The Blog for Parenting Anxious Kids

As parents, we often find ourselves at a loss when our children struggle with anxiety. We want to help, but it can be challenging to get them to open up about their experiences and feelings. The key to supporting your anxious child lies in asking the right questions and creating a safe, non-judgmental space for them to express themselves. In this blog post, we'll explore a variety of questions you can use to encourage your child to talk about their anxiety, as well as strategies for dealing with common roadblocks like the silent treatment or "I don't know" responses.

Understanding the Importance of Communication

Before we get into specific questions, let’s get a better understanding of why open communication about anxiety is so important. We don’t want to simply ignore it but at the same time we don’t need to ‘pander to it’ - ideally, we want our children to feel like we ‘get it’ but we also want them to build skills to help them face up to anxiety and manage it. When children can ar...

Anxiety in children often hides behind more visible issues, yet its long-term effects are profound and far-reaching.

The Rising Tide of Anxiety

Anxiety among children has been steadily increasing. According to the CDC, approximately 9.4% of children aged 3-17 years had diagnosed anxiety between 2016-2019. Recent studies indicate that about 20.5% of youth worldwide now struggle with anxiety symptoms. This rise is concerning and demands our attention.

The Silent Struggle

One of the most challenging aspects of anxiety in children is its often silent nature. Unlike physical ailments, anxiety can be hidden behind a facade of normalcy. Children may lack the vocabulary to express their fears or fear being misunderstood or dismissed. This silence delays treatment, allowing anxiety to fester and grow.

Academic and Social Impacts

The consequences of untreated anxiety extend into the classroom and playground. Anxiety can make it difficult for children to concentrate, leadi...

Ok. It's 2 AM, and you're jolted awake by a blood-curdling scream. Your heart races as you dash to your child's room, expecting to find a burglar or perhaps a particularly menacing spider. Instead, you're greeted by your six-year-old, trembling under the covers, insisting there's a scary thing in the wardrobe. Is this normal childhood fear, or should you ring the local child psychologist at this ungodly hour?

 Well, according to a recent survey by the UK's National Health Service, approximately 7% of children aged 5-19 have been diagnosed with an anxiety disorder. That's roughly two children in every primary school classroom grappling with more than just typical childhood worries.

But how do you distinguish between something that's a normal childhood worry and something more sinister? 

We'll examine this in parts...

The Nature of Childhood Fears

Before we start labelling every under-the-bed monster as a sign of impending doom, let's take a moment to appreciate the wonderfully w...

Embracing the Beautiful Chaos: A Guide for the Perfectly Imperfect Parent

Word up frazzled parents of the world! 

Let’s talk. Again. About the glorious mess that is parenting. Now, before you roll your eyes and think, "Oh great, another parenting expert telling me how to raise my kids," let me assure you – I'm not here to add to your already towering pile of guilt and self-doubt. No, today we're going to embrace the chaos, laugh at our mistakes, and maybe, just maybe, feel a bit better about this whole parenting lark.

The Myth of the Perfect Parent

Let's start with a shocking revelation: perfect parents don't exist. I know, I know, it's hard to believe when your social media feed is full of immaculately dressed children eating organic, hand-crafted lunches while simultaneously learning Mandarin and advanced calculus. But trust me, behind those carefully curated posts is a parent just like you, probably wearing yesterday's clothes and wondering if cereal for dinner counts a...

A recent article in The Lancet highlights the alarming prevalence of multimorbidity among individuals with severe mental illness, underscoring the need for comprehensive care. These are things we already knew but have now been tactfully validated by the good authors of this paper.

But to me… here’s the crux:

Prevention MUST start at home. 🏠

When children are well-connected with their families, they are less likely to fall into the traps of phone addiction, substance abuse, and youth crime.

Some Key Takeaways from The Lancet Article🗝️

• Prevalence of Multimorbidity: People with severe mental illness, such as schizophrenia-spectrum disorder and bipolar disorder, face higher rates of both physical and psychiatric multimorbidity compared to those without severe mental illness. [Go figure!]
• Impact on Health Outcomes: The presence of multiple chronic conditions significantly worsens health outcomes for individuals with severe mental illness.
• Younger Populations at Higher Risk: Younger
...

Ah, sibling rivalry. That delightful phenomenon that turns your lovingly crafted home into a WWE arena faster than you can say, "Don't make me come up there!" If you're reading this, chances are you've contemplated soundproofing your house or, on particularly trying days, wondered if child-swapping is an option. (Spoiler alert: it's not.)

But fear not, fellow parenting warriors! I, Davin Tan, in a moment of what can only be described as sleep-deprived brilliance, have penned a guide to help you navigate these treacherous waters. It's called "Stop Sibling Fighting: A Parent's Guide to Sibling Harmony", and it's absolutely FREE. Yes, you read that correctly. FREE. No hidden charges, no need to remortgage your house or trade in your favourite child.

This guide is packed with practical advice on how to transform your home from a gladiatorial arena into... well, a slightly less chaotic gladiatorial arena. Let's be realistic here, shall we?

What will you learn, you ask? Well, buckle up, b...