Anxiety Disorders Center:  Separation Anxiety Disorder

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Separation Anxiety Disorder is usually seen in children and adolescents, although it can be present in adults as well. A person with this disorder becomes excessively afraid of leaving a loved one, usually a parent. Although many healthy children experience phases of development in which they do not want to leave their parents, Separation Anxiety Disorder persists for a long period of time and is characterized by extreme distress.

Common signs of Separation Anxiety Disorder include:

• Crying, clinging, or panicking when separated from parents
• Unrealistic worry that something bad will happen to parents while the child is away
• Unrealistic worry that he/she will never return home, or that his/her parents will never come back
• Difficulty sleeping alone
• Frequent stomachaches or headaches, particularly before and during school
• Refusal to go to school

Do you or your child have Separation Anxiety Disorder?	Print this questionnaire
Do you (or your child) experience recurrent, excessive distress when expecting to be away from home or from certain family members?	YES	NO
Do you (or your child) worry excessively and frequently about losing family members or about harm that could come to them?	YES	NO
Do you (or your child) worry excessively and frequently about getting lost, being kidnapped, or some other event that would cause separation from certain family members?	YES	NO
Do you (or your child) feel reluctant or unwilling to go to school or other places because of fear of separation from certain family members?	YES	NO
Are you (or your child) excessively and frequently fearful or reluctant to be alone or without certain family members, even at home?	YES	NO
Do you (or your child) frequently feel reluctant or unwilling to go to sleep without being near certain family members or to sleep away from home?	YES	NO
Do you (or your child) had repeated nightmares about being separated from home or certain family members?	YES	NO
Do you (or your child) frequently experience or complain of physical symptoms (such as headaches, stomachaches, nausea, or vomiting) when anticipating separation from home or certain family members?	YES	NO
Have these concerns last at least four weeks?	YES	NO
Did these concerns begin before the age of 18?	YES	NO
Do anxiety, worry, physical symptoms, or reluctance to be separated from certain family members cause you (or your child) to feel very distressed?	YES	NO
Do anxiety, worry, physical symptoms, or reluctance to be separated from certain family members cause significant impairment in your (or your child's) social life, school, work, or other important areas of functioning?	YES	NO

You or your child might have Separation Anxiety Disorder if all of the following are true:

• You answered YES to at least four of items 1-8
• You answered YES to item 9
• You answered YES to item 10
• You answered YES to either item 11 or 12

Note: This questionnaire is for informational purposes only and is not intended to function as a psychological or psychiatric assessment.  Diagnosis of psychiatric disorders requires a careful evaluation by a trained professional. Click here to learn how to get help for this condition at the Anxiety Disorders Center.

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