Child Anxiety and Depression Treatment, University of Miami

Services

Taking a Scientific Approach to Treatment
Types of Problems We Treat
What Happens When You Contact the CAMAT Program?

Taking a Scientific Approach to Treatment

At the CAMAT program, the majority of our research focuses on various types of cognitive behavior therapy for children and adolescents with anxiety and/or depression. Cognitive behavior therapy is typically a short-term treatment approach that provides skills and experiences to youth that may help to reduce unwanted fear, anxiety and depression symptoms.

Cognitive behavior therapy includes education about the various anxiety and depression symptoms a child may be experiencing, help with identifying worrisome or depressive thoughts they may be having and, primarily, support for changing the behaviors children are engaging in when feeling anxious or depressed. For example, some youth with fear or anxiety may avoid things or places that make them feel afraid or anxious. While this kind of avoidance may be helpful in some instances (i.e., when facing a truly dangerous situation), many of these behaviors are not necessary and over time may actually lead a child to feel even more fearful or anxious.

In addition, parents are often greatly involved in supporting their child or teen during the course of cognitive behavior therapy, acting as a helper and coach during the treatment process. Working together with youth and their families, the CAMAT program uses cognitive behavior therapy to help children and teens better manage situations that are maintaining their anxiety and depression and assist them in leading happier and healthier lives.

Types of Problems We Treat

Anxiety and mood disorders are among the most common disorders in children and adolescents. All children experience some anxiety or feel sad from time to time. However, some children experience these feelings to such an extent that it interferes with their family life, their school work, their sleep habits, and their self-esteem.

Unfortunately, many children with anxiety and mood disorders do not receive the help they need. In the CAMAT Program, we treat children and adolescents that are primarily experiencing symptoms of any of the following anxiety and depressive disorders:

Anxiety Disorders

Generalized Anxiety Disorder: While everyone worries sometimes, children with Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) experience persistent, excessive, and unrealistic worry about everyday things. They fear the worst will happen and they dwell on the future, their family’s heath, their performance at school, or on little mistakes they have made. These children find it difficult to control this worry, and may even feel anxious without reason. They may also experience physical symptoms, such as feeling excessively tired, experiencing nausea, having aches and pains, having difficulty swallowing, and experiencing muscle tension. Children with GAD also experience distress because they feel they cannot control the worry, and feel powerless to stop it. In severe cases, children with Generalized Anxiety Disorder can be debilitated by their fear, unable to engage in seemingly mundane everyday activities.
Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder: Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) is an anxiety disorder characterized by recurrent and unpleasant thoughts or impulses (obsessions) and resulting recurrent and unpleasant behaviors (compulsions) to alleviate the discomfort caused by the obsession. A child with OCD finds it difficult to control these thoughts and behaviors, no matter how senseless they may seem, and may have to spend a large amount of time engaging in obsessions and compulsions throughout the day. OCD may interfere in a child’s schedule and cause her significant distress. Examples of common obsessions include: fear of becoming fatally ill, fear that a loved one might be harmed, fear of germs or contamination (fear of saliva, blood, sweat, vomit etc), or intrusive aggressive thoughts. Some common compulsions (or repetitive behaviors) include: hand washing, checking (for instance to see if the door is locked), counting, or rearranging objects.
Panic Disorder (with and without Agoraphobia): Panic Disorder is characterized by recurring panic attacks and the fear of these attacks, and that they will lead to physical or psychological harm. A panic attack is an episode of intense fear characterized by physiological symptoms (heart racing, difficulty breathing, sweating) and fear ("I am dying," or "I am going crazy"). Panic attacks are unrelated to other medical conditions and are unpredictable and occur "out of the blue" without an obvious trigger.; Many children with Panic Disorder may become very afraid of places or situations where they have experiences panic attacks before, or where they think they may be likely to have an attack or would be unable to escape if they did. Children may begin to avoid shopping malls, movie theaters, crowded arenas, or other places they used to enjoy. This avoidance of places and situations is called Agoraphobia, causes significant distress, and may be experienced as a result of Panic Disorder. Other symptoms of Panic Attacks include: sweating, increased heart rate, chest pain, difficulty breathing, nausea, hot or cold flushes, dizziness or lightheadedness, shaking or trembling, fear of death or "going crazy", or numbness/tingles in extremities.
Posttraumatic Stress Disorder: Children may develop Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) as a result of experiencing a very stressful or traumatic event (witnessing the death of a loved one, being in a very severe accident, being attacked or abused). Children may experience symptoms of PTSD even if the trauma they experienced did not cause them any physical harm. Symptoms of PTSD include: re-living the trauma through memories, flashbacks or nightmares the child cannot control, avoidance, difficulty talking or thinking about things related to the event, physical stress/increased arousal, difficulty sleeping, feeling irritable or angry, or difficulty concentrating.
Selective Mutism: Selective Mutism (SM) is often thought of as an anxiety disorder in which a child who is capable of understanding and producing speech is unable to speak in specific settings, or with specific people. For instance, a child might speak freely to his parents and a close family friend, but might never speak in school or appear frozen in social situations. Although a child may experience the symptoms associated with SM at an early age (usually developed by the age of five), SM may not be diagnosed until a child enters school, and is consistently in situations where she feels unable to speak. She may use nonverbal gestures to communicate her needs, such as nodding or pointing. Other children with SM may remain motionless and expressionless until someone correctly guesses what they need or want. SM is related to Social Anxiety Disorder, and children with SM may experience similar symptoms, such as being shy and being afraid of social embarrassment.
Separation Anxiety Disorder: Children with Separation Anxiety Disorder (SAD) experience excessive and persistent unwillingness to be away from their parents, caregiver or home. They experience significant distress that interferes with their ability to engage in independent activities. They may feel like they must always know where their loved ones are, and must call to check up on them often. They experience terrible worry, and may fear that something terrible will happen to their loved ones when they are separated. They may also experience extreme homesickness, and avoid school, sleepovers, or camps. Children diagnosed with SAD may also experience physiological symptoms during separation, such as stomach aches, headaches, sweating and nausea.
Social Anxiety Disorder: Social Anxiety Disorder is characterized by a fear of or extreme discomfort in social interactions or situations. Children with Social Anxiety Disorder are afraid that people might think that something they do is stupid, or may laugh at them. They worry they will feel ashamed or embarrassed where they may experience this distress. Children with Social Anxiety Disorder may be very fearful answering questions in class, taking tests, using public bathrooms, going to group meetings, speaking to adults, or speaking up for themselves when someone is bullying them. This anxiety leads children to avoid situations where they will experience this discomfort, and this dread and avoidance can severely disrupt their life.
Specific Phobias: Specific Phobias are characterized by unreasonable or excessive fear of certain things or situations. Children with specific phobias may cry, freeze up, or get angry when they are forced to be in situations that cause them excessive fear. They actively avoid the situations or objects that frighten them and may try to alter their lives significantly (staying inside to avoid dogs or bees, never traveling to avoid planes). This avoidance can lead to severe restriction of the child’s activities and lives. Common phobias include: snakes, spiders, heights, thunderstorms, darkness, getting shots, and vomiting.

