You might have this if your worry and dismay about being separated from someone is disrupting your world in a big way. “Say, if someone goes off to college and it’s really interfering with their daily life that they miss their parents, it could be separation anxiety,” Angelosante says. “You have to think about the amount of distress it’s causing. It’s not just that they’re a little anxious, but they’re getting recurring anxiety, sadness, or loneliness — and it’s getting in the way of them going to class or making friends.”

She notes that it’s also about duration. If you’re super anxious when you first move or go to a new school, it’s one thing. But if it continues for weeks or months, it might be a problem.