Elizabeth came from an overprotective family who forbids her from going over to friends’ houses, causing her to fear just about everything. She would not go out when invited to sleepovers and always stuck closely to her parents in public. When Elizabeth’s parents went of for the evening, she would stay awake until they came home for fear of something terrible happening to them.

School was a stressful situation, which she often tried to avoid claiming an illness of some sort. She would worry that nobody liked her and about test and homework grades. Elizabeth was unable to concentrate and displayed fatigue during class. Through psychotherapy, Elizabeth’s psychiatrist learned of her overbearing parents and irrational fears. The clinician helped Elizabeth find positive and rational ways to deal with her anxiety and stress caused by those fears.