One of the biggest pain points in a caregiver’s life is transitions. You know - out the door in the morning, getting on pajamas, or setting the table for dinner.
AND if these transitions are stressful for parents you bet they are stressful for kids too! And for a child with anxiety the stress can be so much worse.
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School Breaks, House Transitions, and Travel: An At Home Tip To Ease Anxiety With Big Events10/2/2024 
Anxiety is a diagnosis that can be painful and dysregulating to both kids and families. Parents and caregivers can feel out of control not knowing how to calm the anxiety and dysregulation and oftentimes that leads parents to co-escalate right along with their kids. And if we have learned anything it is that a dysregulated adult can never soothe a dysregulated child. If you are looking for more ways to support dysregulated caregivers in the playroom grab my FREE parent guide for co-regulation HERE! 
Predictability and familiarity can be amazing antidotes for anxiety. Think about it! For most kids who worry the first or second time is the most intense, but at the end of a lacrosse season or course of physical therapy they feel like pros!
I have shared resources HERE and HEREfor some of my best tips and interventions for how to make the unknown known and decrease anxiety. And today? I wanted to share another low cost resources to help make the unknown known and increase predictability and familiarity - all for the cost of a sheet of paper! 
Did you know that our bodies are absolutely terrible at predicting exactly what will happen in a stressful situation? And anxiety is meant to be protecting - I mean, if I can attempt to predict the 342,938 possible outcomes then I MUST be able to protect myself from each one….right?
Well… not exactly. The conversation, test, or game never goes quite how you predict it will and sometimes life throws you an absolute curveball. 
How often does that fear creep in for you that kids are just telling you what you want to hear in the playroom?
This is definitely a real challenge for play therapists, and therapists that work with grownups too! One of the big challenges with kids is comprehension. They might not exactly understand what you are saying, might not want to ask questions, and just agree so you can “move on”. 
Long story short, anxiety is a result of your body deeming something in the environment or future as threatening leading it to kick into a sympathetic nervous system response where the body “revs up” in preparation to fight the dangerous thing or run away.
And in real life situations like having a pop quiz, being on stage at a dance competition, or going into a birthday party with kids a child doesn’t know - there are few times in life that running away or fighting actually solves the problem. 
As a Play Therapist I am always learning new techniques and strategies for calming and regulation in some of the most unexpected places.
Yup - sometimes it comes from Facebook, observations of families in public, or my own personal experiences. Other times these new techniques and strategies come from unrelated to therapy books or podcasts. Really - anywhere! 
Freshly sharpened pencils, a backpack of new school supplies, and that first day of school outfit all picked out. It can only mean one thing - back to school is here!
As a play therapist you know that kids either LOVE it or HATE it! And for the kids that love it - it’s easy peasy! The transition is as smooth as butter. 
Anxiety can get out of control pretty fast. Kind of like weeds in the garden that seem to grow 5 feet tall in one afternoon. And just like weeds they can shade out and suck the nutrients for the good things that we are trying to grow.
One thing you will hear nearly every session in my therapy office?
Laughter. And that says a lot coming from a therapist that works with high levels of trauma, attachment difficulties, and significant dysregulation. |
Hi, there!I'm Ann Meehan, an LPCC, 
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[email protected] | Copyright Meehan Mental Health Services 2022
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[email protected] | Copyright Meehan Mental Health Services 2022