Adult agoraphobia and childhood separation anxiety: using children's literature to understand the link.
Separation-anxiety stories are frequent in children's literature and have eight characteristic elements. Peter Rabbit is used as an early and very simple example. A case study follows which illustrates the fear of separating from the family in an adult agoraphobic. The Wizard of Oz is presented as a more expanded version of a separation-anxiety story. A case study follows which illustrates a woman's difficulty with maturity and separation. A review of the literature is made in which studies are cited which indicate a history of childhood-separation problems in adult agoraphobics. Studies also show that panic disorder in these patients is often precipitated by losses and separations. Studies also show that agoraphobics may have poor problem-solving skills. Children's stories may serve as a guide to children toward mastery of separation fear. A case study follows of a man who developed a panic disorder while watching E.T. E.T. is presented as a separation-anxiety story for the late 1900s. The paper concludes with a brief review of children's separation-anxiety stories and how they reflect broad cultural changes.
Ellis
E M
EM
Gwinnett Center for Counseling and Family Therapy, Lilburn, GA 30247.
D000328:Adult; D000379:Agoraphobia / Q000523:psychology*; D001010:Anxiety, Separation / Q000523:psychology*; D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008093:Literature, Modern; D008297:Male; D009769:Object Attachment; D010553:Personality Development; D011573:Psychoanalytic Interpretation; D012931:Social Environment