3YO suffering from panic attacks

[ojokoo]

My 3YO son, about 2 months ago, started having intense panic attacks when my husband’s truck is on.

Background: I am a stay at home parent, my husband works. My 16 month old daughter stays home with me all day, and my 3 year old son goes to preschool from 7:30-11:15 M-F, and the rest of his day, he’s home with us, too.

Randomly, one day, my son heard my husband’s truck running (it’s a work vehicle and a diesel, so it’s loud), and he, for lack of more articulate terms, freaked OUT. Screaming, flailing, kicking, “TURN IT OFF!” … We tried all our usual coping mechanisms, deep breaths with Daniel Tiger songs, smell the flowers/blow out the candle, what things can you see/what things can you feel? Nothing worked. Finally, my husband turned off his truck. As soon as it was off, my son stopped screaming and took a deep breath and began to actually utilize his usual calming techniques.

Since that day, he has continued to become agitated when my husband’s truck is running. Recently, however, he has started randomly becoming convinced that the truck is running, even when it’s not. He will scream “turn it off!!” And we have a hell of a time trying to show him that the truck is, indeed, off.

My husband does travel for work occasionally, but this behavior doesn’t seem to correlate to the absences.

My son does have delays, and received speech and developmental therapy from the state for close to 2 years before being accepted into a special education preschool program through the school district.

We are at a complete loss as to how to help him get over this obsession and move beyond it. Any advice is soooo appreciated.

 

[patriotpaladin]

@ojokoo Hi, I think the first step would have to be a physical check up, and see if there is an underlying issue. Once you know the results and it turns out, there is no physical reason to it, I would get him assessed psychologically. I’m really sorry he and your family are going through this, that must be really hard.

 

[ojokoo]

@patriotpaladin Thanks, I really do appreciate it. About a month ago, we took him and found out he’d been fighting an ear infection since he’d been sick about a month prior to the check-up. I was hopeful that the issue was just the resonance of the truck and that once he was clear of the infection, the behavior would stop. Unfortunately, that wasn’t the case. I think you’re right - we will have to seek professional help.

 

[jaxon80]

@ojokoo Based on this, it's the linkage between the sound and pain/discomfort. The sound must've been very bothersome while he had the ear infection. Sounds like he will need systematic desensitization to the truck, which should be done with a professional. Have you tried putting on headphones or making sure he is elsewhere when the truck is on? Also, are you 100% certain the infection is gone? Just wondering if thats why he thinks it's running when it's not. Bc he still has some pain.

 

[ojokoo]

@jaxon80 Thanks for the response. I did go for a second appointment where it was confirmed that the infection was gone. We haven’t tried headphones, but as long as he is away from the truck when it’s on, he doesn’t usually notice the sound. He does still go places with my husband, and as long as my husband doesn’t start the truck to warm it up, he is fine when it starts up. Basically, as long as my husband is in the drivers seat, with my son already in his car seat, when the truck starts, there’s no panic attack.

However, today, for instance, my husband took our son with him to go to the pharmacy. He was totally fine the whole time, but when the mirror lights came on when my husband hit the unlock as they were leaving, our son had a meltdown.

It all just seems so strange to me. With his speech delay and me being a stay at home parent, I feel like I’ve always been able to tell what he’s saying and feeling. Now, with this, I can’t find the way to fix it because I can’t figure out the root cause.

 

[jaxon80]

@ojokoo Okay, so something about the truck starting when he is not in it? And/or the sound the car makes as it locks/unlocks?

It is definitely a unique situation. You may want to consider consultation with a board certified behavioral analyst (BCBA). They should be able to help pinpoint the antecedents and triggers for this behavior.

 

[ojokoo]

@jaxon80 Thanks, I think that’s the direction we’re looking to go at the moment. I can’t thank you enough for taking the time to respond.

 

[jaxon80]

@ojokoo Of course wishing you the best of luck!