1Children with anxiety rely on their parents and loved ones to help them find peace from their anxious suffering. The Children’s Anxiety Institute was developed by Rich Pretsa, author of the Anxiety-Free Child Program, to be a resource and community for parents and extended family to find the information and tools necessary to guide the children and adolescents in their life through the anxiety, fear, or panic that they may be struggling with so they can reclaim their childhood and lead better lives.

Here you’ll find helpful articles on coping with child anxiety, tactics successfully used by other parents of children with anxiety disorders, audio podcasts with experts, recommendations for helpful resources, and much more to aid you and your child on your journey OUT OF excessive or problematic anxiety. You will also be able to discover more and powerful ways to help your child by reviewing our recommended resource for overcoming child anxiety.

Some anxiety is normal as children progress through life and reach developmental milestones. However, children with anxiety that interferes with their enjoyment of life, or is extreme, often need treatment or adult intervention to quell the inner turmoil they feel and prevent their anxiety in childhood from following them into adulthood and manifesting as an anxiety disorder, depression, or other mental illness.

It may be helpful to examine the questions below to determine if your child may be suffering with anxiety that needs treatment:

• Has my child’s attendance at school changed or are they reluctant to go to school frequently?
• Does my child complain of physical ailments like stomachaches before school or an event which then disappear?
• Has my child seemed unusually, unreasonably, or uncontrollably worried?
• Have I noticed a decline in my child’s motivation at school, ability to concentrate, or memory?
• Have my child’s sleep habits changed? Are they having difficulty falling asleep, staying up later or getting up significantly earlier than usual?
• Has my child been complaining of frequent physical symptoms of anxiety without any medical cause? This often includes stomach or gastrointestinal issues, headaches, muscle soreness, nausea, or excessive sweating.
• Is my child’s response to the news excessive? For instance, are they overly concerned about news of an overseas war or natural disaster?
• Do my child’s worries or fears interfere with their normal life?
• Is my child unduly self-critical or hypersensitive to criticism or negative feedback?
• Does my child seem nervous in social settings or do they attempt to avoid them?
• Is transitioning from one activity to another troublesome for my child?
• Has there been a major life event that effects my child such as a divorce, parental absence, economic change, illness, death, or other trauma?
• Do you find the need to constantly reassure your child?
• Has your child regressed developmentally, such as forgetting toilet training or other acquired skills?
• Does your child seem generally happy?
• Are there outbursts of unexplained or excessive anger with your child?

If you answered “Yes” to a significant number of the above questions, you owe it to your child, your family, and yourself to browse our website and discover additional information to help your child with their anxiety, such as our site founders incredible resource, the Anxiety-Free Child Program.

If you determine that the anxiety in your child’s life is something they need assistance with or treatment for, you have several options, each with their own pros and cons…

It is our belief that your first stop should always be your child’s primary physician or pediatrician to rule out any physical causes for anxiety and get additional advice on your child’s individual situation. If physical causes for the anxiety are ruled out, some physicians may also provide very good advice and recommendations that may prove helpful for your child. In some instances they may also suggest medications, additional tests, or referrals to a child psychiatrist, which are all important decisions that you can make in conjunction with your child’s doctor.

You may feel that traditional individual therapy may be most appropriate for your child. If you have access to a well qualified therapist, or child psychologist, this may be a very good option. The right mental health professional can help both you and your child understand more about their anxiety, what its root cause may be, and what possible treatment options are available. Some insurance plans may also cover these visits in whole or in part, you can check your insurance policy for specific information regarding your coverage. Some of the negatives with this approach is that it can be inconvenient and time consuming, requiring travel to and from the therapists or psychologists office, expensive if your insurance doesn’t provide complete or adequate coverage, and is highly dependent on the skills of the individual therapist themselves. There are many treatment protocols and schools of thought, and you may be largely limited by the beliefs and experience of the therapist you choose which may or may not ultimately be the right choice for your child. Unfortunately, this is sometimes not discovered until a great deal of time has passed, if ever.

Lastly, after a visit to your child’s doctor, you may feel that you would like to work with your child on your own or in conjunction with one of the above with a self-help program. There are many wonderful programs available for children with anxiety that can be tremendously informative and helpful for both parents and children. They can be used conveniently and privately in the comfort of your own home, and can often be obtained for less than a single visit would cost with a private therapist or psychologist. We highly recommend the program developed by our site founder, which contains a wealth of information in both audio and written format specifically designed for easy use by both parents and their children.

Click Here to Read More About The Anxiety-Free Child Program