Panic attacks are terrifying at the best of times, so you can imagine just how afraid a child might feel when they experience them.

Recently, a parent took to Reddit to explain their nine-year-old daughter was having regular attacks. They said their daughter had “always been an anxious type of kid” but it had got to the point where she was having panic attacks daily.

“Some come and go quickly, others linger on for longer, but she is scared of anything happening to her and her health,” said the parent.

“She’s gotten to the age where she is aware of death and it’s affected her in such a negative way. We don’t watch scary anything and try to navigate away from movies and things with heavy situations, but it’s still happening to her.”

Panic disorder, which is more common in teens but can happen to younger children, is characterised by “recurrent, unexpected panic attacks and persistent concern and worry about having another attack”.

According to the American Psychological Association, “these reactions can occur unexpectedly with no obvious trigger, or they may be expected, for example, in response to a feared object or situation”.

The overwhelming advice from others was that a child should be seeing a therapist if they’re experiencing these attacks daily, and a doctor too, as one commenter said: “Many medical conditions can mimic anxiety.”

Symptoms of panic attacks in children

Anxiety is the most common referral reason for mental health treatment among children. In a recent survey of over 2,000 parents of children aged 4-17, over a quarter (30%) said their child had struggled........

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