Teen Diagnosed As Being "Afraid to Grow Up"

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This is interesting, a boy has a fear of growing up so it leads to his eating disorder. I think they should find out why he has a fear of growing up and I wonder if he has a developmental issue so he fears growing up knowing more will be expected of him.


http://www.livescience.com/49685-boy-fe ... ng-up.html

I'm inclined to agree. That diagnosis is of no help to him unless they find the true root of the problem. I would disagree that that actually constitutes a diagnosis.

I'm still afraid to grow up....

They think he is suffering from gerascophobia, which is a fear of growing old (not up).

When I was a child I was afraid to grow up. Its because I thought teenagers start to become mean to each other and they forget important things the older they get. They start to care about unimportant things, and when people are adults they completely become disconnected.

I've thought that ever since I was 4 and thought even though we all grow up I won't let my mind change and I won't forget all the information we get given; but I gave up at age 14 and tried to be like everyone else thinking i could always go back to my old way of looking at things but in doing that I changed too.

as a teenager, i sometimes got confused for my own uncle. "is that your brother?" --"no, he's my son"...

i like how the story ended on an optimistic note.

still, the enabling mother singing him lullabies and choosing his outfits, it's more fit for a boy of 14 months than 14 years and doesn't help in any way...the root does need to be found.

Afraid to grow up... I heard that's also known as Peter Pan Syndrome. As a teen I was not happy about having to give up things I still liked as a kid because they're considered childish, but I wasn't all that interested in things I couldn't do yet because I was too young and immature. In fact I thought most "adult" things other teens wanted to do were stupid.
My mother wanted me to act like a normal teen girl, she didn't like that I still wanted to play with dolls and stuffed animals not and be interested in fashion and be more concerned about my appearance. I guess she thought I'd have an easier time at school if I did, and it wasn't like I didn't try at all, but it just did not feel natural and not myself. And I heard a very strange thing as a kid - that you should be yourself, and it's hard to have fun if you're not allowed.

I still think acting like an adult all the time is very overrated and that people who never get in touch with their inner kid must have boring, unhappy lives. In fact that must be the reason so many adults don't seem to be happy, unless they have kids of their own that give them an excuse to play with toys and stuff. That's not an option for all of us.