- Feeling very sad or withdrawn for more than a month.
- Explosive, long or destructive rages after the age of four.
- Lack of interest in play.
- Severe separation anxiety.
- Talking about wanting to kill others or wanting to die.
- A belief in their own abilities to do things like fly.
- Sexualized behavior unusual for the child's age.
- Extreme, persistent irritability.
- Ordering adults around, including telling teachers how to teach or behave.
- Creativity that seems compulsive or driven.
- Compulsive craving for certain foods or objects.
- Hearing voices.
- Sleep disturbances, including not sleeping much or having gory nightmares
- Creating drawings or stories that portray very graphic violence.
Above all, trust your instincts. If anyone you know well ... a spouse, a child ... is exhibiting unusual behavior, don't ignore it. And don't accept the idea that it's just a stage. Psychotic behavior is never normal. So even if the problems seems to be fading, go get a psychiatric evaluation. Mental illness is episodic, so a problem may not be going away ... just going away for a while only to return in a more severe form.
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