Depression

Major Depressive Disorder: Depression is characterized by sadness and depressed mood, anger, irritability and a loss of interest in pleasurable activities. Unlike the sadness that results when a when a pet or even a loved one dies, depression is a persistent feeling that doesn’t always have an easily identifiable trigger. Children with depression may typically feel sad or irritable more days than not, for at least two weeks. Symptoms of major depressive disorder (MDD) include, but are not limited to: diminished interest in pleasurable activities, difficulty concentrating, significant change in appetite and/or weight, changes in sleeping habits, or thoughts of suicide.
Dysthymia: Dysthymia is also characterized by depressed mood, however it differs from MDD in that the depressed mood is longer lasting, but less severe than MDD. Children with dysthymia experience chronic sadness or irritability more days than not for at least one year.

What Happens When You Contact the CAMAT Program?

If you, as a parent, contact the CAMAT program by phone (at 305-284-9852) or by email (anxietylab@psy.miami.edu), a research or intake coordinator will initially speak with you over the phone about the nature of your child or adolescent’s current concerns.

If our services at the CAMAT program seem appropriate for your child or adolescent, the coordinator will schedule an initial diagnostic assessment for both you and your child. This assessment will be administered by one of our CAMAT staff members. This diagnostic assessment is approximately four hours in length and involves the administration of several evidence-based assessment measures to help our staff determine the major symptoms and issues presented. After this assessment, the CAMAT staff member will conduct a follow-up meeting with you either over the phone or in-person and make recommendations for treatment. These recommendations may include treatment in the CAMAT program, treatment at the Psychological Services Center at the University of Miami or with other local providers. A brief diagnostic summary of this assessment will be provided to you following this assessment and follow-up meeting. Children and adolescents receiving treatment services at the CAMAT program following this initial assessment will be contacted directly by their assigned CAMAT clinician to schedule a first appointment.

Please note that CAMAT clinicians are highly skilled doctoral students in the Clinical Psychology Ph.D. program in the Department of Psychology at the University of Miami, trained and supervised by Dr. Ehrenreich May.