If you’re a parent supporting your child through anxiety and want to know what kind of support you could give, this post is for you.

As a teenager, I had generalised anxiety disorder, and my parents' support was one of the biggest forces behind my getting better. I want to share what they did that worked well in the hope that it gives other parents in a similar position some guidance.

I’m not going to lie and say that they got it right every single time. They were, I'm sure, just as blindsighted by the situation as I was. So I also hope that if right now you feel like your support isn’t good enough, it’ll be reassuring to read a story where parents learned how to provide support over time.

I never really liked referring to anxiety as ‘generalised anxiety disorder’ - it sounded too clinical and, honestly, a bit frightening. So, borrowing a trick from an old counsellor, I’m going to refer to it as Kevin. In fact, this is something you...

If you’re a parent worried that your child’s fears or phobias are negatively impacting their day-to-day mental wellbeing and you want to do something about it, this article is for you. 

Children often face fears and phobias, which can range from common anxieties such as animals, the dark, and heights to more specific fears like clowns, blood, or being sick. In fact, very few of us make it through childhood without any fears. For example, I used to drag my Mum by the hand across the street as soon as I spotted a big dog coming towards us.

But if these kinds of fears are starting to disrupt your child’s sleep, give them extreme nightmares, or cause them daily and debilitating distress, then they could be seriously impacting their mental health. Any fright that is persistent, intense, and causing your child great unhappiness is, of course, something that you want to help them cope with.

In this article, we’ll talk through some ways that...