Extreme Anxiety - tummy pains & shortness of breath

[dandeloin]

Evening All, I hope someone can help me out please. My 9yo DS has been diagnosed by CAMHS as having extreme anxiety (followed later by an additional diagnosis of ADHD). At the moment, the anxiety is ruling our lives. DS wont do anything without major protests, he almost always has a pain in his tummy caused by the anxiety, this can lead to vomiting (not always, but its not uncommon), its hard to get him into school, he's dreading his school tour later this week. He also frequently suffers from shortness of breath, his heart would be pounding and he can be very gassy (short shallow burps). He's still with CAMHS and has had CBT with them, we're currently doing an OT programme with them. I feel he got more from the CBT. He isn't on medication (yet). I'm at the end of my tether with him, he's so defiant but wont tell us why he is soo anxious. The school don't see it, he's a walking contradiction - full of fun in school, but does frequently tell the teacher he's not feeling well. I know in theory as a parent, we're not meant to get cross with him, we've been told to just ignore his tantrums but his behavior would really test the most patient person. The verbal abuse I get, he has his younger sister driven mad, everything is a problem for him etc etc. But I guess the main concern is the shortness of breath & the sick stomach that he so often complains about. Should I go further about these issues, or can anyone please advise what I should do next? Thanks so much.

[usernamebore]

That sounds really hard for you all. I am
so sorry. A lot of those symptoms can be caused by anxiety - it never ceases to amaze me how many physical symptoms it can cause. Have you looked at PDA? There are lots of resources on the web which may offer some insights.

[usernamebore]

Some of the behaviours further down in this piece, for example, sound similar to what you describe: https://www.goodschoolsguide.co.uk/special-educational-needs/help-and-advice/identifying-and-dealing-with-pda/amp

[dandeloin]

@usernamebore, that link is amazing. It pretty much describes my son to a T. The only thing is that CAMHS have repeatedly told me that they don't see any signs of him being on the spectrum for Autism, but there does seem to be a link between this PDA and ADHD. Now the question is where do I go from here... 😰I'm so exhausted from it all...

[Eyesopenwideawake]

Talk to Therese Langford of https://www.facebook.com/calmmindhypnotherapy - she works exclusively with anxious children.

[Spidertights]

Have you tried yoga? There's lots of evidence supporting it for DC with anxiety and either adhd or autism. I run a small group weekly (9 year olds) and it has been great for them.