Separation Anxiety

What is Separation Anxiety? In regard to children it is the normal fear and apprehension expressed by infants when removed from their mothers or approached by strangers. In older children it is an apprehension or fear associated with his or her separation from a parent or other significant person. In adults it is any similar reaction in later life caused by separation from familiar surroundings or close friends or family. The adult reaction is a behavior duplicated later in life by usually sudden and involuntary exposure to novel and potentially threatening situations (dictionary.com). Normal fears are fears that we, as humans, express in reaction to situations, events, occurrences or people in our environments. An infant is naturally attached to its mother primarily due to its 9 month gestation period inside of the mother. The chemical reactions within the infant’s brain come directly from the mother’s physical chemistry. The subsequent smells, interactions and resultant comfort levels further endear the infant to the mother. When the infant is removed from the mother or someone else approaches them, their instinctual reaction is to cling to what is comfortable and secure. When the infant is removed from its comfort zone and/or security zone, it reacts with feelings that cause anxiety. Hence the act of separation from the known to the unknown causes anxiety.

These anxieties remain buried within most individuals. For example, when young adults leave for college and are removed from the family surroundings they either react to this change with separation anxiety or they pro-act with certainty. Anxiety is a state of uneasiness and apprehension about future uncertainties that causes mental tension (dictionary.com). Fear of the unknown is a secondary fear that warns us about what could possibly happen (negatively) to us. It is the Uncertainty Principle. Heisenberg’s Uncertainty Principle in Quantum Mechanics states that increasing the accuracy of measurement of one observable quantity increases the uncertainty with which another conjugate quantity may be known. In other words, the more fear you embrace, the more uncertain about your future you become. This author proposes a new Certainty Principle that states, conversely, that the more faith you embrace the more CERTAIN about your future you become. Certainty requires faith in your abilities to overcome any obstacle. Faith is the result of an internal acceptance of principles and observation of positive outcomes. It is knowing something is going to happen without any physical proof that it will happen. It is the resultant action of a contrived state that propels us into the achievement of growth and expansion.