On Tuesday 5th August we hosted a workshop by Catherine Gallagher, a clinical psychologist from the Collaborative Trust about understanding anxiety and managing emotions

The evening was well attended and some key points from the evening were:

• Anxiety is natural and normal and needed, but when out of hand it can feel scary and overwhelming.
• Anxiety happens when our body alarm is tricked into firing and so we feel fear in the absence of actual danger. It is important that parents and caregivers remember this because if we let our child avoid things then we are reinforcing that the situation is dangerous when it really isn’t.
• As parents we need to stand up to anxiety, and model that although uncomfortable, it is something that with bravery and practice children can get through.
• Too much reassurance tends to make anxiety worse in the long run. Children need to develop their own coping strategies.
• Being a kid with heaps of anxiety is tough and so although we are standing up to it (and sometimes them!!), try and remember that they also need validation for what they are going through and the efforts they are making. Parents... You need that too.