I’ve just looked at our clinic calendars and despite us seeing 200 young people this week, our waiting lists for new clients are currently stretching out to around 2-3 months.  More than ever, there are children and young people facing challenges – and families who are looking for support and answers.

One of the major issues facing young people is anxiety.  Anxiety is the most commonly diagnosed mental health condition in children – and certainly it makes up a large proportion of the families who work with us.

Unfortunately, services can’t always keep up with demand for services in supporting kids with this issue – and getting help for children and young people who experience anxiety can take some time.

The good news is that there are many things parents and carers can do at home which reduce anxiety and worry in children – and slowly over time – increase their confidence.

If you have a child who struggles with worry and anxiety – and you are either not able to get to an appointment or not sure whether you need it yet – consider the following ideas

This week I've felt disappointed and worried about various situations.  One of my kids was sick and I was worried about him.  I had a disagreement with my partner and felt frustrated. I felt overwhelmed by my task list at work.

In other words, I'm a (fairly :)) normal human being who had a pretty normal week.  As humans, we all experience difficult times - and negative emotions - most of us at least weekly, if not every day.

One of the strategies most adults instinctively use to cope with negative emotions is to generate calm, reassuring and positive sentences to say to ourselves to give us another perspective on our situation.  I've written about this before but as a reminder, I'm talking about sentences which provide an alternative perspective to our anxious thinking.  For example, mine this week were:

Some children find family separation or other big family changes to living arrangements - pretty hard going.  They might feel sad, worried about the future, irritated, guilty or frustrated.  Sometimes these feelings creep out into tricky behaviour.

However, other children manage separation and family changes really well.  For some children, the new situation is a change for the better.  For others, they experience a "bump" but move on quickly.

Fortunately we know how to make potentially significant life events like these easier on children.  There are many different ways families manage well.  Here are some of the most common helpful steps I see families take:

"I'm fine!"

Do you hear this phrase a lot from your kids/teens - even when you suspect your child/teen is *not* actually "fine" at all?

Many children and teens find it hard to tell us how they feel when they are upset, angry, worried or embarrassed.  

This is not surprising.

It is not easy for us as adults to describe negative emotions, what might have caused them and what we would like to happen differently.   It's even harder for young people, with less developed brains - and sometimes bigger and more powerful feelings which interfere with communication skills anyway.

“AAARRRRKKGGGH”

This was (roughly speaking - I may have got the spelling wrong) the word *Josh yelled when a leaf blower was used outside our office in a session last month.  At the same time, he put his hands over his ears and ran to the corner. 

Josh hates loud noises and gets really distressed whenever they occur around him.  It’s especially hard for him when they are sudden.