BT16 Workshop 35 - Why Calming Down is Not Enough: Active Strategies to Help Anxious Kids and Parents - Lynn Lyons, LICSW

Description:

When children and their parents are in the grips of worry and stress, it feels overwhelming and mysterious. Anxiety is a very persistent master; when it moves into families, it takes over daily routines, schoolwork, bedtime and recreation. To make matters worse, the things adults (including many therapist and school systems) do to help and console anxious children actually make the anxiety stronger. This workshop teaches concrete strategies that normalize worry and put families on offense rather than defense. The goal is not the elimination of symptoms, but the ability to respond and react to worry in a different way. Emphasis will be on the use of process-based versus content-based interventions as the key to lasting change.

Educational Objectives:

1. Identify the biggest myths, misconceptions, and mistakes that parents make when dealing with childhood fears and phobias.
2. List the seven core treatment principles that can be successfully applied to any anxiety-related problem.
3. Create two therapeutic interventions that illustrate a focus on the process of anxiety rather than the content of the fear.

*Sessions may be edited for content and to preserve confidentiality*