point, so it is important to address it.