Struggling to understand

[Garyrandles]

We have noticed an ongoing situation over the past few months that we need to address or be pointed in the direction of someone who can help. Our 4 year old daughter has developed a strange reaction to people hurting themselves. First of all she has always been a very anxious child from a younger age. She worries and is very quiet. since she started pre-school I would suggest the problem has certainly become worse. At best she has a short attention span, and does not seem to be able to follow instruction that well. she is very creative and is doing well at school, however there is one thing that is causing us concern. When watching childrens TV or a film on DVD she screams and cries uncontrollably and goes straight to the door. The sign of someone hurting themselves or being upset leaves her in a panic and you can almost hear her heart beating. Now, you may think that this might be down to the content of TV that she is watching. The thing is that she is only allowed to watch a small amount of childrens TV during the day (when she is not at school). She screamed and cried last week whilst watching Tom & Jerry (in pre-school) and this evening whilst watching ELF. This has been going on for sometime with different things and we dont know what to do. She has a loving family network around her including myself and her mum, her little sister, grandparents etc etc so we dont know what this is. People have suggested Autism and Asperger as she does show some of the symptoms and struggles to make friends, she needs constant reassurance and has very little confidence although we encourage her in every way we can............What is going on?

[specialmom]

Hi there.  I'm really really glad that she is doing well in school.  That is a good sign.  She does sound like she has some anxiety.  I would talk to her pediatrician about it.  The thing that worries me about anxiety like this is that kids then sometimes find coping strategies to alleviate it which becomes the compulsion componant of obsessive compulsive disorder.  Kids can glom onto some actions that they do to decrease their anxiety.  The fact that she is overall doing well though is wonderful.  perhaps just turn the tv off and give her books and puzzles to do for the time being.  good luck

[Sandman2]

     Yes, this definitely is worth looking into.  Does she show any signs of sensory overload?   Avoids textures, foods, loud noises, etc.

[AnnieBrooke]

I would definitely seek help from her pediatrician and see if he or she suggests she be evaluated.  This sounds like the kind of thing that can be taken on now, to solve problems later.  But you certainly would benefit from professional guidance in doing so.