The condition tends to occur in young children who have experienced neglect, trauma, abandonment, orabuse.
Most children are naturally cautious with adults they don’t know.
For the most part, a fear of unfamiliar people is healthy and helpful.
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However, children with disinhibited social engagement disorder do not have this fear.
This uninhibited friendliness can become a serious safety problem if the disorder is left untreated.
Here are three to consider.
The child’s uninhibited behavior can be confusing and unnerving for caregivers.
Research has found that children make initial assessments about an individuals trustworthiness based on that person’s appearance.
Craving Kindness
Kids with disinhibited social engagement disorder crave kindness from others.
Among peers, they may be overly familiar if not forward.
The disorder is described as severe when a child exhibits all of the symptoms at relatively high levels.
Here’s how they compare.
DSED vs. RAD
In RAD, children have difficulty forming emotional attachments with their parents or caregivers.
They often struggle to show affection, have problems controlling their emotions, and fear interacting with others.
Kids with DSED, on the other hand, are overly affectionate toward others.
While they are outgoing and friendly, they struggle to form meaningful connections with other people.
Causes of Disinhibited Social Engagement Disorder
Disinhibited social engagement disorder is resulting from neglect during infancy.
Neglect during infancy interferes with bonding and attachment.
This impairs a child’s ability to develop trusting relationships with caregivers and often persists into adult life.
Infants learn totrust their caregiverswhen these individuals consistently respond to their needs.
Children who are neglected may not bond with their caregivers.
Consequently, that child may be at risk of anattachment disorder.
In fact, many children will grow up to have healthy relationships with no lasting attachment issues.
The disorder almost always develops by the age of two.
However, disinhibited social engagement disorder may not become apparent until long after the neglect issues have been resolved.
Prevalence of Disinhibited Social Engagement Disorder
How common is DSED?
Disinhibited social engagement disorder is thought to be fairly rare.
Raising a child with disinhibited social engagement disorder can be quite confusing and terrifying for caregivers.
They may need to frequently intervene to prevent the child from interacting with strangers.
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Attachment disorders dont tend to get better on their own.
They can refer your child to a mental health professional for a comprehensive assessment.
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