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How to talk to children about anxiety and stress

Learning how to talk to children about anxiety and stress in a way that they understand is a really useful skill for parents to learn. This quick 3-minute video talks about using imagery that appeals to your child to simplify what is happening in their brain when they feel stressed or anxious. This can really help them to understand their big emotional responses and learn what they can do to calm themselves down.

When children have anxiety, it impacts the whole family. It can be incredibly hard for parents to know what to say and how to help. And, without support, children’s anxiety often escalates or becomes entrenched. It’s normal for parents to feel frustrated, worried or distressed when children are struggling – but there are parenting strategies you can learn that will make a real difference to your child’s anxiety. Find out how we can help.

The longer video tutorial on self-soothe strategies mentioned here is available to download via this link.

How to talk to children about anxiety, blog by Anita Cleare

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Words 'And breathe', Parenting expert Anita Cleare video tuorial on self soothe strategies for children

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Self-soothe strategies for overwhelmed children

15 minute video

When children are anxious or overwhelmed by big emotions, self soothe strategies can help them to calm down and avoid a meltdown. This free video explains how to teach self soothe strategies to your child and offers a variety of self soothe ideas for you to try out.

[ages 3-11yrs]

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