Anxiety is a common challenge which can prevent your child from reaching their full potential at school and in life.
Everyone experiences some anxious feelings occasionally but excessive worry and anxiety can lead to more serious problems developing over time.
Early intervention and prevention is therefore vital.
And your child does NOT have to meet the criteria for a serious clinical disorder to benefit from an effective counselling program.
In fact, it’s all about developing skills to deal with the challenges of everyday life.
If you’re concerned about your child’s anxiety, you might like to consider enrolling them in our child anxiety counselling program.
This flexible 6-week counselling program is tailored to your child’s needs and includes university-developed, evidence-based treatment methods that help your child reduce their anxiety and learn how to gain more control over their thoughts and feelings.
The program helps your child gain insight into what causes their anxiety and empowers them with practical tools and strategies to minimise it.
Here is an outline of the program:
Week #1:
- Getting to know your child and building rapport
- Brief anxiety assessment
- Understanding anxiety – what’s “normal” vs what’s excessive
- The importance of exercise, nutrition and sleep
- Some quick anxiety-beating tools
- Action plan for next week
Week #2:
- Review of past week – what’s working and what needs more attention
- Practice and reinforce skills
- Learning how thoughts create anxious feelings
- Learning to think more realistically
- Action plan for next week
Week #3:
- Review of past week – what’s working and what needs more attention
- Practice and reinforce skills
- Introduction to mindfulness and meditation (appropriate to age)
- Identifying triggers for anxiety
- Action plan for next week
Week #4:
- Review of past week – what’s working and what needs more attention
- Practice and reinforce skills
- How to fight fear by facing it
- Problem-solving skills
- Action plan for next week
Week #5:
- Review of past week – what’s working and what needs more attention
- Practice and reinforce skills
- Building assertiveness and resilience
- Handling difficult social situations
- Action plan for next week
Week #6:
- Review of program – what’s working best overall
- Practice and reinforce skills
- Recognising and celebrating achievements
- Brief anxiety assessment
- How can I best take care of myself? (Plan to prevent future relapses)
The program draws on a combination of evidence-based methods including:
- Cognitive-Behavioural Therapy (CBT)
- Acceptance & Commitment Therapy (ACT)
- Mindfulness
- Exposure Therapy
- Modelling
- Psycho-education
- Relaxation Strategies
Research has shown that these approaches are effective in reducing anxiety when they are applied by an experienced psychologist.
Of course, every child has a unique personality and life experience so there is no single best approach to solving any problem that works for everyone.
That’s why we designed the program to provide the flexibility to focus on the specific tools and strategies that are most effective for your child.
Kids also receive a fun “anxiety-buster” kit. 🙂
If you’d like to enrol your child the next step is to hit the button below to get started: