Kia ora koutou, anxiety, I mean who hasn't felt anxious at some point in their life.
Tuesday, 25 September, I attended a fantastic workshop called "Overcoming Anxiety: Helping Children and Young People Find Their Brave". The presenter was Karen Young a psychologist from Brisbane. Karen knows her material, and is passionate about equipping those in the helping professions to work with children and young people who are struggling to manage anxiety.
Main ideas:
- Anxiety is a result of our amazing brain doing it's job. Children and young people need to know how the brain works so they can make sense of what is happening to them when anxiety is present. They also need to know how the anxiety is working in their body, thoughts, and feelings resulting in particular behaviours that hold the young person and their family captive. Teach the child or young person then get them to teach it back to you.
- Make anxiety approachable - it's a fierce warrior and generous protector that's taken over. This helps the young person to take charge rather than try to fight the anxiety or push it away which only serves to increase the anxiety.
- Anxiety can look like other disorders and can be part of these disorders such as ADHD, Depression, Addiction, Self-Harm, and PANDAS (Paediatric Autoimmune Neuropyschiatric Disorder). Often children and young people who are angry have anxiety.
- There are different types of anxiety but the treatment for them is the same process.
- Strategies and tools are important BUT the most important tools are breathing and mindful responding which deactivates the amygdala.
- Anxiety increases in adolescence because the first part of the brain to be re-wired is the amygdala.
- The amygdala needs sleep, especially the REM part of sleep which lowers activity in the amygdala.
- The child or young person needs to learn how to be present with the anxiety and still find their brave.
Favourite quotes from the day:
"Anxiety is an early warning system".
"You can't reason with anxiety".
"Anxiety is the working of a strong, healthy brain that's a little over-protective. It's not troubled. It's not broken. It's creative, strong, brave, intelligent, empathetic - and a little over-protective".
"Brave is pushing up to the edge of scary and doing it anyway. Brave is different for everyone. The more brave you are, the braver you'll be".
Karen Young has written two superb picture books for children Hey Warrior and Hey Awesome.
Recommended texts: The Anxiety Toolkit by Melillo Robert; Helping Your Anxious Child by Ronald Rapee et al.; Rewire Your Anxious Brain by Catherine Pittman and Elizabeth Karle.
